Attorney General Schwalb Releases 2026 Labor Day Report

​​​​​​​Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today released the Office of the Attorney General's (OAG) 2026 Labor Day Report, highlighting how over the last year OAG has fought for workers, enforced the District's labor laws, and worked to ensure that all District businesses compete on a level playing field.

Since Labor Day 2025, OAG has secured over $7.8 million through workers' rights enforcement actions across industries. Since Attorney General Schwalb took office, OAG has secured over $28.5 million for thousands of workers who were taken advantage of and in penalties against companies that violated DC's labor laws.

"Workers are the backbone of our local economy. My office will always have their backs and fight to get them the pay and benefits they have earned while leveling the playing field for businesses across the District," said Attorney General Schwalb. "DC has some of the strongest labor protections in the country, but these laws don't enforce themselves. I'm exceptionally proud of the work that our Workers' Rights Section has done - securing record levels of relief for thousands of workers and making sure that all companies play by the rules."

Highlights include:

• $1.7 million from Welch Mechanical Contractors and $1.5 million from Brothers Mechanical, construction companies that have worked on high-profile development projects across DC, for illegally misclassifying hundreds of workers as independent contractors to avoid giving them the pay and benefits they had earned and were legally entitled to.
  
• $243,000 from The Park at 14th, a DC restaurant and nightclub, for failing to give workers paid sick leave, illegally misclassifying employees as independent contractors, and retaliating against workers who spoke up about the conditions.
  
• 3,486 District workers who received relief, including back pay and critical benefits, through OAG's worker rights enforcement actions over the past year.

The full report is available here.

OAG employs a talented and dedicated team of attorneys, investigators, paralegals, and staff assistants in our Workers' Rights and Antifraud Section. This team includes Assistant Attorneys General Norman Anderson, Eric Anthony, Hannah Cole-Chu, Beth Feldstein, Molly Keck, Kara Mahoney, Jude Nwaokobia, Cara Reichard, Tascha Shahriari-Parsa, and Charlie Sinks; Investigators Kenithia Alston and Na'eelah Bakari; Paralegal Diego Pereira; Staff Assistant Mina Kasama; Assistant Section Chief Dennis Corkery; and Section Chief Graham Lake. OAG also thanks Intern Xiaoduo Chen for help in preparing this report.

How to Report Wage and Hour Violations

OAG's Workers' Rights and Antifraud Section is dedicated to fighting wage theft and protecting District workers. Workers who believe that their rights have been violated, or that they have experienced wage theft or other wage and hour violations, can contact OAG by calling (202) 724-7730 or emailing [email protected] or [email protected].

OAG's wage theft enforcement efforts have focused on industries with high populations of vulnerable workers, such as construction, restaurants and hospitality, healthcare, and the gig economy.

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