Loan service provider fails to pay holiday wages, other benefits

Deval LLC to pay more than $288K in fringe benefits, prevailing wages to 58 Dallas workers following US Department of Labor investigation

Deval LLC, a federal contractor for loan servicing support, did not pay its employees the prevailing wages or fringe benefits they rightfully earned under the McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act, a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation has found. The company has a contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Investigators in the division's Dallas District Office determined the company violated federal law when it did not pay permanent employees and temporary employees hired through staffing agencies for health and welfare benefits or holidays. Deval has agreed to pay 58 employees $253,072 in fringe benefits and $35,593 in prevailing wages for SCA violations.

"Employers who enter into federal contracts are responsible for knowing and following the regulations governing these contracts. When they ignore their responsibilities, they not only cheat their own employees, they gain an unfair advantage over those employers who obey the law," said Cynthia Watson, regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest.
 
Deval offers loan servicing options primarily to HUD, including loan modification, loss mitigation, debt collections and assistance in foreclosure procedures. The company has also agreed to abide by the law in the future.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Lawsuit seeks to debar company from bidding on federal projects in the future

US Labor Department files suit against Northwest Title Agency to recover $230,688 in unpaid wages and benefits for 10 employees on HUD project

An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has determined that White Bear Lake-based Northwest Title Agency Inc. failed to pay $230,688 in prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits to 10 workers, in violation of the Service Contract Act. The employees worked on real estate closings for U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-owned projects in Minnesota.

“Contractors that do business with the federal government have an obligation to pay their employees the required contractual rates and benefits,” said Theresa Walls, the Wage and Hour Division’s district director in Minneapolis. “When employers fail to do so, the department will not hesitate to pursue legal action, including debarment, to ensure employees working on federally funded projects are properly paid.”

The department filed a lawsuit with the Office of Administrative Law Judges against Northwest Title Agency, Chief Operating Officer Joel Holstad and Chief Executive Officer Wayne Holstad, alleging violations of the SCA’s prevailing wage and fringe benefit provisions and seeking payment of the back wages and benefits. The company held the HUD contract from April 2010 through April 2011, with an additional option year through April 2012. The complaint also seeks to prohibit Northwest Title Agency from bidding on federal contracts in the future.

The complaint also alleges that Northwest Title Agency failed to notify the employees that work performed on the HUD contract was subject to SCA requirements. The investigation also found violations of the SCA’s record-keeping provisions for failing to maintain an accurate record of hours worked or to segregate hours for contract work from noncontract work.

The SCA requires contractors and subcontractors performing services on prime contracts in excess of $2,500 to pay service employees in various classes no less than the prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits found in the locality, or the rates, including prospective increases, contained in a predecessor contractor’s collective bargaining agreement. The department issues wage determinations on a contract-by-contract basis in response to specific requests from contracting agencies. These determinations are incorporated into the contract. Additional information on labor provisions and enforcement of government contracts is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/govcontracts/.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Malino Construction barred from bidding on federal contracts for up to 3 years

US Labor Department investigations result in more than $415,000 in back wages for workers on Detroit Palmer Park Square HUD project

U.S. Department of Labor investigations have resulted in over $415,000 in back wages for more than 90 employees performing construction work on the federally funded Palmer Park Square affordable housing in Detroit. The investigations, conducted by the department’s Wage and Hour Division, were part of a multiyear strategic enforcement initiative aimed at combating widespread labor violations on federally funded construction projects in the Detroit area, such as affordable housing construction projects funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The investigations found that Malino Construction and several project subcontractors violated provisions of the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act and the Fair Labor Standards Act. The companies failed to pay prevailing wages, fringe benefits and overtime to construction workers on the project, failed to keep accurate time and payroll records for employees, and provided falsified, certified payroll records to the government.

Due to the extent and willful nature of the violations, Detroit-based Malino Construction, the prime contractor on the project, has been debarred from bidding on federal contracts for up to three years.

“These are tough economic times for the people of Detroit, and the last thing we need is for the workers who are helping to rehabilitate this city to be denied their rightful wages and benefits. With our ongoing initiative, we are working with the Michigan State Housing Development Authority and the Detroit Housing Commission to ensure federal labor law compliance on taxpayer-funded projects,” said Timolin Mitchell, director of the Wage and Hour Division’s Detroit District Office. “The resolution of these investigations, and the debarment of Malino Construction from bidding on future federal taxpayer-funded projects, will help ensure that local prevailing wages and working conditions are not undercut by contractors who violate the law.”

Malino Construction contracted with several other companies for general construction work on the Palmer Park Square multifamily housing units in Detroit that were constructed in 2012 and 2013. On a DBA project, the prime contractor is responsible for the compliance of subcontractors and lower-tier subcontractors. Under the strategic enforcement initiative, 19 investigations focused on the companies working on the project. All contractors found in violation have agreed to comply with applicable wage laws in the future.

