DOL Recovers $877K in Wages, Benefits for Employees Underpaid By NY Contractors

The U.S. Department of Labor recovered a total of $877,834 in back wages and fringe benefits from three Long Island contractors for 36 employees who were underpaid for their work on two New York projects funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

According to a DOL press release, the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development conducted initial investigations of Discover Electric Inc., EMG Industrial Chimney Inc. and QNCC Electrical Contracting Corp., finding each violated the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts. The three subcontractors subsequently appealed the city’s findings.

The DOL reported that after HUD concurred with the original findings, the contractors still refused to pay and HUD referred the findings to the department’s Wage and Hour Division. The division’s independent investigations confirmed the contractors’ DBRA violations as follows:

• Discover Electric Inc., a Rockville Centre electrical contractor, categorized 11 employees improperly as jobbers, maintenance and repair workers rather than as electricians, paying them less than the required prevailing wages and benefits for electricians. The division determined the employer owed the affected employees $43,984 in wages and $550,321 in fringe benefits.
• EMG Industrial Chimney Inc., a West Babylon construction contractor, failed to pay $69,252 in required prevailing wages and fringe benefits to 21 employees categorized improperly as service fitters rather than for their work as insulators and sheet metal workers.
• QNCC Electrical Contracting Corp., a Port Washington contractor, failed to pay full fringe benefits to four apprentices, an explicit DBRA requirement when, as here, an applicable apprenticeship program does not specify fringe benefits. The division recovered $214,277 in fringe benefits owed to the affected employees.

“The Wage and Hour Division works closely with agencies such as the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development to enforce the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts and ensure that workers are paid full wages and benefits,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Jorge Alvarez in New York. “These cases demonstrate that employers cannot circumvent their legal obligations or avoid paying the wages and benefits rightfully due to their employees on federally funded construction projects.”

All three contractors agreed to comply with the Davis-Bacon Act and Davis-Bacon and Related Acts in all future contracts that are subject to the acts.

“Workers deserve fair compensation for their labor,” said U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Regional Administrator Alicka Ampry-Samuel in New York. “HUD works closely with federal, state, and local agencies to ensure that companies receiving federal funds comply with Davis-Bacon wage requirements. Everyone deserves to be paid fairly. At a time when we face a housing shortage, it’s crucial to support workers who are helping to expand the supply of affordable housing.”

The investigations identified violations by Discover Electric and EMG Industrial Chimney at a 463 West St. worksite and at a QNCC Electrical Contracting Corp. worksite at 10 Monroe St., both in New York City.

The division’s New York City District Office conducted the investigations.

Source: Department of Labor