http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/sto ... 5162c.html

Contractors targeted by pay measure

BY LAURA WILLIAMS
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Crooked contractors, beware.

A new law that would stiffen penalties against contractors who cut corners by hiring illegal immigrants and nonunion workers is winding its way through the state Legislature.

The bill would update the current prevailing-wage law, which is nearly a century old.

"Despite many amendments over the years, many of its civil and criminal enforcement provisions are not up to the task," Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon said.

This latest proposal, which state Sen. Charles Fuschillo (R-Merrick) said has already passed the Senate's Labor Committee, upgrades the crime of failing to pay the prevailing wage from an unclassified misdemeanor to a class A misdemeanor for a first offense - and a class E felony for a repeat offense.

That means a defendant would face a year in prison for a first offense, compared with the current penalty of fines and a short suspension.

The proposed changes would also close loopholes in the current law that allow subcontractors and "noncorporate entities" to avoid criminal prosecution for paying substandard wages.

And it requires government agencies - such as towns, school districts and libraries - to collect payrolls to ensure workers are paid fairly.

The current law not only allows contractors to exploit illegal immigrants and nonunion laborers, it also takes jobs away from qualified locals, Fuschillo said.

"We're seeing contractors come from all over the country because they see they just get a slap on the wrist" for flouting the law, he said.

"Honest contractors who pay their workers the correct wage report they can no longer compete," Dillon added.

Labor reps heartily support the new bill because the current law lets crooked contractors "shaft the workers," said Phil Capobianco, business representative for Local 138, which handles heavy equipment for road and building construction.

"The materials cost the same no matter who does the work, so the contractor can keep all the money," he said.

The DA drafted updates to the bill, which were incorporated into the piece of legislation introduced by Fuschillo and Assemblyman Tom DiNapoli (D-Great Neck).

This is not the only recent bipartisan effort from these lawmakers. Last month, they introduced legislation - also championed by Dillon - to stiffen penalties against fake lawyers.

Originally published on May 16, 2005