The ongoing battle over control of Levi’s Stadium is again reaching a boiling point.
This time, the city of Santa Clara is accusing the San Francisco 49ers and their management company of violating state labor laws. The city claims workers on many stadium projects for years have not been getting paid the prevailing wage required by the state.
The 49ers management company was given the authority to do the hiring on projects related to Levi's Stadium, but now the city has taken that authority away.
Such projects include concert stages and any other work that physically alters the stadium. Since Levi’s is a publicly owned stadium, those hiring contracts have to follow state law, including paying the area’s prevailing wages.
After reviewing documents, the city says the 49ers' group hasn't done that for multiple projects going back as far as five years and has refused to produce any financial documents.
Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor, the stadium authority chair, says the city has had enough.
"The city of Santa Clara and the stadium authority will now manage all the Public Works contracts at the stadium," Gillmor said. "We’ve taken that authority away from the stadium management company, the 49er management company."
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That change took effect Wednesday, the mayor confirmed.
The 49ers and their management company responded angrily in a statement to NBC Bay Area, saying it was challenging to understand Gillmor’s "finger pointing" since, they said, the documents in hiring were created and approved by her staff. And after calling the city’s action "grandstanding," the 49ers group said it will ensure any outstanding issues are cured.
Gillmor, meanwhile, remains unfazed.
"We’ve referred this to the state of California for investigation," she said.
The South Bay Labor Council said it is also investigating whether labor laws are being followed, and if officials believe it’s happening, they say they’ll take it to the state as well.
