NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday sued South Korean auto giant Hyundai Motor Co, an auto parts plant and a labor recruiter, over illegal use of child labor in Alabama.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Montgomery, Alabama, also sought an order requiring the companies to relinquish any profits related to the use of child labor.

Reuters reported in 2022 that children, some as young as 12, worked for a Hyundai subsidiary and in parts suppliers for the company in the Southern state.

(Reporting by Mica Rosenberg; editing by Jonathan Oatis)