November 2009

Labor Department Says City of Lebanon Violated Wage Laws

The Missouri Labor Department’s duties include ensuring that the state’s labor laws are followed, and providing wage protection for workers. In addition, the Department ensures workers are paid the correct wages for the work they perform.

An audit conducted by State Auditor Susan Montee last year, led the Missouri Labor Department to believe the city of Lebanon has violated the prevailing wage law based on how it paid its workers.

“Our investigation revealed that the city of Lebanon hired and paid temporary workers at a lower wage rate than permanent workers made,” said Amy Susan, Communications Director for the Missouri Labor Department. “Missouri Labor Law states that workers working on public works projects must be paid the prevailing wage for the type of work they perform,” Susan added.

Montee’s audit found the city of Lebanon awarded projects to contractors with the understanding that construction workers on these projects would become temporary city workers. That agreement put workers at lower wage and benefits levels than prevailing wage standards established for the industry.

Missouri's Prevailing Wage Law establishes a minimum wage rate that must be paid to workers on public works construction projects in Missouri. The prevailing wage rate differs by county and occupation, but workers must be paid at least the prevailing wage for the type of work they perform, as established by law. The Missouri Code of State Regulations Chapter 3, 8 CSR 30-3.060 lists Occupational Titles for different types of tasks in the construction of a public works project in Missouri.

Once the audit findings became public, the Labor Department requested that the Laclede County Prosecutor file criminal charges against the city. Recently, no charges have been filed against the city of Lebanon.

The Department aggressively investigates all wage complaints and has a 90 percent success rate in getting workers their wages owed. If you feel an employer may have violated Missouri’s Prevailing Wage Law, visit www.labor.mo.gov/dls/forms/PW-6-AI.pdf to file a prevailing wage complaint.