Bertucci provides flood control and restoration services and has received more than 80 million in federal contracts related disaster recovery efforts, most notably, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the British Petroleum oil spill in 2010. The OFCCP claims that Bertucci Contracting’s hiring process adversely impacted African Americans, Hispanics, Asians and Native Americans from 2009 through 2011. The company agreed to pay $70,000 in back pay and interest, and offer retroactive seniority to 14 affected applicants. The company also agreed to hire six additional minorities as available positions emerge, and to provide better training for hiring managers, annual reviews of supervisor adherence to employment policies and affirmative action obligations, and to improve recruitment procedures so as to avoid future violations. The settlement may be viewed at http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/ofccp/OFCCP20130565.htm.
by Art Gutman Ph.D., Professor, Florida Institute of Technology
