Nine companies were cited last Thursday when a surprise state Department of Labor inspection determined that some appeared to be misclassifying workers as independent contractors and others were not providing workers compensation for employees. Belfonti Companies, the Hamden-based developer company doing the massive project, did not respond to a phone message Wednesday. A staff member would say only that Chief Executive Officer Michael Belfonti was away for the day. The stop-work orders apply only to the specific subcontractors cited, so work by other crews is allowed to continue. “The Wage and Workplace Standards Division rescinds the stop work orders when the employer resolves the violations,” department spokeswoman Juliet Manalan said Wednesday. “In these cases, the employer must show proof of sufficient workers compensation insurance for their employees and correct classification of workers.” “We’ve put a lot of state money into this, the town of Rocky Hill has put a lot of money into it with a tax abatement,” Lesser said. “All employers have to pay workers comp. We really need contractors to do the right thing and treat their workers fairly — that’s why this is such a disappointment.
Slew of ‘stop work’ orders hit CT signature housing project. Why and what’s being done.