Scientology Accused of Targeting Kids as Young as 13 for Low-Paid Work

An undercover reporter went inside the center under the ruse of taking a “life improvement course,” after being tipped off about the teen workers by a former senior staff member who worked at HAPI from 2024 through early 2026.

Amir Essalhi claimed that in 2024, three high-ups returned to Edinburgh after spending three years studying at Scientology’s main campus in Clearwater, Florida. They arrived armed with orders to dramatically boost the church’s staffing levels as part of an aggressive worldwide expansion push.

Within a few months, Essalhi claimed he was given a 100-hour-a-week workload that caused the then-18-year-old to drop out of school.

“About the same time the church began recruiting minors from among the children of members of the community,” the article claimed, with Essalhi alleging that “several of the children were reluctant to join but were persuaded to do so over the course of several meetings with senior executives who flew in from the U.S.”

“Scientology can’t recruit people. The buildings are empty, and they can’t get enough staff members,” Essalhi told the outlet about the Church’s plunge in membership.

“So the strategy goes into internal recruitment. (They think) ‘Well, what if I can get my mum involved? What if I can get my cousin involved? What if I can get my nephew, my daughter, my whatever?'”

In an “Application for Active Participation and Religious Pledge,” recruits commit to either two-and-a-half or five years of “actively forwarding the work of the church.”

A separate document spelling out the demands placed on “staff members” details their working hours and pay — while also containing the unusual requirement that employees have no ties to “intelligence agencies either by past history or immediate familiar connections.”

Payroll data obtained by The Times reportedly revealed the eye-poppingly low sums being handed to church staffers, with the highest weekly “wage” recorded during one week in January coming in at roughly $337. Even more startling, some workers — including minors — were paid as little as $84 for the week.

HAPI reportedly has just 25 “staff members” on its books, with a staggering four of them children under the age of 16, according to The Times.

Once children were recruited and joined the “staff,” a smiling photo of each holding their signed contract was shared on HAPI’s WhatsApp group for staff members. They were allegedly asked to write gushing endorsements about working for the Church, which were then splashed across promotional materials to entice others to sign up.

“I think being on staff is one of the best things anyone could do! I’m so thankful to LRH (Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard) for all his amazing work; thanks to him, I know there is a way to solve things,” a then-14-year old reportedly wrote.

The paper noted she is now 16 and works as a Church recruiter.

One former staffer claimed a girl who joined the church’s workforce at just 14 — and is now 15 — was handed the eyebrow-raising title of “Medical Liaison Officer.” The teen allegedly gives massages to adult male staffers and members of the public as part of Scientology’s pseudo-medical practice known as a “nerve assist.”

The Church of Scientology denied the claims in The Times‘ investigation.

Lawyers also took issue with Essalhi’s claims that he had worked for up to 100 hours a week, saying he had “betrayed” church staff by “engaging in covert and deceptive behavior.”

Essalhi tried reporting the Church’s forced labor to police in Scotland, who determined there was a lack of evidence.

In June, he and a group of fellow ex-Scientologists took their fight all the way to 10 Downing Street, delivering a petition to the prime minister’s official residence demanding the government investigate the church over explosive allegations of coercive control, abuse and forced labor.