Hawaii Maritime Repair Company to Pay $239,380 Due to 47 Employees After U.S. Department of Labor Finds Davis-Bacon Act Violations

HONOLULU, HI – A Honolulu, Hawaii, maritime repair company will pay $239,380 to 47 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found the employer failed to pay the prevailing wages required for work performed on a government-funded contract at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.

WHD investigators found Pacific Shipyards International LLC erroneously classified workers as laborers while they performed the duties of more highly skilled and higher paid positions such as boilermakers and painters. As a result, the employer failed to pay employees the correct prevailing wage rates for those job classifications as required under the Davis-Bacon Act (DBA).

"Employers must pay the required prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits stipulated in the government contract for the trade work performed at a federally funded job site," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Terence Trotter, in Honolulu, Hawaii. "We urge all employers to use the tools we offer to help them avoid violations and understand their responsibilities."

Working under a DBA-covered contract, Pacific Shipyards International made repairs on a caisson at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on Oahu, Hawaii. A caisson is a large watertight chamber used to enclose a ship during vessel repairs.

WHD provides employers with compliance assistance resources related to the Davis-Bacon Act and the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts. For more information about federal regulations on government contracts and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the Division's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at www.dol.gov/whd including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by WHD.

WHD's mission is to promote and achieve compliance with labor standards to protect and enhance the welfare of the Nation's workforce. WHD enforces Federal minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act. WHD also enforces the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, wage garnishment provisions of the Consumer Credit Protection Act, and a number of employment standards and worker protections as provided in several immigration related statutes. Additionally, WHD administers and enforces the prevailing wage requirements of the Davis Bacon Act and the Service Contract Act and other statutes applicable to Federal contracts for construction and for the provision of goods and services.

The mission of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.