US consulate builder in Milan to pay $35 million over labour probe, document shows

Business Recorder, citing a Reuters report, says US builder Caddell Construction has formally committed to pay €30.941 million ($35.24 million) as part of a probe into alleged worker exploitation at the US consulate site in Milan. A document submitted to Milan prosecutors shows nearly €20 million will be paid to workers covering overtime, accommodation reimbursements and compensation tied to non-material damage. The firm has not accepted liability, and it has not replied to a request for comment.

Caddell's Italian arm came under investigation on May 29 and was put under judicial administration, a step a judge endorsed two weeks later. Milan prosecutors and Carabinieri police say the firm recruited Indian workers through a New Delhi intermediary and kept them on punishing, underpaid shifts with no safety protections. The firm will additionally pay Italy's INPS more than €7 million and the Labour Inspectorate almost €4 million.

Two sources said the agreement covers regularising around 500 workers, validating residence permits for 270 non-Italian workers and providing unemployment benefits to 60 dismissed staff. Once payments are complete, prosecutors are set to have the case against the Italian unit dropped and to pursue plea deals with two arrested executives. Construction on the consulate began in 2022 under a contract worth almost $210 million, and completion, first set for 2025, has been moved to 2028.