Press Release  New York-Based Cleaning Company and Owner Cited for Labor Violations

BOSTON — A New-York based cleaning company and its owner have been issued citations totaling over $65,000 for a range of state labor law violations, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.  

MP Star Professionals LLC d/b/a Cleaning Pros, and its owner, Christian Perez, have been issued citations for failure to pay wages, failure to furnish payroll records, failure to permit employees to earn and use sick time, failure to pay overtime, forcing workers to pay for their own supplies, and for wrongly classifying employees as independent contractors.  

“This company broke our state’s strong labor laws and targeted workers with language barriers in order to make a profit,” said AG Healey. “My office will continue to advocate for all workers across Massachusetts by seeking rightful compensation for the workers who have been impacted by this company’s unlawful actions.” 

The AG’s Fair Labor Division began investigating MP Star following complaints from workers who were referred by La Colaborativa and Metrowest Worker Center/Casa del Trabajador/Casa do Trabalhador, alleging non-payment of wages, overtime violations, and worker misclassification.   

As part of the investigation, the Fair Labor Division issued multiple payroll demands to MP Star, which failed to produce records in relation to workers’ hours and pay. As a result, self-reported records from workers were used to perform an extensive audit. The audit determined that MP Star failed to pay wages to employees, failed to reimburse workers for the cost of cleaning supplies, failed to pay overtime for all hours worked beyond 40 in a week, prevented workers from accessing earned sick time and, in some instances, retaliated against workers for calling in sick by not assigning them work.  

MP Star also misclassified workers as independent contractors. Under Massachusetts state law, all workers are presumed to be employees, unless employers can demonstrate that the work is done without the direction and control of the employer, is performed outside the usual course of the employer’s business and is performed by someone who has their own independent trade or business. MP Star failed to show that the workers were properly classified as independent contractors. 

Additionally, in a related case, the AG’s Office cited Florida-based CorpHousing Group, Inc. $15,000 for its for failure to furnish records to the AG’s Office. CorpHousing Group frequently contracted with MP Star. MP Star workers regularly cleaned Boston-area properties managed by CorpHousing Group, Inc. with CorpHousing Group employees providing oversight of their work. Records showed that over a six-month period in 2021, CorpHousing Group paid just under one million dollars to MP Star and Christian Perez for cleaning services.    

The Fair Labor Division frequently encounters wage violations in the cleaning industry. Through the course of the investigation, it was determined that MP Star frequently targeted Spanish-speaking women due to language and cultural barriers that can make it more difficult for these employees to assert their rights.  

Workers who believe that their rights have been violated in their workplace are encouraged to file a complaint at www.mass.gov/ago/fairlabor. For information about the state’s wage and hour laws, workers may call the AG’s Fair Labor Hotline at (617) 727-3465 or go to www.mass.gov/ago/fairlabor for materials in multiple languages including Spanish and Portuguese. The AG’s Office reminds employers that it advocates on behalf of all workers in Massachusetts, regardless of immigration status. The AG’s Office offers an Advisory on the Rights of Immigrant Workers, which has been translated into multiple languages. 

To read this press release in Spanish, please click here. 

To read this press release in Portuguese, please click here. 

This case was handled by Assistant Attorney General Justin Polk and Investigator Christina Proietti, with assistance provided by Investigator Kimberly Lampereur, all from the AG’s Fair Labor Division. 

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