Louisiana Electrical Contractor Pays $22,501 in Back Wages After U.S. Department of Labor Finds Failure to Pay Fringe Benefits

BATON ROUGE, LA – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Linx Electric has paid $22,501 in back wages to nine employees for violating the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (DBRA).

WHD investigators determined Linx Electric performed work as a subcontractor for the U.S. General Services Administration on a federal contract for construction at the Federal Courthouse in Baton Rouge, Louisiana which made the work subject to DBRA prevailing wage requirements. The company paid workers the prevailing hourly wages but failed to pay the hourly fringe benefits also required by the DBRA. Additionally, the company failed to maintain some timekeeping records required by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

“Contractors working on federal contracts must pay their employees no less than the local prevailing wages and fringe benefits that the law requires,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Troy Mouton, in New Orleans, Louisiana. “The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to safeguarding the American workforce and leveling the playing field for law-abiding employers. We encourage employers with questions about how to meet their contractual obligations to contact the Department for assistance.”

The DBRA requires contractors and subcontractors performing work on federal and certain federally funded projects to pay employees prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits as determined by the U.S. Secretary of Labor and as included in their contracts.

For more information about the FLSA, DBRA, and the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd.

The mission of WHD 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 paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave requirements of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, 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.