Florida companies working with the U.S. Postal Service shorted employees $293,000 in pay

Three of the Florida companies doing contract work for the U.S. Postal Service didn’t deliver the proper pay and benefits to their workers, owing them $293,779, the U.S. Department of Labor said.

That money will go to 34 employees, $8,640.55 per person, of Orlando’s M&M Superior Contracting, Gainesville’s Copa Post Services and Middleburg’s Mercado Santiago.

All three were covered by the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act (SCA), which requires federal contractors “pay service employees in various classes no less than the wage rates and fringe benefits found prevailing in the locality, or the rates (including prospective increases) contained in a predecessor contractor’s collective bargaining agreement.”

The Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime rules also apply to the SCA.

Wage and Hour Division investigators said they found:

Mercado Santiago, Inc., run by President Enrique Santiago and Vice President Angel Santiago, tried to get a lot of something for nothing. They didn’t pay workers for all the hours worked and didn’t pay health an welfare benefits. They paid $219,116 in back wages to 16 employees, $13,694.75 per worker.

Mercado Santiago has been contracted to ship mail in Duval, Clay and St. Johns counties since April 2013.

M&M Superior didn’t pay “required prevailing wage rates,” didn’t pay holiday pay and didn’t pay required health and welfare benefits. Also, M&M didn’t let workers build vacation time or get vacation pay. M&M, run by Samantha Marks and Kerry Marks, owes $48,765 to eight employees, $6,095.62 per worker.

M&M is contracted to deliver mail for the U.S. Postal Service in the Orlando area.

Copa Post Services, agent and manager Pablo De Jongh, didn’t pay health and welfare benefits. They’ve paid $25,848 in back pay to 10 employees, $2,584.80 per worker.

Copa provides workers for U.S. Postal Service mail delivery locations in Florida, Alabama and Georgia.

“Prevailing wage laws provide a safety net for fair wages and benefits to workers on contracts providing services to the federal government,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús. “Enforcement of these laws protects the wages of hard-working, middle-class American workers.”

The Wage and Hour complaint section of the Department of Labor website contains information on how to file a complaint. Miami’s Wage and Hour Division office can be reached at 305-598-6607.

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