A. Morgan, president of Air Comfort Services, Inc., appeared on behalf of the corporation. Nobody appeared on behalf of the other parties to the proceeding.
By affidavit dated April 28, 1979, petitioner alleged that "he provided . .
. services . . . as a Certified Pipe Welder for Lucian H. 'Bud' Morgan, Air Comfort Services, Inc." on two construction projects on the campus of the University of West Florida; that the hourly wage of $11.27 was "due [him] . . . under job classification at prevailing wages; and that he had worked a total of 613 hours on both jobs.
Air Comfort Services, Inc. (ACS) was a subcontractor on state construction project No. BR-729, an extension of the Administrative Support Service Complex on the campus of the University of West Florida at Pensacola. The general contractor on the project was Samuel R. Sharpe, Inc. (Sharpe) Petitioner spent 248 hours on this job as an employee of ACS, between September 13, 1978, and January 24, 1979. After petitioner submitted his affidavit, Jack
C. Coons, an administrator employed by the Department of General Services, directed Harrel Bolden, the project manager, to withhold $2,530.30 from the general contractor, pending resolution of the dispute between petitioner and ACS.
ACS was also a subcontractor on state construction project No. BR-725, the Educational Research and Development Center at the University of West Florida. The general contractor on this project was Greenhut Construction
Company, Inc. (Greenhut). Petitioner spent 176 hours on this job as an employee of ACS, between October 4, 1978, and November 22, 1978. After petitioner filed his affidavit, Jack C. Coons directed Harrel Bolden to withhold $590.24 from the general contractor, pending resolution of the dispute between petitioner and ACS.
Petitioner is a certified welder. On the Sharpe job, he worked with other welders and pipefitters, putting in water lines. On November 26, 1978, the excavations for the pipes were first dug. Petitioner himself spent about five hours using a shovel to dig for pipes. Petitioner, who is not a certified pipe fitter, helped fit pipe together, and welded the joints, once everything was in place. In all, there were some 79 four inch pipe joints and 111 two inch pipe joints on the Sharp job water lines. Petitioner also helped a plumber put in other plumbing lines and assisted with the installation of piping for the air conditioning system. He silver soldered the copper pipe joints, and put in cast iron pipe for rain leaders.
Petitioner performed similar tasks on the Greenhut job, including welding joints on about 1,020 feet of pipe with 1 1/2" and 2" diameters laid in double random lengths, and welding at least 8 joints of pipe with a four inch diameter.
A welder can weld 20 four inch pipe joints or 30 two inch pipe joints in an eight hour day.
Petitioner was initially paid at the rate of $6.00 per hour. Beginning in January of 1979, he was paid at the rate of $6.76 per hour. He was paid at the higher rate for 60 of the 248 hours he worked on the Sharpe job. Both the Greenhut and Sharpe jobs involved contracts in excess of $5,000.00.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
Even though Section 215.19, Florida Statutes (1978 Supp.), has been repealed, it continues to govern these proceedings. Chapter 79-14, Section 3, Laws of Florida (1979). In pertinent part, Section 215.19, Florida Statutes (1978 Supp.), provides:
(1)(a) Every contract in excess of
$5,000.00 in amount to which the state, or any political subdivision of
the state or other public agency or author- ity is a party which requires or involves the employment of free laborers, mechanics, or apprentices in the construction of any public building, or the prosecution and completion of any public work or for repairs upon any public building or public work, shall contain a provision that the rate of wages for all laborers [and] mechanics . . . employed by any contractor or subcontractor . . . shall be not less than the prevailing rate of wages for similar skills or classification of work
in the . . . civil division of the state in which the said public work is located.
* * *
(3)(a)1. If the contractor or subcon- tractor fails to comply with this section relative to the payment of prevailing wages, any aggrieved employee . . .
shall make such fact known to the contract- ing authority, the contractor and/or sub- contractor by written sworn affidavit . . .
* * *
(b) After receipt of any such affidavit the contracting authority shall withhold from the contractor, until final determina- tion of the claim, an amount of money
equal to the amount claimed in such affidavit to be due and unpaid and the contracting authority shall forthwith attempt to settle the dispute between the contractor or sub- contractor and the complaining employee
and if the contracting authority is unable to effect such settlement the matter
shall forthwith be referred by the contract- ing authority to the Division of Labor for determination. . .
* * *
(d) Upon settlement of the dispute by
the contracting authority or upon determina- tion of the matter by the Division of Labor the contracting authority shall pay to the complaining employee such amount as shall
be found to be due said employee and shall pay to the contractor the balance of the moneys withheld as hereinabove provided.
In the present case, petitioner demonstrated that his work on both projects called for his special skills as a mechanic and could not have been performed by a common laborer, except for the five hours he spent digging with a shovel.
For his 176 hours on the Greenhut job, petitioner was Paid $1,056.00, instead of prevailing wages for a pipe welder, which would have been $1,983.52. Since the difference is more than was withheld from Greenhut, only the latter amount is available to petitioner under Section 215.19, Florida Statutes (1978 Supp.). For the 243 hours on the Sharp job during which he did not work as a laborer, petitioner was paid no more than $1,493.60, instead of prevailing wages for a pipe welder, which would have been $2,738.61.
