MILAN, Italy: Foreign workers building a large U.S. Consulate in Milan valued at US$350 million were paid less than $2 an hour, even though they had been promised fair wages. 

This is based on interviews by the Associated Press with five former workers, as well as their employment letters and pay slips. There were four from Kenya and one from India.

Italian prosecutors are investigating Caddell Construction, a company based in Montgomery, Alabama, which builds U.S. diplomatic buildings. Two of its managers in Italy were arrested this month on suspicion of exploiting workers. One was caught while trying to leave the country, and the other was planning to escape, prosecutors said.

The investigation is being led by prosecutor Paolo Storari, who has also worked on cases involving sweatshops supplying luxury brands. So far, only Caddell has been officially named in the investigation, not its subcontractors.

The probe into the consulate project began about six months ago and involves around 70 workers, most of them from India. Prosecutors say Caddell illegally cut money from workers' wages for food and housing and made them work 10 hours a day, six days a week. After these deductions, some workers were left with as little as 500 euros (under $580) a month. In comparison, the minimum wage for construction workers in Milan starts at 13.39 euros per hour (over $15).

Both Caddell and the U.S. State Department said they are looking into the allegations and are cooperating with Italian authorities.

The consulate project is part of a construction boom in Milan over the last 20 years that has modernized the city and increased its global importance in fashion and finance.

The Associated Press spoke with five workers at a trade union center, where they were receiving help, including legal support and housing assistance. The workers shared documents and spoke anonymously because they feared retaliation and wanted to protect the investigation.

The Kenyan workers said that Caddell hired them after they worked on a major expansion of the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi. Two of them showed employment letters from the company promising yearly salaries of more than 25,000 euros (about $29,000).

%However, they said they were paid far less and were threatened by human resources staff when they questioned their pay. One Kenyan electrician said that when workers asked questions, they were told: "Either you work, or you will be sent back to your country. This is the amount you will be paid." He said he received only 800 euros ($925) a month, instead of the promised 2,300 euros ($2,660).

Another Kenyan electrician said he was threatened with legal action after he showed an AI-based summary of Italian labor laws. He was told that the 25,000 euros mentioned in his contract were only for visa purposes, not an actual salary promise.

The U.S. State Department said it is investigating the claims along with U.S. law enforcement and Italian authorities, adding that it does not tolerate labor exploitation.

Caddell said it is fully cooperating with authorities and conducting its own detailed investigation to ensure all subcontractors and partners comply with labor laws and standards.

All five workers interviewed, aged from their late 20s to early 50s, said they were fired without reason this year. One said that after visiting his family in Kenya, he returned to find he no longer had a job or a place to live.

Four of the workers were trained electricians, including the Indian worker, who had over 10 years of experience working in Gulf countries. He said he had been promised a monthly salary of 2,500 euros (nearly $3,000), but his pay slip showed he actually received about 500 euros (under $580) a month, with an hourly wage of just 1.55 euros ($1.80).

The Kenyan workers said they contacted authorities after learning about the investigation.