Prevailing wage standards provide a safety net of fair wages to workers, their families and communities, and enable local contractors and subcontractors to compete on a level playing field. The Wage and Hour Division’s Detroit office is continuing its strategic enforcement initiative this year to ensure compliance with the wage and fringe benefit requirements that apply to federal and federally assisted contracts.

The DBA requires all contractors and subcontractors performing work on federal and certain federally funded projects to pay their laborers and mechanics the proper prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits, as determined by the secretary of labor.

The CWHSSA applies to federal service contracts and federal and federally assisted construction contracts over $100,000. These require contractors and subcontractors on covered contracts to pay laborers and mechanics employed in the performance of the contracts one and one-half times their basic rates of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.

Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Enviro & Demo Masters and Gladiators Contracting Corp. ordered debarred from federal contracts

Enviro & Demo Masters Inc. and Gladiators Contracting Corp., along with the companies’ owner Jover Naranjo and foreman Luperio Naranjo Sr., have been ordered to pay a total of $656,646 to 37 workers after failing to pay them the required prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits on a federally funded construction project in New York City. Due to the extent and willful nature of the violations, all parties have been ordered to be debarred from seeking and obtaining federal contracts for a three-year period. In a separate proceeding, the owner and foreman were found guilty in federal court in November 2013 of criminal charges related to the project, including the submission of fraudulent certified payrolls to the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. They were sentenced to six and four years in prison, respectively, on April 9, 2014. They are scheduled to surrender on June 2, 2014.


“These employers deliberately and knowingly committed willful and fraudulent violations of federal government contracts law, and they cheated a largely immigrant workforce. These workers were often required to work for less than one-third of what they should have been paid, creating undue hardship for them and their families,” said Maria Rosado, the Wage and Hour Division’s district director in Manhattan. “The department will continue its effort to ensure that workers are paid the proper wages and will take action to recover payment when workers are denied their rightful compensation. We are also working to create a level playing field among employers, ensuring that unscrupulous employers that underpay workers do not gain a competitive advantage.”


Enviro & Demo Masters Inc. and Gladiators Contracting Corp. were subcontractors performing demolition work on the construction of Hobbs Court and Ciena, two federally funded affordable housing developments in East Harlem. The Hobbs and Ciena projects were part of the Metro North Rehabilitation and Redevelopment Program, which was funded in part by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 through the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal and the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.


An investigation by the Wage and Hour Division found that Enviro & Demo Masters falsified certified payroll records by deliberately omitting employees from the payroll, instead listing family members who performed no work on the project and listing wage rates that were not paid to workers. The company also failed to pay 37 workers the prevailing wage rates for their particular job classifications and failed to pay the workers one-and-a-half times their basic hourly rates for all hours worked above 40 in a workweek.


The subcontractors disputed the Wage and Hour Division’s findings, which resulted in a hearing before a Labor Department administrative law judge in June 2012. On April 23, 2014, Administrative Law Judge Lystra A. Harris issued a decision and order affirming the Wage and Hour Division’s findings and instructing the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development, which withheld the funds, to release the monies to the Wage and Hour Division for payment to the workers. The decision and order will become final 40 days after issuance if no appeal is filed.


Judge Harris also found the project’s prime contractor, Hobbs Ciena Associates LP and Hobbs Ciena Housing Development Corp., jointly and severally liable for payment of the back wages by its subcontractor Enviro & Demo Masters. On a Davis-Bacon Act covered project, the prime contractor is responsible for the compliance of all subcontractors.


The Davis-Bacon Act requires that all contractors and subcontractors performing work on federal and certain federally funded projects pay their laborers and mechanics the proper prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits, as determined by the secretary of labor. The Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act applies to contractors and subcontractors with federal service contracts and federally funded and assisted construction contracts exceeding $100,000. It requires contractors and subcontractors on covered contracts to pay laborers and mechanics employed in the performance of the contracts one and one-half times their basic rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.


Source: DOL

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Justice Department Files Fair Housing Lawsuit Against Owners and Managers of Rental Homes in Washington State for Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities

The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the owners and managers of rental homes in and near Kelso and Longview, Wash., for violating the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against persons with disabilities.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, alleges that Linda Barber, Bert Barber and Lori Thompson engaged in a pattern or practice of violating the Fair Housing Act or denied rights protected by the Act. Specifically, the lawsuit asserts that the defendants established and implemented a discriminatory policy that allowed waiver of the defendants’ mandatory $1,000 “pet deposit” for service animals with specialized training, but not for other assistance animals, including emotional support animals. The suit also alleges that, by refusing a tenant’s requests for a reasonable accommodation to waive the $1,000 pet deposit for her assistance animal, the defendants violated the Fair Housing Act.

