U.S. Department of Labor Recovers $125,348 for 14 Employees Of Connecticut Company Working on Federal Construction Contracts

HARTFORD, CT – An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has resulted in the payment of $125,348 in back wages to 14 employees of Gilliam Co. LLC who performed hangar renovation work in Massachusetts, at the U.S. Coast Guard Base in Bourne and at Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield.

WHD investigators found that Gilliam Co. LLC of North Franklin, Connecticut, and owner Jeffrey A. Gilliam Sr. violated the pay and fringe benefits provisions of the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (DBRA) by failing to make required fringe benefits payments - chiefly 401(k) contributions - for employees. Gilliam also took payroll deductions from employees for a non-existent vacation fund, failed to pay employees for their last two weeks of work at the Westfield project, and submitted falsified certified payroll records.

Gilliam and his company agreed to be debarred from future federal construction contracts.

“No company should gain an economic advantage by paying workers below the wages and fringe benefits required on a prevailing wage project,” said David R. Gerrain, Wage and Hour Division District Director in Hartford. “Not only does this practice undercut what the workers involved are legally owed for their work, it results in unfair competition for those who play by the rules.”

WHD obtained a waiver from Gilliam that allowed the projects’ general contractor, Cutter Enterprises LLC, to pay the back wages in full to the employees. On a DBRA project, the prime contractor is responsible for the compliance of subcontractors and lower-tier subcontractors.

The DBRA applies to contractors and subcontractors working on federally funded or assisted contracts in excess of $2,000 for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works. Contractors and subcontractors must pay their laborers and mechanics no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits for corresponding work on similar projects in the area.

Employees and employers with questions or concerns about the DBRA, the Fair Labor Standards Act, or other laws enforced by the Division, may call -866-4-USWAGE, or by email. Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd the site includes a search tool to learn whether you may be owed back wages collected by the Division.