OAR 839-025-0080: Liability to Workers

(1) Any contractor or subcontractor or any surety thereof who fails or refuses to pay at least the prevailing wages and fringe benefits as determined by the commissioner or any overtime wages as required by ORS 279C.540 is liable to the workers affected for all the unpaid prevailing wages, including fringe benefits, and unpaid overtime wages. (2) The contractor or subcontractor or surety thereof, referred to in section (1) of this rule, is also liable to all unpaid workers for an amount equal to the unpaid prevailing wages, including fringe benefits, as liquidated damages. (3) The contractor or subcontractor or surety thereof, referred to in section (1) of this rule, is also liable to all unpaid workers for an amount equal to the unpaid overtime wages as liquidated damages, except that if the unpaid overtime results from willful falsification of payroll records, these liquidated damages shall be twice the amount of unpaid overtime. (4) Any public agency that fails to include a provision in the advertisement for bids, the request for bids, the contract specifications, the accepted bid or elsewhere in the contract documents that the contractor and any subcontractor shall comply with ORS 279C.840 shall be jointly and severally liable, with any contractor or subcontractor that had notice of the requirement to comply with ORS 279C.840, to the workers affected for any unpaid minimum wages. (5) As used in section (4) of this rule, "minimum wages" means the prevailing wage, including fringe benefits, as determined by the commissioner. "Minimum wages" does not mean overtime wages required by ORS 279C.540 nor liquidated damages referred to in sections (2) and (3) of this rule. (6) When a public works project is subject to the Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 3141 et seq.) and a public agency fails to include the state and federal prevailing rates of wage in the specifications for the contract for public works as required under ORS 279C.830(1)(a), or fails to provide in the contract that workers on the public works project must be paid not less than the higher of the applicable state or federal prevailing rate of wage as required under ORS 279C.830(1)(d), the public agency is liable to each affected worker for: (a) The worker's unpaid minimum wages, including fringe benefits, in an amount that equals, for each hour worked, the difference between the applicable higher rate of wage and the lower rate of wage; and (b) An additional amount, equal to the amount of unpaid minimum wages due under subsection (a) of this section, as liquidated damages.