Operating Engineers Health And Welfare Trust Fund For Northern California v. A1…

Background

The plaintiffs sued A1 Broom Service Inc. and Bondi Fortini. The defendants failed to plead or otherwise defend the action, and defaults were entered against them. The plaintiffs moved for default judgment.

The order states that the complaint’s factual allegations, except those concerning damages, are treated as true for purposes of default judgment. The allegations and exhibits established that the defendants had not submitted documents needed to audit their payroll records and had therefore failed to comply with requirements in the bargaining agreements.

Ruling

The court granted the motion for default judgment as modified. It ordered the defendants to promptly submit documents to the plaintiffs’ auditors so the auditors could complete an audit for the period from January 1, 2016, through December 31, 2020. The required records included individual earnings records; federal tax forms W-2 and W-3; workers’ compensation reports; weekly payroll reports for all employees; cash-disbursement journals, check registers, bank statements, or accounts-payable records; and any other documents the auditors requested after reviewing the submitted materials.

The court denied the plaintiffs’ request for attorneys’ fees without prejudice because the audit was random and there was no evidence at that point supporting a delinquency. It also denied without prejudice the request for an order requiring payment of delinquent contributions as calculated by the audit. The court stated that it retained a role in assessing damages. After the audit, the plaintiffs may return to seek unpaid contributions, interest on unpaid contributions, and reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs under 29 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(2)(A)–(D).