Fletcher Granite Ordered to Pay Over $189,000 in Restitution and Penalties for Failing to Pay 78 Employees

BOSTON - Attorney General Martha Coakley's Office has cited Fletcher Granite Company, LLC, of Westford and its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Victor B. Castellani, age 69, of Boston, with nonpayment of wages in violation of the state wage and hour laws. The company and its owner have been ordered to pay over $164,000 in wage restitution to employees and a $25,000 penalty to the Commonwealth.

"Even in circumstance where businesses close, employees must be paid for the work that they have already performed," AG Coakley said. "Through today's action, we are seeking to ensure that Fletcher Granite and its officers will make good on their financial obligations to their employees."

In early July 2010, the Attorney General's Fair Labor Division opened an investigation into the pay practices of the company after receiving several complaints alleging that workers had not been paid for work performed. An investigation revealed that the company had failed to pay 78 employees a total of over $164,000 from June 14 through July 11, 2010.

The Attorney General's Fair Labor Division is responsible for enforcing the payment of wages laws in the Commonwealth. Workers who feel that their rights have been violated in their workplace are encouraged to call the Office's Fair Labor Hotline at (617) 727-3465. More information about the state's wage and hour laws is also available in multiple languages at the Attorney General's Workplace Rights website www.MassWorkRights.com.

The matter was handled by Assistant Attorney General Kate J. Fitzpatrick and Investigator Leah Lucier, both of Attorney General Coakley's Fair Labor Division.

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