- Office of Attorney General Maura Healey
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Emalie Gainey
Boston — A West Bridgewater construction company has been cited more than $54,000 in restitution and penalties for violating the state prevailing wage, overtime and record keeping laws, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.
I.W. Harding Construction Company, Inc. (I.W. Harding) and its owner, James E. Shalek, of North Easton, were cited for failing to pay the proper prevailing wage, failing to pay overtime, failing to submit true and accurate certified payroll records and failing to furnish true and accurate payroll records to the AG’s Office with regard to 11 public works construction projects throughout Massachusetts.
“Companies can’t cheat their employees out of their proper wages in order to gain an unfair advantage over their competitors,” said AG Healey. “Prevailing wage laws are in place to ensure there is a level playing field for those who work on our public projects.”
The AG’s investigation revealed that between March 2013 and August 2014, I.W. Harding failed to pay its salaried employees the state required prevailing wage on public construction projects, failed to pay overtime, and failed to submit true and accurate certified payroll records to the awarding authorities on 11 public works projects.
The 11 public works projects include:
- City of Newton infrastructure improvement – Hammond Pond Parkway
- Town of Milford roadway improvements
- City of Fall River transmission system improvements at Watuppa Pond
- Town of Norwood Taxiway C Reconstruction
- Natick MBTA Station Drainage Project
- Town of Easton roadway improvements
- Town of Westport East Beach Road improvements
- Mass Convention Center Authority – BCEC D Street Parcel Landscape Improvements
- Town of Wareham – Village Streetscape Project
- Town of Weston – Case Campus Master Plan
- Town of Norwell – Stetson Meadows Cemetery
Under the Massachusetts Prevailing Wage Law, contractors and subcontractors engaged in public construction projects must pay their employees a special minimum wage, which is based on the occupational classification for the type of work the employees perform. A salaried employee’s weekly wages must be sufficient to meet the prevailing wage obligation for all hours worked. Employers may take deductions from employees’ prevailing wages to pay for contributions to certain bona fide benefit plans, including retirement plans such as 401(k) plans.
The AG’s Fair Labor Division is responsible for enforcing the laws regulating the payment of wages, including prevailing wage, minimum wage and overtime laws. Workers who believe 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.
This matter is being handled by Assistant Attorney General Erik Bennett and was investigated by Inspector Tom Lam, both of Attorney General Healey’s Fair Labor Division.
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