A company owned by billionaire John Catsimatidis is flouting labor law by underpaying oil truck drivers delivering fuel to public schools and other city buildings, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters alleges in a complaint to the city comptroller.
The company, United Metro Energy Corp., has collected tens of millions of dollars in city money — including $20 million last year — to deliver the oil.
Labor law requires companies that win public contracts to pay their workers “prevailing” union-level wages and benefits set by the city comptroller. The provision is intended to discourage companies from underbidding competitors by hiring cheaper, nonunion labor.
The Teamsters say United Metro Energy has failed to live up to its end of the bargain ― paying union drivers less than the prevailing wages for government contract work, and hiring nonunionized subcontractors to do some of the publicly funded labor.
“Workers who deliver the fuel that keeps our schools warm every winter are required to get the prevailing wage,” said Demos Demopoulos, secretary treasurer of Teamsters Local 553. “Honest companies pay it.”
United Metro Energy general counsel Emily Pankow said the company “denies any allegations that it has not complied with any state, federal or municipal prevailing wage law.”
Pankow blamed the rancor on an ongoing labor dispute involving a separate group of United Metro Energy workers who recently unionized and are on strike over their lack of a contract.
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