New York, NY — The New York City Comptroller’s Office reached a settlement with Winston Support Services, LLC (Winston) for prevailing wage violations of workers. The settlement payments totaled $2,730,526.06, inclusive of back wages, civil penalties, and interest.
“Winston misclassified hundreds of temporary office workers, resulting in millions of dollars in underpayments,” said Comptroller Brad Lander. “Winston neglected to perform the necessary due diligence and oversight, and as a result many workers missed out on thousands of dollars. This settlement holds Winston accountable and returns the hard-earned wages rightfully owed to these office workers.”
This settlement covered temporary office workers hired by Winston Support Services, LLC between April 2015 and June 2018 at various healthcare facilities, including Harlem Hospital, Jacobi Medical Center, Bellevue Hospital, Lincoln Hospital, and Elmhurst Hospital. The workers performed clerical work such as maintaining medical and payroll records, making appointments for patients, and providing transcription through a temporary services contract between Winston and H + H.
Winston misclassified 332 temporary workers as lower-paid positions despite performing duties that corresponded to higher-paying titles under the Comptroller’s wage schedule. As a result, many workers lost out on significant wages, with one worker shorted nearly $100,000 during this period.
Under the New York Labor Law, the New York City Comptroller sets and enforces prevailing wage and living wage laws for public works projects and certain service contracts in the City of New York. Temporary office workers are covered by prevailing wage under New York City’s Living Wage Law, NYC Administrative Code § 6-109.
