Comptroller Lander’s Office Hits $15 Million Mark in Securing Back Wages for Workers

New York, NY— On Labor Day, the New York City Comptroller’s office announced that it recovered $15 million for workers whose employers failed to pay them prevailing wages and benefits since the start of Comptroller Lander’s term in 2022. This total includes a settlement reached this month for over $855,000 for 22 workers who renovated and rehabilitated police precincts citywide and at the NYPD’s headquarters at 1 Police Plaza, as well as two for over $3 million for subway cleaners during the pandemic.  

“Because of the hard work of my office, we have recovered $15 million for thousands of New York City workers who worked hard to renovate our NYPD precincts and bus depots, build our schools, clean our subways, and staff our apartment buildings, but were cheated out of the prevailing wages they were owed” said Comptroller Brad Lander. “These are hardworking New Yorkers who keep our city running our city and deserve every penny they rightfully earned. My office works hard to have their backs every day – and we have no intention of stopping now.”  

“When companies deny workers their rightful wages, they undermine labor standards and fairness,” said Claudia Henriquez, Director of Workers’ Rights at the Comptroller’s Bureau of Labor Law. “This settlement with ICP Construction is a testament to our commitment to fair pay for the New Yorkers who work tirelessly to build and improve our city. Every settlement should serve as a reminder that contractors doing business with the city must adhere to prevailing wage laws, and companies that neglect to pay their workers will be held accountable. We are proud to reach the $15 million benchmark under Comptroller Lander.” 

Construction and other workers on City-funded projects are required to be paid prevailing wages and benefits as set forth in the Comptroller’s Prevailing Wage Schedule. The Comptroller’s Bureau of Labor Law determined that from October 22, 2018 through November 24, 2020, ICP Construction and their prime contractor CLS Project Solutions failed to pay their workers prevailing wages as required by law for the bathroom renovation work at 1 Police Plaza, resulting in an underpayment of $645,971. BLL reached a settlement providing for $645,971 in underpayment, $117,715 in interest to workers, and $91,642 in civil penalty to the City for a total of $855,328.42. 

Earlier this month, the Bureau of Labor Law reached a groundbreaking settlement of $3 million with two MTA subcontractors, Fleetwash and LN Pro, that hired subway cleaners during COVID-19 but did not pay them the prevailing wage.  

Under the New York Labor Law, the New York City Comptroller sets and enforces prevailing wage laws for public works projects and City-owned properties in the City of New York. The New York Labor Law requires that prevailing wages and supplemental benefits be paid to employees on certain publicly funded projects, including construction workers, building service workers, and temporary office workers.   

Investigator Rudolpho Donawa conducted the investigation of ICP Construction under the supervision of Francisco Gonzalez, Director of Investigations, and Jose Quiroz, Deputy Director of Investigations. Ilona Stadnicka, Auditor, performed the audit of underpayments under the supervision of Stuart Rimmer, Director of Audit.  Supervising Attorney Amy Luo negotiated the settlement. Claudia Henriquez, Director of Workers’ Rights oversees the Bureau of Labor Law. 

For a list of all settled cases and workers rights information, visit https://comptroller.nyc.gov/services/for-the-public/workers-rights/overview/ 

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