Labor Management Foundation For Fair Contracting Of Connecticut Calls On Immediate Investigation By State Labor Department Into Possible Wage & Labor Violations By Two Contractors Working On Bolton Lakes Sewer Project

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NEWS FROM THE LABOR MANAGEMENT FOUNDATION FOR FAIR CONTRACTING OF
CONNECTICUT

Labor Management Foundation For Fair Contracting Of Connecticut Calls
On Immediate Investigation By State Labor Department Into Possible
Wage & Labor Violations By Two Contractors Working On Bolton Lakes
Sewer Project

- Foundation Director Requests In-Depth Look Into Fuss & O’Neill And
Simscroft-Echo Farms’ Mishandling of Requested Payroll Records On
Multi-Year Public Project -

For immediate release: January 12, 2011
For more information: Ron Dresner
r...@dennispr.com
860.523.7500 m 860.305.7728

(Hartford, CT) – The Labor Management Foundation For Fair Contracting
Of Connecticut, the state watchdog group monitoring public works
construction projects in Connecticut, announced today that it has
requested an immediate investigation by the Connecticut Department of
Labor into the wage and payroll practices of two of the major
contractors that are working on the Bolton Lakes Sewer Project -- Fuss
& O’Neill, Manchester, CT and Simscroft-Echo Farms, Simsbury, CT.

“We have formally requested that officials at the Connecticut
Department of Labor investigate the failure of Simscroft-Echo Farms to
file through its representative, Fuss & O’Neill, the certified payroll
records as required by state statues. Since September 10, 2010, our
monthly requests for these records have gone unanswered,” explained
James Duffy, director, Labor Management Foundation For Fair
Contracting Of Connecticut.

Under prevailing wage laws, all persons who work on a specific jobsite
must be paid the established wage rate according to their worker
classification and all records must be certified and provided to the
Labor Department. This process assures that fair wages and benefits
are provided to workers while quality construction standards are
followed.

“I am very upset about this situation and I hope the members of the
Bolton Lakes Regional Water Pollution Control Authority move to
correct this situation promptly. Unfortunately, as they say, where’s
there’s smoke there’s fire. I would just like to make sure all
workers on Bolton Lakes Sewer Project are paid according to all
prevailing wage laws. We need to make sure the job worksite is safe
and that all quality construction standards are strictly followed on a
daily basis,” stated Charles LeConche, business manager, Connecticut
Laborers’ District Council.

On September, 21, 2010, a construction worker was injured on the
jobsite when a Bobcat backed over him on Rt. 44 in Bolton, CT. For
more information about the Bolton Lakes Sewer Project, visit www.blrwpca.com.

Fuss & O’Neill, with six regional offices and employees about 300
employees, is a full-service engineering consulting firm based in
Manchester, CT. Marshall Gaston is the company’s project manager for
the Bolton Lakes Sewer Project. For more information about Full &
O’Neill, visit www.fando.com.

Based in Simsbury, CT, Simscroft-Echo Farms is a general contractor
company providing site excavation, general site development, road
construction, water, sewer and drainage services. Michael Girard is
the company’s president, mgi...@simscroft.com, phone 860.658.5790.
For more information about Simscroft-Echo Farms, visit www.simscroft.com

Based in the Hartford, CT area, the Labor Management Foundation for
Fair Contracting of Connecticut monitors and promotes compliance with
laws and regulations relating to public works construction.
Specifically, the organization focuses on issues concerning wages,
classification of workers and apprenticeship standards. Since 1999,
the foundation has been helping workers on public construction jobs
get the wages that are rightfully theirs by law. For more information
about the foundation, call 860.953.1736.

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