August 27, 2024

Construction Dive published an article entitled “How Contractors Can Guard Against Wage Theft on Their Jobsites” that highlights pervasive wage theft and employee misclassification in construction. Because of the prominent role SWACCA has played advocating against misclassification in our industry, Construction Dive reached out SWACCA for background on why wage theft and misclassification is so pervasive in construction and steps contractors and their clients can take to prevent it.

The article quotes SWACCA General Counsel John Nesse at length explaining the cost advantage that is afforded “to the contractor that chooses to cheat through employment classification.” The article also quoted SWACCA’s previous testimony to Congress in detailing how misclassifying workers or engaging in wage theft offers close to a 50% cost advantage over employees who follow the rules.

The article also highlights General Counsel Nesse’s recommendations on how contractors can avoid facilitating misclassification by vetting their subcontractors to ensure they will classify workers as employees, rather than independent contractors. Nesse explains that “if you’re subcontracting to a drywall contractor and then that drywall contractor is in turn subcontracting the work, to me, that’s an enormous red flag.” Nesse also noted that involving unions can be the “ultimate protection” against wage theft and misclassification, because having a third party working to ensure employees get what they deserve can prevent issues. 

The full article is available on Construction Dive here.

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