What Is the Davis –Bacon Act?
• The Davis –Bacon Act requires federal construction contractors to pay at least the wage rates prevailing on non-federal construction projects in the same locality. • The act was intended to prevent the purchasing power of the federal government from driving down construction wages during the Great Depression. • The act applies to contractors and subcontractors performing on federally funded or assisted contracts in excess of $2,000 for the construction, alteration, or repair (including painting and decorating) of public buildings or public works. • To calculate the wages that contractors must pay, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) surveys construction wages and publishes prevailing wage determinations for each county in the United States. Federal contractors must then pay their employees at least the prevailing wage for each class of worker. Policy Objections • In most cities, Davis–Bacon wages bear no resemblance to prevailing market wages. In some cities, Davis–Bacon rates are more
