Ramsey County Attorney John Choi announced charges of wage theft, insurance fraud and tax evasion stemming from work on a public housing site in St. Paul. (photo courtesy Vince Muzik, FCF Minnesota)
Ramsey County Attorney John Choi and law-enforcement leaders credited the local Carpenters union with playing a key role in their investigation of wage-theft allegations on a public housing site in St. Paul, which resulted in criminal charges filed Sept. 3.
Choi’s office charged Jose Herrera, Carrie Gutbrod-Herrera and Joseph Herrera, owners of Bayvista Incorporated, with multiple counts of wage theft, insurance fraud and tax evasion stemming from their firm’s work at the McDonough Homes in 2024. All three owners face felony charges.
According to the criminal complaint, Bayvista procured a contract to provide labor for roofing and gutter improvements at the North End apartment complex, owned by the St. Paul Public Housing Agency, but the company cheated its workers out of over $200,000 in combined wages for their work.
Rather than paying prevailing wages of about $68 per hour for roofers and $84 for gutter installation, as required on the publicly funded project, Bayvista allegedly paid workers between $120 to $200 per day in cash.
Multiple workers told St. Paul Police investigators that “they had been instructed to falsely tell anyone who asks that they were, in fact, being paid at prevailing-wage rates,” according to the complaint.
Seven workers agreed to participate in the investigation, but Choi told members of the media during a press conference that he hopes to win full compensation for 24 victims in all, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
“We can’t hold people accountable if someone doesn’t raise their hand,” Choi said. “Somebody has to say, ‘This happened to me.’
“Thankfully we have a lot of advocates. Unions are very laser-focused on making sure that workers’ rights are upheld in this town. They’re helping us make those reports, but we have to corroborate that.”
A tip from the North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters (NCSRCC) sparked the investigation of wage theft on the McDonough Homes project.
The NCSRCC is among several local labor organizations with staff dedicated to monitoring conditions on construction sites across their jurisdictions. Carpenters business representative Woodrow Piner, who attended the press conference, said the council is now tracking about 1,400 projects – active or in the planning stages – in the seven-county metro area.
Piner and other union representatives developed a relationship with several Bayvista workers after an initial visit to McDonough Homes last year. Eventually, he said, workers disclosed that their wages were not meeting the legal standard.
“We knew it was a prevailing wage job, and when you see a group like this, typically they’re not being paid the proper wage,” Piner said, adding that it took time to gain workers’ trust.
“In a world like this, where you could possibly have compromised documentation, you’re terrified to even say what your favorite candy bar is. It takes a lot to develop that relationship.”
Rarely do those conversations at the job site lead to criminal charges, but they often do empower workers with the information they need to protect themselves from wage theft or misclassification, NCSRCC’s Dominic Andrist added.
“Union or nonunion, we’re just trying to uphold the rights of working men and women, to make sure that when they’re out there and it’s 20 below, they’re getting their just due and the pay that they deserve,” he said.
That’s a point St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry echoed during the press conference.
“I think some people think that those folks are just looking out for their membership,” Henry said of local Building Trades unions. “They are not. They are looking out for what’s fair and what’s right out in their community.”
The investigation ultimately expanded from wage theft to charges of tax evasion and insurance fraud, as a newly formed Labor Advisory Council tapped into the Bayvista owners’ payroll records, tax returns and insurance policies. Spearheaded by Choi’s office, the working group brings together law-enforcement agencies, state regulators and worker-advocacy groups.
Mike Wilde, director of the Fair Contracting Foundation of Minnesota, a prevailing-wage watchdog, credited the Labor Advisory Council with helping Minnesota lead the country in “stamping out corrupt practices in our industry.”
“Our public infrastructure must be built first on integrity,” Wilde added. “It’s expected by taxpayers, the lawful contractors who bid on this work and the construction workers who actually build it for us all.”
Choi urged anyone who believes that they have witnessed or experienced wage theft to call 651-266-3371.
– Michael Moore, UA editor
Union Advocate 