State officials are pursuing two lawsuits in separate courts seeking more than $143,000 in combined damages from embattled architectural firm Yamasaki Associates Inc., for nonpayment of wages and unemployment taxes.

The director's office of the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth brought a civil action last week in Ingham County Circuit Court to collect $44,246.51 on behalf of six former Yamasaki employees under the Payment of Wages and Fringe Benefits Act.

The state Unemployment Insurance Agency, also an agency of DELEG, filed a separate claim in Oakland County Circuit Court against Yamasaki the same day for $99,003.25 in unpaid taxes on its payroll to the UIA.

The wage case in Ingham County claims Yamasaki has yet to resolve a final agency order from DELEG earlier this year, for six separate wage claims between June 2008 and last May, and that the company owes a $6,000 civil penalty plus interest.

The unemployment case in Oakland County cites seven different months of payroll expense between April 2007 and February of this year totaling more than $1.3 million, where the company allegedly made just one partial tax payment for $318.71.

Company CFO Lee Yesh did not immediately return two phone calls seeking comment on Tuesday. Chairman and CEO Ted Ayoub also could not be reached.

The attorney general becomes at least the seventh plaintiff in the past year to sue Yamasaki, which already faces allegations of nonpayment on more than $2.5 million to contractors and consultants on various projects.

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