Wage Theft is the illegal and unethical practice of employers withholding workers full wages and/or benefits they are entitled to. In the construction industry, this practice is a particular problem due to the nature of the work, the payment structures and timelines, and sometimes exploitative employment practices.
Sometimes age theft is as straightforward as the outright withholding of a paycheck, but it can take several other forms including:
Non-payment or Underpayment: Employers may fail, or under pay, pay employees the agreed-upon wage. This could be classifying a worker as a common laborer despite them using heavy machinery or tools that would prompt higher wages for that work.
Prevailing Wage Violations: In cases where Prevailing Wage laws apply (i.e. Davis-Bacon Law), contractors may fail to pay construction workers the assigned prevailing wage rates for public works projects.
Overtime Violations: Construction workers are often required to work long hours, and employers may fail to pay the legally mandated overtime rates for extra hours worked.
Misclassification: Employers may misclassify construction workers as independent contractors rather than employees, depriving them of certain benefits and protections.
Piece-Rate Pay Abuses: Paying construction workers based on the quantity of work done (piece-rate) without ensuring that it meets or exceeds minimum or prevailing wage requirements.
Unreimbursed Expenses: Failing to reimburse workers for legitimate job-related expenses, such as tools or travel costs.
Implementing a Wage Assurance program is an efficient way to protect against wage theft without adding the extra headache of tracking down subcontractors for proof of payment. There are some laws in place to protect against wage theft, such as the Davis-Bacon Act, but that only applies to a small segment of industry projects, leaving a critical gap in the fight against wage theft.
BMAC works with owners, general contractors, and specialty contractors to establish Wage Assurance programs to verify workers on their projects are receiving fair, accurate compensation for their work. BMAC works with you to establish a verification program by leveraging commonly-used technology and software tools and suggest improvements to protect against any potential litigation.
For more information about how BMAC can help you protect against wage theft with a Wage Assurance program, send us an email.
