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Feds Want FLDS-Tied Contractor To Pay Back Wages To Kids

Federal labor lawyers want a judge to order a contracting company with ties to a polygamous sect to pay at least $200,000 in back wages to children who weren't paid for picking pecans.

U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell will consider penalties at a hearing Friday in Salt Lake City. Campbell sided with federal labor lawyers in June when she ruled Paragon Contractors sent kids as young as 6 to the harvest to work long hours in the cold in 2012.

Prosecutors also want the company to be monitored by an independent overseer for years.

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Paragon attorneys say the government's proposed punishments are overreaching.

The government says the company has deep connections to the sect led by Warren Jeffs and was under pressure to make money for its leaders.