FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 27, 2021 • THE QUEENS COURIER 29
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We must stop wage theft that threatens New York’s working class
BY JOSEPH A. GEIGER
Wage theft has victimized the working
letters & comments
HOW CITY HALL CAN
REGAIN CONTROL OF NYC
TRANSIT BUS & SUBWAYS
In 1953, the NYC Board of Transportation
passed on control of the municipal subway system,
including all its assets, to the newly created
NYC Transit Authority.
Under late Governor Nelson Rockefeller
in the ‘60s, the Metropolitan Commuter
Transportation Authority (MCTA) was created.
Th e governor appointed four board members.
Likewise, the mayor four more and the
rest by suburban county executives. No one
elected offi cial controlled a majority of the
votes.
In 1969, the MCTA became the MTA and
took over management of the NYC Transit
Authority.
Today Governor Andrew Cuomo is serving
as the hired superintendent running the MTA.
He was hired by NYC, the actual landlord or
owner of NYC Transit buses and subways.
City Hall can actually regain control of both
the NYC Transit subway and bus systems.
Current and aspiring municipal offi cials are
unaware that within the 1953 master agreement
between the city of New York and NYC
Transit is an escape clause. NYC has the legal
right to take back at any time control of its
assets. Th is includes the subway and most of
the bus system.
In 1953, the old NYC Board of Transportation
passed on control of the municipal subway system,
including all its assets under a master
lease and operating agreement to the newly
created NYC Transit Authority.
Regaining total control comes with a number
of fi nancial liabilities. City Hall will have
to negotiate with both the governor and state
Legislature over how much of the MTA’s $47
billion long-term debt and billions more in
employee pension, health insurance and other
liabilities come with the package. NYC would
also inherit a series of union contracts and
work rule agreements. Th ey would also have to
develop a plan for turning over management
for billions in hundreds of ongoing capital
improvement projects that are already under
way. Don’t forget current purchases for several
thousand new subway cars and buses. A significant
portion of the $12 billion worth of capital
funded projects contained in dozens of grants
from the Federal Transit Administration would
have to be transferred from MTA to NYC.
City Hall could probably count on the same
level of state (capital & State Transit Operating
Assistance (STOA) and federal (Federal Transit
Administration capital formula and discretionary
grants) as MTA receives for NYC Transit.
Th e $500 million annual city subsidy provided
to MTA (private franchised bus operator
program transferred to MTA in 2005) would
also be available.
NYC Transit bus and subway are the largest
transit operators in the nation with a fl eet
of 6.400 subway and 4,400 buses. MTA Bus,
with a fl eet of 1,300 buses, is one of the top 10
bus operators in the nation. It is the equivalent
of attempting to manage a Fortune 500 corporation.
Does NYC have the technical capacity to take
on such an undertaking? Today’s NYCDOT
technical capacity as it relates to subways and
buses is weak. It is primarily in the management
of bus lanes, bus shelters, bus stop signs,
select bus service, bus priority signalization,
bike lanes, pedestrian plazas and street calming
projects. Th e city would need to develop
the skills necessary to manage such a large
endeavor.
Larry Penner, Great Neck
class for far too long. For decades,
crooked contractors have fl own under
the radar in broad daylight and built their
million-dollar bank accounts by stealing
the wages of workers who don’t know
their rights or are too afraid to report the
crime.
Th e fear of being fi red or blackballed for
speaking up by powerful contractors has
scared many of these workers into silence.
We must put the lives and dignity of our
fellow New Yorkers ahead of contractor
greed and end wage theft once and for all.
Th e construction industry creates thousands
of jobs and builds critical infrastructure
that is vital to New York’s recovery.
Developers eager to squeeze every
last cent of profi t from their workers have
unleashed an exploitation epidemic, paying
their workers a quarter (if they’re lucky)
of what they would make under a prevailing
wage, if they’re getting paid at all.
When a worker is cheated out of their
wages, we all suff er: the worker and their
family have to choose between paying
rent or buying food; wages across the
industry are depressed; and New York
City loses critical tax revenue. Th e fact is
that wage theft is a direct threat to the stability
of New York City’s economic wellbeing
and our recovery from the pandemic.
Th e ripple eff ects of wage theft are felt
not just in New York, but throughout the
economy. Across the nation, workers and
their families lose $8 billion a year to wage
theft , and construction workers alone are
robbed of $946 million annually.
A study conducted by the United
Brotherhood of Carpenters also found
that corrupt contractors withheld at least
$811.1 million a year in overtime pay.
Th ese staggering numbers bring to light
not one or two bad apples, but of a system
that exploits the working class without
fear of consequences.
Th ey say that “one bad apple can spoil
the bunch.” Th at is true with another
money-making scheme used by some
thieving contractors.
Wage theft goes hand-in-hand with tax
fraud, which is reported on roughly 20.5
percent of construction sites per month.
Every year, unscrupulous employers
offl oad $3.5 billion of businesses’ employment
taxes onto workers, leading to a
total of $8.4 billion in state and federal
tax losses.
Th at’s billions of dollars that should be
funding local schools, infrastructure and
health care. When there are billion-dollar
tax gaps like the ones left by wage theft
and tax fraud, it’s the everyday taxpayer
that picks up the bill. Th ese crimes aren’t
only hurting the construction industry,
they are crippling entire communities.
It’s time these bad actors stop cheating
the system, stealing wages out of working
people’s pockets, and corrupting our
entire economy.
Allies for the working class like Senator
Jessica Ramos and Assembly member
LaToya Joyner have stepped up in the
New York State Legislature by introducing
S.2766/A.3350 to combat this incessant
violation of workers’ rights. Th eir bill
aims to end wage theft at the top, where
the liability resides. It will ensure all workers
have protection when their employer
tries to steal their paycheck.
Under S.2766/A.3350, wage-stealing
practices will be met with legal repercussions.
Construction bosses will not be able
to turn a blind eye to these illegal practices
and will fi nally be held accountable
for what happens on their job sites. Th at
accountability will lead to more extensive
vetting of contractors and sub-contractors,
safer worksites and workers bringing
home the full wages they deserve.
Meanwhile, contractors who have done
the right thing will see no change beyond
fi nally having a shot to compete on a level
playing fi eld.
Th e District Council believes in the
ideal that a hard day’s work gets a fair
day’s pay, no questions asked. It is committed
to advocating for all workers in the
construction industry, both union and
non-union, to ensure jobs, fair wages and
safe job sites.
Now, it’s time for the politicians in
Albany to do the right thing for their
constituents and pass the wage theft legislation
championed by Senator Ramos
and Assembly member Joyner that protects
the livelihoods of hard-working New
Yorkers.
Now more than ever as we hope to
rebuild back better, we must change
the culture of greed and hold the bad
accountable. We must pass S.2766/A.3350
and end wage theft now.
Joseph A. Geiger is the executive secretary
treasurer of the New York City and
Vicinity District Council of Carpenters.
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