D.C. Attorney General Announces $725K Settlement Agreement with Virginia-Based Construction Company

Attorney General Schwalb announced yesterday that the District of Columbia (“District”) and Christian Siding, LLC, a construction company specializing in building exteriors, have entered into a Settlement Agreement (“Agreement”) to resolve allegations that from February 2021 to February 2024, the company hired workers to provide construction services on at least 16 projects where more than 200 of the workers were misclassified as independent contractors deprived of wages and benefits in violation of the District’s Workplace Fraud Act (“WFA”), Wage Payment and Collection Law (“WPCL”), Minimum Wage Revision Act (“MWRA”), Sick and Safe Leave Act (“SSLA”), and at three of the projects which were publicly-funded affordable housing developments, the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (“DBRA”) governing prevailing wages. 

Christian Siding cooperated with the Office of Attorney General’s (“OAG”) investigation and denies the allegations; nothing in the Agreement may be construed as an admission of guilt or wrongdoing.  The company agrees to pay a total settlement amount of $725,000 comprising a “worker share” equaling $364,473.13 to be paid to Eligible Employees and a “penalty share” equaling $360,526.87 to be paid to the District.  The Agreement’s injunctive terms require Christian Siding to submit to two years of compliance monitoring by OAG and implement specific processes towards ensuring that all workers hired for projects in the District, including workers performing under their subcontractors, are properly classified and compensated. 

OAG’s Workers’ Rights and Antifraud Section is dedicated to fighting wage theft, protecting District workers, and ensuring that businesses in the District compete on a level playing field. 

Workers who believe their rights have been violated or that they have experienced wage theft or other wage and hour violations can contact OAG by calling 202-724-7730 or emailing workers@dc.gov or trabajadores@dc.gov.