By Matthew Hoy
Record Staff Writer
VANDENBERG AFB—The Vandenberg Air Force Base contractor who had a complaint filed against him in February with the Federal Department of Labor for failing to pay his employees has done it again, union representatives said.
According to shop steward Maureen Taylor, approximately two-thirds of the employees' latest paychecks, dated March 31 . have
bounced.
"It seems like every one we've had lately bounced," Taylor said.
The company, Thigpen Limited, currently has the contract to run the base's The Breakers dining hall, which serves meals to the Air Force's enlisted population.
Four attempts by the Lompoc Record to reach James Thigpen, president and CEO of Thigpen Ltd., at his Novato office failed.
Shortly after the complaint was filed in February, Thigpen Ltd. asked the 30th Contracting Squadron at Vandenberg to create an account to pay the employees for that pay period, base officials said.
"Our contracting squadron took over making payments to employees," said Lt. John Dorrian, base spokesman. "Once he got back to being solvent, we transferred that responsibility back to him, which is the way it's supposed to be."
With the latest reports of bad paychecks. the Air Force has revived the account at Vandenberg Federal Credit Union to pay the
employees.
"We decided we were going to take some action," Dorrian said.
Though the employees will be getting paid, union officials are still angry that it has taken so long for permanent action to be taken.
"We're getting the feeling that nobody is really doing anything," Taylor said.
Paul Harvey, Industrial, Technical and Professional Employees Union District No. 5 representative blames the Department of Labor (DOL) for the employees' woes.
As early as August 1994, Harvey said the DOL assured him that "the problem would be taken care of."
"They were supposed to prevent this from happening," Harvey said.
The DOL, meanwhile, says it is trying to solve the problem.
"We're working to get the employer back in compliance," Margaret Pringels, DOL investigator, said this morning.
Pringels said she has met with Thigpen and his lawyer to try to solve the problem, and is working on taking funds for the employees' fringe benefits, which have not been paid.
According to Harvey, Thigpen Ltd. is six months in arrears in making payments into the employees' annual benefit fund and pension fund. Union dues, which are automatically deducted from employees' paychecks, have also not been paid.
Sometime in the near future Pringels plans on forwarding Thigpen Ltd.'s case to the DO L's regional office and then the legal section, she said.
According to Pringels, the only penalty the company could face would be debarment, which would prohibit it from bidding on government contracts for a period of up to three years. There is no monetary penalty.
A similar situation at Edwards AFB, where Thigpen Ltd. also held a food service contract, was resolved when the two parties "mutually consented" to cancel the contract, said John Haire, director of media relations at Edwards.
According to Haire, numerous employee paychecks had bounced on five separate occasions.
Despite the continuous uncertainty about the paychecks, Taylor said that only two employees have quit because of it.
"They need the work regardless and they figure the money will come through sooner or later," Taylor said.
Published Thursday, April 6, 1995, The Lompoc Record.
