For Immediate Release
January 15, 2025
For more information, contact:
Public Justice Center
Sam Williamson, Attorney
410-625-9409 x234
williamsons@publicjustice.org
A group of flaggers responsible for traffic control at construction sites around Maryland filed a class action lawsuit in federal court alleging that their employer, the Baltimore-based company LRW Traffic Systems (LRW), and its owner, Robert Scott-Coples, cheated them out of their pay. LRW is a subcontractor to Baltimore Gas and Electric contractors on underground gas and electric infrastructure construction work throughout the state.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland by the Public Justice Center and Murphy Anderson PLLC, alleges LRW did not pay more than 80 flaggers for significant time working off the clock. Among the lawsuit’s allegations are that LRW and Scott-Coples required workers to arrive hours early at the LRW yard at 117 West 22nd Street, Baltimore to load trucks, check equipment and await transportation to the construction sites, but did not pay for their time spent at the yard or travel to the sites. The lawsuit also alleges LRW and Scott-Coples failed to pay overtime when workers were on the job more than 40 hours per week, and when the flaggers worked shifts at multiple sites in one day, LRW paid them only for the first site.
In an amended complaint filed Dec. 6, the plaintiffs added claims alleging that, after learning the workers were planning to sue, LRW and Scott-Coples illegally retaliated against the workers by terminating workers and disciplining them, in violation of federal law.
Chris Meador, one of the lead plaintiffs in the case, said he and other workers approached their bosses about the improper pay.
“We just wanted to be paid appropriately. Instead, we experienced all kinds of retaliation,” Meador said. “What’s wrong is wrong.”
Mark Hanna, an attorney for Murphy Anderson PLLC representing the plaintiffs, noted that in 25 years of labor law practice he has never seen such an extreme case of retaliation. “Construction flaggers are among the most important people on construction sites. They keep everyone safe,” Hanna said. “They deserve to be paid their rightfully earned wages without fear of being fired.”
Sam Williamson, an attorney at the Public Justice Center, added, “It is striking how many of the plaintiffs that LRW has disciplined, demoted to standby, or fired since the lawsuit was filed. The workers have shown incredible courage in speaking out, not only for their rights, but the rights of all their coworkers, especially in the face of this ongoing retaliation.”
Notably, this is the first lawsuit under a 2023 Maryland law (MD Public Utilities Code § 5-305 2023) that requires public utility subcontractors to pay a prevailing wage for underground utility work.
The lawsuit also names general contractors Stella May Contracting Inc. and B. Frank Joy LLC for failing to ensure that their subcontractor, LRW, paid its workers the required wages for work done on those general contractors’ projects.
(Reporters Note: The lawsuit is filed in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland Northern Division, Civil Action No. 1:24-cv-03306-JKB, styled Ebony Hays, et al., Plaintiffs, v. LRW Traffic Systems LLC, et al., Defendants.)
ABOUT THE PUBLIC JUSTICE CENTER
The Public Justice Center pursues systemic change to build a just society. We use legal advocacy tools to pursue social justice, economic and race equity, and fundamental human rights for people who are struggling to provide for their basic needs. Our Workplace Justice Project advances justice and equity for Maryland workers by representing workers in wage theft and other litigation, providing know-your-rights education, advocating for policies to expand workers’ rights, and collaborating with community partners. To learn more, visit www.publicjustice.org.
