A recent Procurement Instruction Letter (PIL) sent to all U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) organizations, encouraged the use of an electronic, commercially available system to process and submit Davis-Bacon certified payrolls to the government. The Davis-Bacon Act requires contractors performing on federally funded and federally assisted construction contracts to submit weekly payroll statements to the Contracting Officer. […]
Category Archives: Davis-Bacon/Prevailing Wage Discussion
California Edition of What Every Contractor Should Know About Prevailing Wages
California Prevailing Wage Law: Wages Established By Geographic Region In California, prevailing wage rates are also established by geographic region. California has statewide rates, rates for large geographic regions, (i.e. Northern California, Southern California, and San Diego) and wage rates determined by counties. Generally there are about a dozen craft classifications established on a statewide basis. Ironworker is the […]
California Prevailing Wage Law: Wages Established by Craft
All prevailing wage rates in California are established by craft classification (i.e. Laborer, Carpenter, Plumber, etc.). Workers are paid based on the type of work they perform, not necessarily by the classification into which they were originally hired. For union signatory contractors, this is generally easier as union contracts also restrict the type of work a specific worker […]
American Public Works Association Video Presentations
During the 2012 APWA show, LCPtracker President Mark Douglas presented information on prevailing wage and new components of LCPtracker software. Videos of the speech are published on LCPtracker’s YouTube channel. Check back on the blog periodically as more videos are uploaded. The first video in the series presents the history of prevailing wage and Davis-Bacon laws, […]
California Prevailing Wage Law: How Prevailing Wages Determined
California uses a modal rate system to determine the prevailing wage rate. While the DIR from time to time does conduct wage surveys, most of the prevailing wage determinations are taken from the collective bargaining agreement and are the union rate. The modal rate means that the State adopts the single rate which is paid most often […]
Guest Speaker Series Videos
LCPtracker has a growing library of client testimonial and insider videos on the LCPtracker channel of YouTube. New videos are being added frequently, so check back often. These videos include the Guest Speaker Series from the First Annual User Group Conference, where LCPtracker’s valued clients spoke about labor compliance and how they utilize the system. The second video is […]
California Prevailing Wage Law: Proper Determination Tied to Bid Advertisement Date
Prevailing wages are determined by the Director of the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) and are issued twice a year in February and August. These wage rates create a “minimum wage” rate for workers employed on public works projects. The wage rates are adopted by using a modal rate, which means the rate most frequently […]
Study Refutes Claims About Prevailing Wage Laws
A study by America’s Building Trades Unions examined a sample of bids by union and nonunion contractors on prevailing wage projects in the San Francisco Bay area. Results provided the first evidence examining the effects of prevailing wage regulations on contractor participation and bidding behavior. Prevailing wage regulations does not decrease the number of bidders […]
California Prevailing Wage Law: Threshold Amount
Prevailing wage is imposed when: 1. A state, municipal, or local agency administers public funds for works of improvement which exceed $1,000; or, 2. Certain lease arrangements where a building is privately owned, and: A. A public entity leases 50% of the space in the building before construction begins; OR B. The building is built […]
California Apprenticeship Programs
Apprenticeships, although equating to only 3% of total construction industry employment, are key to sustaining the workforce that builds California’s public works projects. They allow aspiring construction workers the opportunity to earn good wages with health insurance and retirement benefits as they learn to build the infrastructure upon which California depends. Recently, data from the […]