Mike Rowe came out in defense of Chick-fil-A after one of the fast food chain’s Louisiana restaurants was accused of promoting child labor after it announced a $35 “summer camp” for young children who want to learn how the store operates from behind the scenes.
“What did we think was going to happen when we took home ec, shop, and basic financial literacy out of the public schools? Sooner or later, somebody is going to step up and say, ‘we have to inculcate these ideas into the next generation,’” Rowe told Fox Business Network on Thursday.
“If Chick-fil-A is going to be part of leading that charge, God bless them,” Rowe, who is best known for his work as host of the Discovery Channel’s “Dirty Jobs,” told Fox Business Network.
He praised the Georgia-based company for teaching children “soft skills” and “basic common sense” which is “sadly, lacking” in the youth.
Rowe was reacting to the news that a Chick-fil-A in Hammond, La. was charging $35 so that kids between the ages of five and 13 could have a three-hour session with the restaurant’s managers.
The franchise in Hammond, which is around 45 miles northwest of New Orleans, said it was offering the kids a “behind-the-scenes look” inside the fast food restaurant.
Kids who participate will receive a kids’ meal, t-shirt, name tag and snack as part of the three-hour experience.
Within 24 hours of the restaurant announcing the camp on its Facebook page, it sold out — prompting the location to offer additional dates.
A company rep said that the 200-person summer camp sold out in just minutes.
“Yay!! Child labor!!” wrote one Facebook commenter, with another saying, “THIS IS CRAZYYYY LOL.”
“This is super weird are these people trained in child care?” asked someone else, with a commenter adding, “Teach em nice and early how to be corporate wage slaves.”
“When I was a kid we didn’t go to child labor camps, we went to actual summer camp … swimming in a lake, riding horses, archery, campfires and s’mores,” Michael Thomas wrote in the comments.
But Rowe dismissed the criticism, saying it was important for kids to learn “soft skills” that will help children grow into mature adults.
He said programs like Chick-fil-A’s summer camp could help the labor sector fill its worker shortage.
“It’s not just a skill gap, it’s a will gap,” Rowe said.
Chick-fil-A, which has grown to become one of the country’s most popular fast food chains, has been criticized in years past by liberals who point out that the company’s former CEO was opposed to gay marriage.
Several cities sought to shun Chick-fil-A over its past donations to groups that were opposed to same sex unions. The company has since ceased donations to those groups.
Residents of gay-friendly Palm Springs, Calif. reacted angrily to plans by Chick-fil-A to open up a restaurant in the city.