From the Department of Labor: Judge Upholds Findings that Maryland Subcontractor Denied Full Payment to Workers on Federally Funded Project

According to recent information provided the U.S. Department of Labor, an administrative law judge has upheld findings that a concrete subcontractor in Bowie, Maryland violated federal regulations by improperly classifying workers on a federally funded affordable housing project in the District of Columbia. The investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division revealed that V&V Construction Inc. and its owners wrongly classified journey workers as skilled laborers, resulting in underpayment for overtime hours.

The investigation found that the employers paid workers a split rate, compensating them for 25 hours per week as full journey workers and 15 hours per week as skilled laborers, which led to incorrect payment of prevailing wages and fringe benefits. Additionally, V&V Construction was found to have submitted falsified payroll records and failed to display required worksite posters.

The DOL explained further that in August 2018, V&V Construction’s workers performed concrete installation for the Liberty Place Apartments project in northwest Washington, serving as a subcontractor to Hamel Builders of Washington LLC, the project’s prime contractor.

The Wage and Hour Division determined that V&V Construction and its owners owed $195,492 in back wages to 55 workers due to violations of the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts. However, the company failed to make the payments and requested a hearing with the Office of Administrative Law Judges. Eventually, the department’s Office of the Solicitor reached a settlement with the employers to resolve the matter without further litigation (dol.gov, 2024).