Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healy
The state Attorney General’s Office issued 165 civil citations against 66 construction companies in wage theft and other cases in 2018, with fines totaling $1.23 million. Restitution exceeded $1.47 million for more than 1,030 employees of the various employers, the AG’s office said in a statement.
“Workers in the construction industry are particularly vulnerable to wage theft from dishonest contractors who cheat their workers,” Attorney General Maura Healey said in a statement. “As Massachusetts undergoes a historic construction boom, my office will continue to fight for exploited workers and ensure they are paid the wages they earn.”
Violations in these cases included the failure to pay proper wages, failure to pay overtime, retaliation and failure to furnish records for inspection. For work performed on public construction projects, violations included failure to pay the prevailing wage, failure to submit true and accurate certified payroll records and failure to register and pay apprentices appropriately.
The AG’s Office announcement named some of the companies cited in 2018:
- ERA Equipment LLC and its owners Angelo and Kristen Ciardiello were cited more than $585,000 in restitution and penalties for failure to pay prevailing wage and proper overtime with specific intent, failure to keep true and accurate payroll records, failure to provide suitable paystubs with specific intent, and failure to make timely payment of wages.
- EJ Paving Co. Inc. and its President Thomas Evangelista were cited more than $172,000 for failure to pay proper overtime.
- J. Donlon and Sons Inc., Joseph M. Donlon Sr., and his two sons, Joseph M. Donlon Jr. and Sean Donlon, were ordered to pay more than $121,000 for intentionally failing to pay prevailing wage, failing to submit true and accurate certified payroll records, failing to pay the state minimum wage, and failing to maintain true and accurate general payroll records.
- Moccia Concrete Construction LLC and its managers Andrea and John Heikkinen were cited more than $67,000 in restitution and penalties for misclassification of an employee as an independent contractor, failure to pay prevailing wage, failure to submit certified payroll records to the awarding authority on a weekly basis, and failure to furnish true and accurate payroll records to the AG’s Office.
- Gemstone LLC and its manager Cameron Jewell were cited more than $45,000 for failing to pay the proper prevailing wage and failing to pay overtime for work performed at a Massachusetts Department of Transportation project in Springfield.
