Vermont Construction Company, the Colchester contractor that came under fire last month for housing migrant workers in crowded, unfinished industrial spaces, has signed an agreement with a Minnesota nonprofit to set standards for its business practices and worker housing.

Company cofounder David Richards joined Burlington-based advocacy group Migrant Justice and a couple dozen of its supporters at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the new arrangement...

Richards said his company will support efforts to establish a third-party auditor who will review the pay, living conditions and housing provided by Vermont Construction’s subcontractors. He added that the partnership will help alleviate a worker shortage by attracting more construction workers to Vermont.

“We do not have enough houses. We do not have enough workers,” Richards said at the press conference. “This partnership with Building With Dignity will help attract the very people who will be building houses in Vermont.”...

Will Lambek, a spokesperson for Migrant Justice, said his group has had a long relationship with the Minnesota nonprofit, which plans to open an office in Vermont in the next few months...

“Construction workers will evaluate the needs for housing in the construction industry, based on workers’ experiences and what they define as dignified housing,” Lambek said in an interview. “It’s somewhat of an open question now.”

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