Tyson Foods Facing Child Labor Investigation

The U.S. Labor Department has just initiated investigations against Tyson Foods Inc (TSN:US) for using child labor in some of their slaughterhouses. The investigation was sparked by a recent report by the New York Times, which detailed some disturbing accounts of migrant children being employed by contractors that are associated with Tyson Foods. The contractor in question is QSI, a sanitation company that has reiterated that it strictly adheres to the policies that prohibit child labor. 

Tyson Foods has already announced that it won’t be requiring the services of QSI at some of its facilities anymore. By doing so, the company has shown its intention of full cooperation with any potential investigation. But the wrath of labor and child welfare advocates will surely fall on the company, which already faces enough pressure on the financial side.

The shares of the company went down more than 15% earlier in May when it announced its half-year earnings. And when the third fiscal quarter earnings came out, the company dipped a further 9%. 

The politician most affected by the issues surrounding the company is without a doubt Michael McCaul. He started building a big position in the stock in March and April when he bought $698,000 - $1,645,000 worth of TSN stock. He did trim down his position later but entered the stock again in June. He continues to have a significant shareholding in the stock and the child labor allegations are certainly not going to help him one bit.

Tommy Tuberville, who sits on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, already sold $15,000 - $50,000 worth of stock last year. John Rutherford, who sits on the Ethics Committee, also sold $1,000 - $15,000 worth of stock in 2022.

TSN stock was down over 5% for the week, closing at $51.12 on Friday.