Contractor Agrees to Pay $600,000 for Misclassified Workers

An Arizona drywall contractor agreed to pay $600,000 in back wages, damages and penalties for entering a contract under which its employees were illegally classified as “member/owners,” the U.S. Department of Labor announced.Paul Johnson Drywall Inc. entered into a contract with Arizona Tract in April 2013 that resulted in some 445 employees being reclassified members or owners and stripped of protections such as overtime pay. Robert Cole Johnson, owner of the drywall company, agreed to pay $556,000 in overtime back wages and damages to the former employees, as well as $44,000 in c...