Evening star., 1933-02-08
Bride Stops Payments to
Contractors on KeniIWorth
School Project.
BRICKLAYERS CHARGE
WAGES WERE CUT TO zoe
Balance of $1.05 Per Hour Re-
turned, They Allege, for Certif.
Gates of Realty Investment.

Charges of violation of the Bacon
Davis prevailing wage" law in connec-
tion with the erection of the Kenil-
worth School by method under which
1t is alleged workmen were paid large
portion of their wages in certificates of
investment in a real estate "subdivi-
S1on,' will be aired at public hearing
called fer tomorrow afternoon by w. w.
Bride, District corporation counsel
Meanwhile, pending final decision in
the case, one of the most unusual in
the varied history of complaints of vio-
lation OF this law, further payments to
the contractor en- this project have
been ordered withheld, Mr.. Bride
announced.
The bricklayers charge they were re-
qulred to agree to invest $500 each in
real estate development, in land pur-
chased last Fall by the contractor for
the school, in order to obtain work on
the school project. They say they did
not know at the time of the employ
ment where the subdivision" was To-
Gated or of what it consisted.
Stopped Payments.
Armed with such affidavits and other
data obtained in a quiet investigation
OF the matter, the corporation counsel
brought about halt in the payments
to the contractor and the construction
OF the school building until the charges
are aired at the hearing tomorrow and
the contractor is given an opportunity
publicly to explain.
The school, 5-room extensible build
ing, being erected on Kenilworth ave-
nue. northeast, between Ord and Oliver
streets, for elementary public school
classes, now Is about Al per cent COM
pleted. Records show the contractor
already has been paid $16,397 of the
total contract price of S54,698 for con-
struction Of the building.
The charges by the bricklayers in
volve the Industrial Engineering g.
Construction Co. of this city, of which
L. E. Palmer is president and J. P.
Theofield is secretary, according to
records of the District government.
Mr.. Palmer is described as former
Goldsboro, N. c., which has had con-
tracts for construction of local govern
ment projects.
S1.05 an Hour Returned.
The union scale for bricklayers here,
regarded officially by the District gov
ernment as the prevailing wage, is
SITS an hour. The complaining brick
layers in this case allege they received
but 10 cents an hour in cash payments
and that the remainder of the union
scale, or S105 an hour, went for the
real estate investment, having to re-
turn checks for that sum to the con-
tractor.
The investigation by Corporation
Counsel Bride discloses that the con-
tractor bought seven lots of unimproved
land in the vicinity of w street between
Thirty-second and Thirty-third streets
southeast.
A report by W. p. Richards, District
assessor, shows these lots now have a
total assessed valuation of $1,269. The
record OF the investigation contains this
statement: That all the complaining
bricklayerS have Certificates, photo
static copies of some of which are at
tached. which purport to be shares in a
subdivision. The amount of each per-
sons equity appears on the face of this
certif1cate, which indicates the value
OF the property as $8,900."
Rebates Forbidden.
Mr.. Bride explains that, while the
Bacon-Davis law carries no penalties
for its violation in payment of less than
the full amount of the prevailing
wage" in cash, several expedients are
available, one of which would be to halt
payments to the contractor another the
turning of the work over to the bonding
company involved, and third, the placing
of any contracting firm found to be vio-
lating the law on an unfair" list, which
would make it ineligible for further con-
tracts from the District,
President Hoover in an executive Or
der dated January 10, 1882, directed
the following stipulation be added to
the contracts for construction: ut is
expressly understood and agreed that
the aforesaid wages shall be paid un-
conditionally in full not less often than
once week and in lawful money of the
United States and without subsequent
deduction or rebate on any account"