Thread by @reveal

1/ The elder care industry is a burgeoning, multibillion-dollar business.

Some of its operators have become wealthy by underpaying workers.

Here’s how one operator, Stephanie Costa, ran afoul of the law: revealnews.org/article/caregi…

2/ In 2013, Stephanie Costa appeared on the @BravoTV reality show “The Millionaire Matchmaker.”

She was 30 and wealthy by most standards – worth between $3-$4 million, she said.

3/ At one point in the episode, she hints at her motivations: She didn’t want to end up “alone in the nursing home … in my own nursing home.”

4/ Indeed, Costa’s lifestyle was supported in part by six board-and-care homes she owned in California’s Central Valley. They now operate under the names Clear View Retirement Group and Copper River Retirement Group.

5/ Back in 2013, about half of Costa’s net worth was threatened when she and her company initially were cited for about $1.6 million for unpaid wages and penalties.

Eleven workers brought wage theft claims after providing around-the-clock care in the care homes Costa owned.

6/ The workers said they risked being fired if they left the facilities and had no off-duty rest breaks during the day. Costa’s care homes promoted 24/7 care for frail residents.

7/ “We knew we were being underpaid,” a former caregiver employed by Costa told reporter @jennifergollan. “But we were helpless. We didn’t know our rights. How could we leave?”

8/ A few months after Costa appeared on @BravoTV, California’s labor commissioner’s office ordered her and her company, Bedford Care Group, to pay about $1.6 million for unpaid wages and penalties.

9/ That’s when Costa changed tactics. Papers were filed with the state to create two new residential care-home companies called Clear View Retirement Group LLC and Copper River Retirement Group LLC.

10/ These new companies then received licenses from the state to run the six former Bedford care homes. Costa’s mother, Alice Hayes, is the secretary of both companies. She indicated at one point that the structure and administrative staff at both would remain the same. 👇👇

11/ She declined to be interviewed for this story.

12/ In December 2014, following an appeal, the amount Costa and her company owed for the labor violations was reduced to $665,000 – far less than the initial citation.

13/ Around the same time, Costa’s company filed for bankruptcy, a maneuver that allowed her to ultimately settle with the workers for about $200,000.

14/ Three weeks after Costa’s care-home business filed for bankruptcy, her father registered a new company with the state called Property Investment Housing LLC: documentcloud.org/documents/5031…

Costa’s father didn’t return @jennifergollan’s calls for comment.

15/ The company then took over as the new owner of Costa’s six care homes.

But guess who is the CEO of the property investment company?

Stephanie Costa. documentcloud.org/documents/5031…

16/ We’re staying on this story. The best way to keep up with all of our latest reporting is to subscribe to our newsletter: revealnews.org/newsletter