 

“The Fair Housing Act ensures that individuals with disabilities who live with and benefit from assistance animals have equal access to housing,” said Eric Halperin, Senior Counsel and Special Counsel for Fair Lending in the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue its vigorous enforcement of fair housing laws that protect the rights of persons with disabilities.”

 

“The rights of our disabled citizens need to be protected and landlords should not engage in conduct that makes their lives more difficult,” said U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan for the Western District of Washington. “A tenant should not have to repeatedly prove they need a service animal or other accommodation, and should not face retaliation when they make a complaint to those tasked with protecting their civil rights.” 

 

This lawsuit arose as a result of a complaint filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). A low-income tenant with a mental disability repeatedly asked the defendants to waive the $1,000 pet deposit for her assistance animal and provided numerous notes from medical professionals to support her request. As a result of the defendants’ policy and their failure to grant her request, she waited for over two and a half years to obtain an assistance animal and then began to pay the deposit in monthly installments at great financial hardship. After filing her HUD complaint, she was subjected to retaliation and harassment by the defendants, and she eventually moved out of the defendants’ unit. After HUD investigated the complaint, it issued a charge of discrimination and the matter was referred to the Justice Department.

 

“Housing providers must grant reasonable accommodations needed by residents with disabilities,” said Bryan Greene, Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “HUD and the Department of Justice are committed to ensuring that everyone has equal housing opportunities and is able to exercise their fair housing rights without fear of retaliation.”

 

The lawsuit seeks a court order prohibiting future discrimination by the defendants, monetary damages for those harmed by the defendants’ actions, and a civil penalty. Any individuals who have information relevant to this case are to contact the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section of the Civil Rights Division at 1-800-896-7743, ext. 7.

 

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. Individuals who believe that they have been victims of housing discrimination can call the Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, email the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov or contact HUD at 1-800-669-9777.

 

The complaint is an allegation of unlawful conduct. The allegations must still be proven in federal court.

 

Source: DOJ

 

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

 

HUD Issues Notice On Assistance Animals And Reasonable Accomodatios For Persons With Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today issued a Notice reaffirming that housing providers must provide reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities who require assistance animals. The “Notice on Service Animals and Assistance Animals for People with Disabilities in Housing and HUD-Funded Programs” discusses how the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) intersect regarding the use of service or assistance animals by persons with disabilities.

The Fair Housing Act prohibits landlords from discriminating based on disability, race, color, national origin, religion, sex, and familial status. The ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodations, communications, and state and local government activities. Both laws contain provisions which address the use of service or assistance animals by people with disabilities. While the Fair Housing Act covers nearly all types of housing, some types of housing, such as public housing, are covered by both laws.

“The vital importance of assistance animals in reducing barriers, promoting independence, and improving the quality of life for people with disabilities should not be underestimated, particularly in the home,” said John Trasviña, HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “Disability-related complaints, including those that involve assistance animals, are the most common discrimination complaint we receive. This notice will help housing providers better understand and meet their obligation to grant reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities that require assistance animals to fully use and enjoy their housing.”

HUD’s new notice explains housing providers’ obligations under the Fair Housing Act, including the requirement to provide reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities who require assistance animals. Pet restrictions cannot be used to deny or limit housing to people with disabilities who require the use of an assistance animal because of their disability. Housing providers must grant reasonable accommodations in such instances, in accordance with the law. The guidance also describes the Department of Justice’s revised definition of “service animal” under the ADA, as well as housing providers’ obligations when multiple nondiscrimination laws apply.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires equal access for people with disabilities using trained service dogs in public accommodations and government facilities. Under the Fair Housing Act, housing providers have a further obligation to accommodate people with disabilities who, because of their disability, require trained service dogs or other types of assistance animals to perform tasks, provide emotional support, or alleviate the effects of their disabilities.

HUD’s and the Department of Justice’s Joint Statement on Reasonable Accommodations provides additional information regarding housing providers’ obligations to provide reasonable accommodations. The Department of Justice has also published a fact sheet on service animals and the ADA.

Click here to read HUD’s new notice.

Source: HUD.gov

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.

Fair Housing Month Update: HUD Takes On Discrimination Against People with Disabilities in Mortgage Lending

Happy Fair Housing Month! This year, we celebrate the 45th anniversary of the federal Fair Housing Act.  This would be a happier occasion if we could announce that we had eradicated unlawful housing discrimination. We can at least take this time to acknowledge the progress we have made.

In today’s blog, I would like to bring to your attention mortgage lending practices which the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has alleged unlawfully discriminate against borrowers with disabilities, and the relief we have obtained for such borrowers.

Read More About Fair Housing

Source: Disability.gov

This information is intended to be educational and should not be considered legal advice on any specific matter.