Five weeks later, ‘Rockville’ security workers still waiting for paychecks
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. June 3 2018 – Luciano Aragon has no regrets about working security at the 2018 edition of “Welcome to Rockville”.
“It was a blast, I had a blast. I had fun doing it!,” he said, despite his job of keeping throngs of people – many having drunk alcohol – safe in tight quarters and loud conditions. “I helped people, basically, that were crowd surfers, pulled them down to safety.”
Not a mean feat for a guy 60 years old, but he said his only lingering pain is that he still hasn’t been paid.
“We still haven’t seen no money, tried to get hold of the office, no one would return our calls,” he said.
He’s not alone. By its own admission, the security contractor that hired Aragon, Accurate Event Group, has been tardy with 30 to 40 among the roughly 130 it hired to handle the crowds at ‘Rockville’. CEO Gordon Marrin told First Coast News by phone Friday that the delays have been caused by a variety of issues, and that all checks will be mailed Wednesday, June 6.
“I mean, I’ve heard that four or five times now,” said stage pit security worker Brian Buch, “so I’ll be happy when I have the check in my hand.”
Buch said he had been told it would take a couple weeks to receive his wages – he worked nearly 50 hours at $15 per hour and time-and-a-half after the first 40 hours – but his inquiries to Accurate Events Group in the weeks since then have been brushed off.
“It’s been disappointing. I’ve been hung up on probably 40 times,” Buch said.
And, this is the second go-round of paycheck delays in as many years Accurate Event Group, based in Hollywood, Fla., has been hired to staff Rockville.
“Well, the word gets around that, ‘Oh yeah, they were the same people that did it last year’,” said Aragon.
“I Googled the company and saw that there were some class action lawsuits against them,” Buch added.
Rockville promoter Danny Wimmer Presents said in a statement, “Welcome To Rockville does not directly hire and pay the security staff. The festival hires outside security companies who, in turn, hire, manage and pay the members of the security team. We have paid the security companies in full and would expect that they are properly compensating their staff.
In other words, the promoter said it’s done its part. But Buch said he’d like to get a point across for next year.
“I’d actually like to talk to them about it because I’ve heard that people from last year still haven’t been paid,” he said. “I’d like to make sure that they knew that they’re paying people to do a job, that are hiring people, and they’re not being compensated.”
The Department of Labor said workers might be able to call the agency’s Wages & Hours office in Jacksonville at 904-359-9292, but an attorney told First Coast News that might not do any good because of the temporary nature of the work.
“If you’re an employee, you may have remedies under the Fair Labor Standards Act,” said Jacksonville lawyer Archibald Thomas, who specializes in employment cases. “If you’re an independent contractor, your remedy is usually limited to bringing a legal claim in court for non-payment of wages.”
Another complication could arise, said Thomas, if Accurate Event Group is fiscally weak.
“If it’s because of the financial instability of the company, that can be difficult because you can either find yourself in bankruptcy court, where you can bring your claim, Thomas explained, “but there may be a number of other creditors, some of whom may take precedence over wage claims.”
As they continue waiting, Buch and Aragon still smile about their experiences working Rockville.
“Overall it was fun, I had a good time,” Buch said.
They said they won’t be back again if Accurate Event Group is part of the mix.
“I have another job, I have a day job,” Aragon said. “But if I was dependent on this money, no.”
“Never do it again,” Buch said. “Because of that, yeah.”
First Coast News
