The Illinois Department of Labor [IDOL] has confirmed it is investigating the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Normal. This comes after union leaders filed a complaint alleging a series of violations related to pay and other workplace standards.
Labor groups in McLean County have been protesting the contractor’s use of out-of-state workers for a project there.
Ronnie Paul, business manager of the Laborers International Union North America [LIUNA] Local 362 in Bloomington, said the union spoke with employees on site who told them they were being paid between $15 and $18 per hour, far less than the required prevailing wage.
“Workers [on the ninth floor] had the whole floor torn apart,” Paul said. “We did notice there was no PPE [Personal Protective Equipment], hard hats, safety glasses, or respirators being worn.”
According to the latest data on the IDOL website, prevailing wage for skilled laborers starts at $35 per hour.
The hotel owners are required to pay prevailing wage for any work related to the conference center portion of the building, which the town owns, according to a memo City Manager Pam Reece circulated to the town council on Thursday.
“The Town reminded them of their obligation to pay prevailing wage on the conference center portion of their property update,” Reece told the council, adding the town has no authority to enforce the prevailing wage rule.
“If trades and labor believe prevailing wages are not being paid on the conference center project, their remedy lies with the Illinois Department of Labor,” Reece said.
The town entered into a redevelopment agreement in 2009 with then-owner John Q. Hammons, which sold the hotel to Atrium Hospitality Alpharetta, Georgia, in 2018.
The town issued permits for the $8 million renovation project in October.
LIUNA made a series of other allegations in its complaints with the Department of Labor and the Illinois Attorney General's office, including that the construction workers were being worked seven days straight, denied overtime when exceeding 40 hours per week, and that the contractor misclassified the employees to avoid paying overtime and violated minimum wage standards when factoring in overtime for which they were not paid.
The union also contends the contractors were required to use Illinois workers for the project following two months of “excessive unemployment” of 5% or higher in the state, according to the Employment of Illinois Workers on Public Works Act.
Illinois' jobless rate was 5% in September and 5.2% in October.
Two labor representatives told WGLT investigators with the Department of Labor and Attorney General’s office were on site Nov. 15 to look into the union’s claims. They said the state agencies indicated they were subpoenaing documents and conducting interviews in the case.
A spokesperson for the Department of Labor confirmed the investigation is underway, but did not provide additional information.
A representative for the Illinois Attorney General’s Office said the agency does not “confirm the existence of or comment on potential investigations.”
The contractor, Edelmann Construction of Wildwood, Missouri, did not respond to a request for comment. Atrium Hospitality did not respond to a request for comment.