Published date:

The time period when a claim can be made against a contractor for unpaid wages is generally 2 years, 3 years if the violation is found to be willful. It is recommended that contractors keep all certified payrolls and related documents for at least three years from the completion of the project.

In any investigation relating to the proper payment of wages, the burden of proof is on the contractor to keep complete and accurate time and pay records. When faced with an investigation of wages paid, a contractor that has no or inaccurate timecards or pays employees in cash will be at a severe disadvantage. Employees who testify they worked in certain classifications and were not paid proper wages will be believed unless accurate documentation to the contrary can be produced.

When a contractor is asked to rectify a wage underpayment, the Agency will almost always ask for a copy of the cancelled check. Contractors who write a check to an employee and cannot produce a cancelled check (because they never delivered it to the employee) will be subject to disbarment.

The information above is brought to you by: Deborah Wilder’s “What Every Contractor Should Know About Prevailing Wages”