Several contractors at Cheney and Medical Lake construction sites were caught up in a nationwide crackdown on illegal activities that netted 50 violators in Washington state alone.
Inspectors from the state Department of Labor & Industries made unannounced visits to construction sites between June 12 – 14, according to a June 28 news release. Two inspectors visited 26 sites in Cheney and Medical Lake June 13 and 14, checking 30 construction contractors, one electrical contractor, one electrician and five plumbers.
In those local sweeps, inspectors referred eight contractors for potential audits by the department's workers' compensation insurance audit program and one contractor to L&I's collections program. Inspectors also issued two plumbing infractions, both at a Cheney construction site on Fifth Street.
Both infractions revolved around "engaging in the trade of plumbing without a current journeyman, specialty or trainee certificate or temporary permit as required." One infraction was for the individual who lacked the certification, the other for his employer for hiring him without checking to see if he was certified.
L&I public affairs specialist Debby Abe said the trainee renewed his certification immediately after receiving the infraction. His employer, Paragon Plumbing & Heating, LLC, paid the fine without appealing.
The trainee is now properly licensed," Abe wrote in an email. "Paragon also is properly registered."
Abe said the audits generally take place when contractors are found to not have a workers compensation account, no record of paying or have been misreporting their information.
"Like, they say they have three employees when they actually have 10," she said.
The collections program kicks in when L&I has determined the business owed money for late premium payments or has infractions that have not been paid.
As part of the national enforcement campaign, L&I also conducted sweeps in Mercer Island and Bellevue in King County, Spokane and Spokane Valley as well as Cheney and Medical Lake and other sites in Clark, Kitsap and Pierce counties. Twenty-two inspectors visited 636 active construction sites, checking 1,522 contractors, plumbers and electricians — issuing 48 citations to unregistered contractors and unlicensed electricians and plumbers.
In addition, 53 contractors were referred to the workers' compensation audit program, 63 were referred to collections and one was referred to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health. Compliance crackdowns also took place in Arizona, California, Florida, Mississippi, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas and Utah.
"While most contractors are following the rules, our recent sweeps show that there are some out there who are breaking the law," state L&I contractor compliance chief Dean Simpson said in the release. "Hiring unregistered contractors puts your project dreams and your dollars at risk."
Abe said such surprise sweeps are a benefit to the contractors as well as the public since they encourage compliance throughout the industry. Besides allowing inspectors to check to make sure regulations and requirements are being followed, the sweeps also provide opportunities to provide education while ensuring consumer protections are in place.
Abe said contractors who are not registered and not complying with regulations, as well as not paying required compensation, have an advantage over those who do follow the law.
"You can underbid other contractors," she said. "It makes it harder for legitimate contractors to stay in business."
John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.
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