PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Secretary of Labor must pay workers any wages found to be owed, using money that was being held back under the contract. If that held money is not enough, the workers can sue the contractor and the contractor’s guarantors like other people who provided labor or materials. It is not a defense that workers agreed to less pay or gave refunds. The Comptroller General will send all federal departments a list of people who ignored their obligations to employees or subcontractors. No federal contract can be given to anyone on that list, or to a company they have an interest in, until three years after the list is published.

Title 40, §3144

Public Buildings, Property, and Works, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Payment of Wages.—

(1)In general.—

The Secretary of Labor shall pay directly to laborers and mechanics from any accrued payments withheld under the terms of a contract any wages found to be due laborers and mechanics under this subchapter.

(2)Right of action.—

If the accrued payments withheld under the terms of the contract are insufficient to reimburse all the laborers and mechanics who have not been paid the wages required under this subchapter, the laborers and mechanics have the same right to bring a civil action and intervene against the contractor and the contractor’s sureties as is conferred by law on persons furnishing labor or materials. In those proceedings it is not a defense that the laborers and mechanics accepted or agreed to accept less than the required rate of wages or voluntarily made refunds.

(b)List of Contractors Violating Contracts.—

(1)In general.—

The Comptroller General shall distribute to all departments of the Federal Government a list of the names of persons whom the Comptroller General has found to have disregarded their obligations to employees and subcontractors.

(2)Restriction on awarding contracts.—

No contract shall be awarded to persons appearing on the list or to any firm, corporation, partnership, or association in which the persons have an interest until three years have elapsed from the date of publication of the list.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised SectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 3144(a)(1)40:276a–2(a) (1st sentence words before semicolon).Mar. 3, 1931, ch. 411, § 3, 46 Stat. 1494; Aug. 30, 1935, ch. 825, 49 Stat. 1012. 3144(a)(2)40:276a–2(b). 3144(b)40:276a–2(a) (1st sentence words after semicolon, last sentence). In subsection (b), the words “or firms” are omitted as being included in “persons”.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2013—Pub. L. 113–50, § 2(a)(1), struck out “of Comptroller General” after “Authority” in section catchline. Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 113–50, § 2(a)(2), substituted “Secretary of Labor” for “Comptroller General”.

§3144 Authority to Pay Wages and List Contractors Violating Contracts