ABHE EXPOSED

Abhe & Svoboda, Inc.

Based out of Jordan, Minnesota, Abhe & Svoboda Inc. operates as an incorporated, "open shop" industrial coatings company. Abhe & Svoboda have been the subject of over 100 OSHA investigations, numerous lawsuits, and most recently suffered an on-the-job accident while working on the Ross Island Bridge in Portland, Oregon.

In just the past decade alone, Abhe & Svoboda have incurred:

• Connecticut, 2007 – $1.3 million in unpaid wages for paying painters a lower rate than Federal Law requires
• Oregon, 2011 – $30,000 in OSHA violations
• Hawaii, 2012 – $15,500 in OSHA violations
• California, 2013 – $90,900 in penalties for failing to hire apprentices
• California, 2016 – $60,000 in wages and $55,000 in penalties for wage violations

Ross Island Bridge Incident

In February of 2017, a painter employed by Abhe & Svoboda fell over 40 feet and struck his son. Both were hospitalized and required rescue by emergency personnel. An employee of Abhe & Svoboda, Omar Rubi, told KOIN news that “There’s holes where there shouldn’t be covered by pieces of plywood.”

Abhe & Svoboda were able to low-bid on the Ross Island Bridge by nearly 33% less than the nearest bid - $22.3mil. Hercules Painting came in second with a $33mil bid on the project. Omar Rubi went on to tell the NW Labor Press that Abhe & Svoboda were cutting corners: "Paint in some cases was being applied at the wrong thickness or in conditions that were too cold or humid to meet manufacturer specifications, Rubi said. In places, paint was bubbling or chipping, or missing required “striping” along joints."

Further Reading