Today members of the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters (NASRCC) rallied at locations across New York State including downtown Buffalo to call out what they say is rampant tax fraud in the construction industry. Chris Austin, a business manager with the carpenters union tells BTPM he believes everyone would pay less in taxes if everyone paid their “fair share”.
“All of us pay more taxes because people aren't paying their fair share. All of us would pay less if everybody's stepping up to the plate and taking care of their fair share of taxes. What's next? Possibly have a president not pay his fair share [of] taxes? Is that where things are going, and it's so rampant that people think it's the normal.”
The rally was focused on tax fraud in the construction industry, but Austin mentioned that tax fraud can happen in any industry.
“However, make no bones about it. Tax fraud is across any industry you can think of. It might be the roofer next door to your house working on that roof. It could be the auto mechanic down on the corner. It's any industry that you can think of where there's an employee accepting payment for services. Wage theft has taken place. It's at pandemic proportions across the state.”
The actions are part of Tax Fraud Days of Action, a national campaign led by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters to raise awareness about what they see as unfair and sometimes illegal wage and tax practices by construction companies.
