“Sacramento County DA targets Rocklin contractor with historic wage theft charges”

In a historic move to safeguard workers’ rights, Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho announced this week the formation of a new Workers’ Protection Unit and the first-ever felony criminal wage theft charges filed in Sacramento County.

The charges stem from a complaint filed by the Nor Cal Carpenters Union against Rocklin-based contractor ProFrame, which the DA alleges underpaid workers on a public affordable housing project in Oak Park by more than 50%...

ProFrame did not return a phone message that The Bee left at the company’s Rocklin office.

According to Ho, the company hired 15 mostly undocumented workers for a public works construction site but only compensated them for half of the hours they worked—resulting in more than $50,000 in stolen wages. When workers complained, Ho said, they were fired. The DA’s office executed a search warrant last week and continues investigating the company, with an arraignment expected in early June.

Ho credited the Nor Cal Carpenters Union and the Sacramento Sierra Building Trades for their collaboration and labor investigations, which initially uncovered the violations.

The Workers’ Protection Unit will not only prosecute wage theft but will also investigate unsafe labor conditions across Sacramento County, Ho said…