Lowell company cited $564G

An asbestos abatement company from Lowell will be cited a $564,000 fine for violating the state’s wage, overtime and sick time laws while working on 15 public construction projects around the region, including one at Umass Lowell, Attorney General Maura Healey announced Tuesday.

Fiber Control Inc., as well as its president Bahram Safarpoormonfared, and operators Dara Chhim and Khly Sok, were cited for repeated payroll record violations, intentionally failing to pay prevailing wages and overtime, and failing to maintain an earned sick time policy, according to a press release.

The company and all three individuals have ignored the citations so far, so they have been barred from working on public works projects for a year, as of Oct. 10, according to a press release.

Healey’s office said in a press release that the company performed work on 15 public projects between September of 2017 and February of 2019, while none of its workers got the prevailing wages required in Massachusetts, and that an investigation determined the company repeatedly submitted certified payroll records claiming employees were paid prevailing wages, when they were not.

Umass Lowell had an annual contract with Fiber Control for various asbestos abatement jobs around campus, and also employed the firm to do asbestos abatement work in the mail room at Fox Hall, according to the Attorney General’s office.

“Contractors who perform work on public construction projects have a duty to pay the prevailing wage,” Healey said in a press release. “We will enforce state laws that protect construction workers from wage theft and ensure a level playing field for contractors and construction companies that bid on public works projects.”

Healey’s office said projects the company worked on while not paying workers enough were at: : Belmont Housing Authority : Cape Cod Community College

: Putnam Gardens in Cambridge

: Clinton Housing Authority

: Ripley Steam Lab in Concord : Willis Thorpe School in Danvers

: Spencer East Brookfield Regional School District

: DYS Leahy Center in Worces

: Hyannis Fire & Rescue Headquarters

: 10 Nichols Road in Framingham

: Village Hall in Framingham : Umass Amherst Tilson Poultry Building

: Umass Lowell

: Walpole Fisher Elementary

School

: Walpole Town Hall

Healey’s office said in a press release that a report the office compiled and released on Labor Day showed that the Fair Labor Division issued more than $12.3 million in restitution and penalties against employers in response to wage theft and other forms of worker exploitation in fiscal 2020.

Workers who believe that their rights have been violated in their workplace are encouraged to file a complaint at mass.gov/ ago/fairlabor.

For information about the state’s wage and hour laws, workers may call the AG’S Fair Labor Hotline at 617-727-3465 as well.