A demolition company has agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle claims that it repeatedly flouted New York’s workers’ compensation laws, retaliated against injured workers and failed to address reports of sexual harassment.
Alba Services, a nonunion demolition subcontractor, must pay $1.4 million to nearly 700 current and former employees, as well as $100,000 to a settlement administrator who will coordinate those payments to employees, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday.
Alba allegedly failed to report hundreds of workplace injuries between 2016 and 2024, which allowed the company to lower its insurance costs. The company also threatened employees who tried to file workers’ compensation claims, according to the attorney general’s office.
The settlement comes after the laborers’ union, Local 79, launched a public campaign against the firm in 2022, accusing Alba of offering rewards for information on employees who filed “false” workers’ compensation claims as an intimidation tactic. The attorney general’s office began investigating Alba in 2022, after receiving information from the union.
The investigation confirmed allegations previously publicized by the union, according to the attorney general’s office.
For instance, the firm posted flyers naming workers who filed such claims, accused them of fraud and offered $5,000 for information leading to their arrests, officials said. Andrew Horan, Alba’s owner, allegedly sent text messages to his construction foremen, unlawfully naming workers who filed claims and offering cash for information about them. The attorney general’s office found the company wrongfully disclosed employees’ names on at least 60 occasions.
State officials also accused Alba of sending company representatives to hospitals and urgent care centers with injured employees, in order to feed incorrect information to medical professionals about how and where workers were injured. The company also allegedly directed injured workers to specific clinics to hide workplace injuries, even in cases where the employee required emergency care.
In a press release, James’ office also described two women who were sexually harassed by an Alba foreman. When the workers rejected the foreman’s advances, he assigned them more demanding work, and in one case, cut hours.
As part of the settlement agreement, Alba must fire the foreman and adopt anti-harassment policies and training. The company will also be overseen by the attorney general’s office for at least three years, and must file biannual reports showing that it is complying with workers’ compensation and human rights laws.
An attorney for Alba, Gregory Morville, indicated that as part of the settlement, the firm is not admitting or denying wrongdoing. In a statement, Morville said the company decided to settle with the attorney general’s office rather than go through litigation, “because we wanted to focus on continuing to build the company and … make sure the company stayed in business and all of the laborers kept their jobs.”
“We further believe that the company is in a strong position to accomplish our goal of being a leader in the community and to continue to provide unparalleled service to our clients,” he said in a statement.
Separately, in 2023, Alba was one of 26 companies indicted in a wide-ranging construction kickback scheme. Alba received $2.8 million in inflated contracts and change orders at 250 Fifth Avenue and 189 Bowery, the indictment claimed.
Local 79 has targeted other nonunion firms over the years, some of which have resulted in action by the attorney general. In 2020, James brokered an agreement with TradeOff Construction Services to settle allegations that the firm didn’t address sexual harassment reported by its employees.
During its campaign against Alba, the union called on developers and even pension fund managers to sever ties with the subcontractor. The union protested Alba’s work at Columbia Property Trust and L&L Holding’s Terminal Warehouse and Rockrose’s redevelopment of the St. Francis College building.
“This settlement isn’t just about Alba, it is about non-union workers throughout the city who suffer under similar circumstances,” Anthony Vita, business manager at Local 79, said in a statement. “This is an important step in leveling the playing field for responsible contractors.”
This story was updated to include comments from Alba’s attorney.
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