Drivers working on highway construction projects in Massachusetts say they're not getting paid what the law requires, and that the government is ignoring their complaints.
The Boston Globe reports that state Attorney General Thomas Reilly has not acted on more than 300 complaints from truckers alleging that they have been paid far less than the wages called for by the state's prevailing wage law.
The law requires that a minimum level of hourly wages and benefits be paid to workers in several categories, including truck drivers. Some complaints filed with the attorney general's office said drivers were paid as little as $10.50 an hour, while the prevailing wage required by the law is about $31.50, including health and pension benefits.
A spokesman in Reilly's office said it was "not a widespread problem."
Robert Prezioso, deputy director of the state's Department of Labor and Workforce Development, told the paper he finds that hard to believe. His department used to enforce the law, but since 1993 has only handled administrative aspects such as setting the actual compensation levels.
Since Reilly become attorney general in early 1999, there have been no civil or criminal actions taken based on truckers' complaints that they were not getting the prevailing wage. Reilly's predecessor, Scott Harshbarger, took allegations of truckers working on the huge "Big Dig" project in Boston before a grand jury, which returned 90 indictments against 23 individuals and companies. As a result, the Big Dig project appropriated about $20 million to make sure that contractors paid the legal amount. Current allegations involve some Big Dig cases, but they are mostly related to other work on state highways and local roads.
The Boston Globe reports that state Attorney General Thomas Reilly has not acted on more than 300 complaints from truckers alleging that they have been paid far less than the wages called for by the state's prevailing wage law.
The law requires that a minimum level of hourly wages and benefits be paid to workers in several categories, including truck drivers. Some complaints filed with the attorney general's office said drivers were paid as little as $10.50 an hour, while the prevailing wage required by the law is about $31.50, including health and pension benefits.
A spokesman in Reilly's office said it was "not a widespread problem."
Robert Prezioso, deputy director of the state's Department of Labor and Workforce Development, told the paper he finds that hard to believe. His department used to enforce the law, but since 1993 has only handled administrative aspects such as setting the actual compensation levels.
Since Reilly become attorney general in early 1999, there have been no civil or criminal actions taken based on truckers' complaints that they were not getting the prevailing wage. Reilly's predecessor, Scott Harshbarger, took allegations of truckers working on the huge "Big Dig" project in Boston before a grand jury, which returned 90 indictments against 23 individuals and companies. As a result, the Big Dig project appropriated about $20 million to make sure that contractors paid the legal amount. Current allegations involve some Big Dig cases, but they are mostly related to other work on state highways and local roads.
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