The New York Court of Appeals has issued a significant decision in Walton v. Comfort Systems USA (Syracuse), Incorporated, answering previously unsettled certified questions from the Second Circuit with important implications for employers performing work on public projects in New York. The Court held that under Labor Law § 220, the statutory requirement to pay Prevailing Wages is incorporated into every covered public works contract by operation of law - even when the written contract is silent on the issue or expressly disclaims a Prevailing Wage obligation. New York’s Prevailing Wage requirement for public work projects has deep roots. Article I, § 17 of the New York Constitution, first adopted in 1905, declares that “[l]abor of human beings is not a commodity nor an article of commerce” and mandates Workers on public projects receive “not less than the rate of wages prevailing in the same trade or occupation in the locality.” Labor Law § 220 codifies and expands on this constitutional protection, which courts have long recognized. Walton is a significant decision for contractors and sub-contractors performing work on public projects in New York. The Court made clear employers cannot avoid Prevailing Wage liability by simply omitting - or even expressly disclaiming - Prevailing Wage Language in their contracts. If Labor Law § 220 applies to the work, the Prevailing Wage obligation becomes part of the contract by operation of law and Workers can enforce that obligation through third-party beneficiary breach of contract claims. The decision also underscores employers cannot rely on shortened contractual limitations periods to defeat Prevailing Wage claims.

To Read This Labor News Story In Its Entirety, Go To: No Escape Clause: NY’s Highest Court Rules Prevailing Wage Obligations Apply Whether Contracts Say So or Not | Proskauer - Labor Relations Update - JDSupra