According to a recent article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch highlighted by the National Roofing Contractors Association, two laborers have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against a drywall company and two labor brokers alleging unfair practices on almost three dozen major construction projects in Virginia.

The suit alleges that that the drywall company used a labor broker to provide laborers whom they treated as independent contractors instead of employees who would be entitled to wage protections and certain benefits.

The suit seeks unpaid wages, benefits, and damages denied because of alleged misclassification.

Two law firms – one in Arlington County, Va. and one in Washington, D.C. filed the suit on behalf of the two laborers and other “similarly situated” workers involved on other projects. It charges the drywall company with maintaining “many of the traditional functions of employment relationship” with the workers, including setting their schedules, supervising them, setting or influencing their rate of pay and maintaining the ability to fire or demote them.

Building owners should be cautious when hiring contractors who use “independent contractors.” If their schedules cannot be set by the contractor; if the contractor can’t train them; if they can’t be fired or demoted, then the contractor has little ability to perform any kind of quality control on the project the workers were hired for.

At Tri-State/Service Roofing & Sheet Metal Group, our work is performed by our own in-house professionals. They are paid an excellent wage with good benefits. They are trained regularly in the best practices of roof installation. And they receive ongoing safety training, to be sure they go home safely every night – and to ensure there are no needless interruptions on any of our projects.

Contact the office nearest you for more information about reducing risk with the Tri-State/Service Roofing & Sheet Metal Group.