A New York City demolition company will have to pay hundreds of workers a combined $1.4 million under a restitution agreement with the New York attorney general’s office, after the company allegedly denied workers compensation on a regular basis for years.
Prosecutors said Alba Services agreed to pay the funds to 700 former and current employees. The AG’s office said investigators found the company had explicitly instructed many of the employees to not file claims with the Workers Compensation Board, and retaliated against those who tried to lodge the complaints.
Investigators found that between 2016 and 2024, Alba reported fewer than half of the injuries it was legally required to, artificially keeping claims low and reducing insurance costs, according to the AG’s office.
The AG launched an investigation in 2022 after a referral from Construction & General Building Laborers’ Local 79. Following a review of more than 60,000 pages of documents and dozens of witness interviews, OAG found that between 2016 and 2024, Alba failed to report hundreds of workplace injuries to the Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) as required by law and explicitly instructed employees not to file eligible claims. Of the injuries Alba was legally required to report, AG determined that the company reported less than half. By keeping claims artificially low, Alba reduced its insurance costs and gained an unfair advantage over competitors.
Alba retaliated against employees who sought to file claims through harassment, threats, and financial incentives to stay silent. On at least two occasions, the company posted flyers publicly naming workers who had filed claims, accusing them of fraud and offering $5,000 for information leading to their arrests. Andrew Horan would also send text messages to his foremen unlawfully exposing the workers’ names and offering cash rewards for information about them. The AG documented at least 60 instances in which Alba unlawfully disclosed workers’ names.
The investigation further revealed that Alba would sometimes interfere with medical treatment by sending company representatives to accompany injured workers to urgent care centres or hospitals and misrepresent how and where the injury occurred. Alba directed its workers to specific clinics it had agreements with to conceal workplace injuries and block workers’ compensation claims. In some cases, the company steered employees with serious injuries to their preferred urgent care clinics, despite the employee truly needing emergency room care.
In addition, AG found that Alba failed to prevent sexual harassment and retaliated against employees who reported misconduct. At least two workers described repeated harassment by a foreman who sent inappropriate messages, made unwanted comments on their appearance, and engaged in physical contact. When the women rejected his advances, the foreman retaliated by assigning them to more gruelling work. The harassment created a hostile environment for the targeted employees and contributed to a culture in which male colleagues bullied or ridiculed women seen as associated with the foreman. When one worker attempted to report the harassment, her hours were cut until she was ultimately removed from the schedule. As part of today’s settlement, Alba is required to terminate the foreman’s employment and adopt comprehensive anti-harassment policies and training to ensure workers are protected in the future.
Alba’s misconduct disproportionately harmed immigrant and non-union workers, many of whom reported intimidation and fear of retaliation when injured. By suppressing claims and discouraging employees from seeking benefits, Alba both cheated its workers and manipulated insurance premiums to cut costs.
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