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Child workers, some as young as 12, have been employed at a metal stamping plant operated by SMART Alabama LLC, a subsidiary of Hyundai that supplied parts to the car maker's flagship assembly plant located in Montgomery, Alabama. Both Hyundai and SMART released statements denying the reports, saying they have always complied with all federal and state employment laws. The disappearance in February of a Guatemalan migrant child from her family's home in Alabama led police to discover that she and her two brothers, all between the ages of 12 and 15, had worked at the plant earlier this year instead of going to school. The children were the latest in a larger group of minors who had worked at the plant in the last few years, according to interviews with current and former employees. Labor experts believe that the recent U.S. labor shortages and supply chain disruptions could increasingly lead to children, especially undocumented migrants, working in places that are illegal and hazardous for minors. Earlier this year, Reuters had also reported on a Guatemalan minor who migrated to the U.S. alone and found work in a chicken processing plant in Enterprise, Alabama. David Michaels, former U.S. assistant secretary of labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), commented that he warned Hyundai executives in 2015 that their high demand for "just-in-time" parts led to safety lapses, and that safety issues at U.S.-based Hyundai suppliers was a recurring concern during his eight year tenure at OSHA.