Drywall firm Jetstream sues school district

Kim Smith

Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2000 | 11:40 a.m.

A Las Vegas drywall contractor has taken its fight with the Clark County School District to court.

Jetstream Construction wants a district judge to force the School Board to rescind its decision to ban the company from bidding on school projects.

According to documents filed Monday by Jetstream attorney Orin Grossman, the School Board voted Thursday to exclude the company from bidding on projects without a fair and impartial hearing.

Bill Hoffman, general counsel for the school district, said this morning that although he hasn't seen the document, the district will defend its position.

The issue was first broached in May when allegations were made by former Jetstream employees that they were forced to pay kickbacks to the company, court documents state.

However, the school district promised not to vote on the debarment issue until after an investigation by the state's Labor Commission.

Grossman said that a resolution was reached by Jetstream, the commission and the former employees. When he contacted the School Board to make sure the issue was taken off the agenda, he was assured he needn't show up for Thursday's meeting.

The next day, Jetstream learned of the board's decision by reading it in the newspaper, court documents say. The newspaper article stated the board voted to bar it from school projects because of OSHA violations.

However, Grossman said the only OSHA rule it violated pertained to the writing of an employee safety program, and it was fined $360.

As for the kickback allegations, Grossman writes that "there have never been any findings that any offense was committed."

The School Board's decision came four days before Jetstream was to bid on two new elementary schools, court documents show.

The 4-2 board decision prompted about 150 members of the Nevada Carpenters Union to cheer. The union had been lobbying the district to ban the nonunion company from working in the school district.

Despite Grossman's assertion that no evidence of wrongdoing was found, Jetstream recently paid $6,300 to six Hispanic workers who had alleged that the company required kickbacks.