Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued a Viking Lakes siding contractor Tuesday for allegedly intimidating workers and obstructing the state's investigation into wage theft complaints that surfaced during the building of a large apartment complex in Eagan.
The state's Department of Labor, which investigates wage theft complaints, until Tuesday had declined to confirm that an investigation was taking place.
The lawsuit filed in Hennepin County District Court accuses Leopoldo "Leo" Pimentel Jr. and his two Twin Cities companies — Property Maintenance & Construction LLC and Property Maintenance & Construction Inc. (PMC) — of interfering with the Labor Department's investigation. Calls to PMC for comment were blocked by the companies.
Pimentel not only has failed to cooperate but "is actively trying to throw wrenches into the gears," Ellison said in announcing the lawsuit. He said labor investigators have been seeking information from the companies for more than four months and that the companies have "sought to delay and impede [the investigation] at every step."
PMC employees, some of whom were undocumented immigrants, complained they were paid in cash off the books and were regularly denied overtime pay as required by law, despite being required to work 10-hour days, six days a week. It is estimated that more than $100,000 in back wages is due to the workers, Ellison said.
In addition, the employees said PMC did not pay all that was due in workers'...
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