ATU Local 689 and Public Justice Center call on Maryland Department of Labor to Improve Enforcement of the state’s Living Wage Law
The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689 and the Public Justice Center (PJC) yesterday sent a letter to Maryland Department of Labor Commissioner Devki Virk encouraging her to improve enforcement of the state’s living wage law against bad actors including France-based transit company Transdev. ATU Local 689 and PJC expressed concern that Transdev and other companies that have been awarded public contracts may continue to flout state law despite Transdev settling a wage theft lawsuit brought by the PJC last year for nearly $412,000. In the lawsuit, PJC represented 13 employees who alleged that they were paid only a few dollars per hour despite working up to sixty hours per week. Maryland’s Living Wage Law requires all companies with state service contracts valued at least $100,000 to prove they and their subcontractors are paying the required living wage by submitting bi-weekly payroll reports. But according to Local 689 and the PJC, many contractors have failed to comply with the law and have not submitted the payroll reports, making it easier for state contractors and subcontractors to steal workers’ hard-earned wages.
“ATU Local 689 knows firsthand how companies like Transdev flout State and Federal law by nickel-and-diming their workers to line their own pockets. Working families are already under immense economic pressures without having to worry about their employer stealing their well-earned paycheck. That is why it is crucial the Maryland Department of Labor takes immediate action to protect workers and ensure everyone is paid a living wage,” said Local 689 President Raymond Jackson.
“Maryland’s living wage law is based on the idea that private companies with state contracts should use those public dollars to create decent jobs that allow workers to support their families. But for too many hardworking Marylanders, that promise is being broken. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and we need to make sure that state contractors and subcontractors that are legally required to follow Maryland’s living wage law are submitting the required proof,” said PJC attorney David Rodwin.
To improve enforcement of the law, Local 689 and PJC are recommending that Commissioner Virk revisit former Governor Martin O’Malley’s administration's approach to enforcing the Living Wage law and use that as a foundation for issuing regulations to hold companies accountable for their illegal actions and wage theft. The Union and PJC now await a response from the Department of Labor and also renewed their commitment to defending workers’ rights.
