Warrington Contractor Fined For Employing Minors, Withholding OT

WARRINGTON, PA — A Bucks County roofing contractor violated child labor laws by employing five minors to perform hazardous duties, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found.

Pro Com Roofing & Construction Services Corp., of Warrington, employed five minors between the ages of 15 and 17 to work on a roof and assist and clean up after adult roofers; use small hand tools to remove and install roofing materials; and use 15-foot ladders to mount the roofs, the Department said. Additionally, a 17-year-old worker was hired to use a screw gun to fasten boards to the roofs.

Both of these instances were in violation of child labor laws, investigators said. Under federal labor law, roofing is prohibited as an occupation for workers under the age of 18. In the construction industry, falls are among the leading causes of injuries and fatalities.

The U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division also determined that Pro Com Roofing paid all hourly employees straight time for all the hours that they worked, including those beyond 40 in a workweek, a practice that led to overtime violations.

Investigators said the company kept two sets of time records: one for weekday hours and one for weekend hours. The employer paid weekday hours with payroll checks and weekend hours with separate, non-payroll checks, failing to combine hours from the two sets of books to determine when overtime was due.

On July 14, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia ordered Pro Com to pay $132,000 in back wages and damages for failing to pay required overtime wages to 37 workers. The consent judgement also affirmed the division’s assessment of $47,901 in civil penalties for 19 willful violations, including knowingly employing five minors in hazardous occupations.

“This case highlights the dangers for workers and for employers who ignore federal laws designed to prevent injuries and tragedies among young workers,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director James Cain in Philadelphia. “This case should also remind employers that the Wage and Hour Division will hold them accountable when they fail to pay workers all of their hard-earned wages.”

“The U.S. Department of Labor will take appropriate steps to legally enforce compliance with laws that protect young workers and ensure all workers are paid fairly,” said Philadelphia Regional Solicitor Oscar L. Hampton III.

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