Driven by the Mission

Gregg Harrington is a Wage and Hour Division investigator who works in the Albany District Office in New York.

Q: Who or what motivates you to do your work as a Wage and Hour Division investigator?

My primary motivator as an investigator is the vulnerable workers we protect. While reviewing payroll records, I can’t help but notice their long hours of hard work for pay rates that sometimes fall short of minimum wage or required overtime rates. I’m driven to correct those injustices, no matter how long an investigation takes.

I also really believe in the Wage and Hour Division’s mission of enhancing the welfare of the nation’s workforce. Investigators often meet low-wage workers who are just trying to make ends meet. When we recover wages owed to those workers, we feel a big sense of accomplishment. We know that those wages enable the workers to pay bills, put food on the table and provide for their families.

Q: How long have you been an investigator?

I’ve been an investigator for eight years, but it only feels like two or three years. That’s because the work is never dull and it always feels like I’m putting together a 1,000-piece puzzle.

Q: What do you like to do when you’re not enforcing workers’ rights?

I love fishing. Albany is my hometown and it’s a great halfway point for trout fishing. In the spring, I go to the Esopus Creek in the Catskill Mountains and the Ausable River in the Adirondack Mountains. When autumn comes, I like to venture west to fish in the Salmon River in Pulaski, New York. Of all locations, my favorite fishing is usually when I take a trip to Florida in the winter to visit family and game fish snook along the beach.

Q: How would you describe your team?

In my office, we have a team that’s very supportive. My colleagues are like family. Each and every one of them is attentive and receptive when I need advice. As someone who is rarely 100% sure of the right decision, being able to contact coworkers and supervisors for help makes a world of difference.

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