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Dive brief:
- On August 29, the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor will offer an online seminar focused on requirements to pay prevailing wages on federally funded construction and service contracts.
- For contractors working on federally funded infrastructure projects, it could serve as a much-needed upgrade. The DOL updated the Davis-Bacon Act in October, raising in some cases the wages employers must pay on affected contracts.
- The one-day seminar will offer sessions on the labor standards protections in the Davis-Bacon Act and the Service Contract Act, to include how the department sets and administers prevailing wage standards.
Diving knowledge:
President Joe Biden made clear his goal to become the most pro-worker president in US history. A step in this direction came last year, when, from October 23, the DOL has updated Davis-Bacon and related actsgoing back to the rule that was changed in 1983 during the Ronald Reagan administration.
The DBRA establishes the prevailing wages contractors must pay workers in federal workplaces, with specific rules about which workers are subject to the requirements. The October update effectively increased the wages of some workers by making the prevailing wage equal to what is paid to at least 30% of workers in a given trade location, a change of 50%.
The seminar will be held from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EDT, according to the release. Attendance is free but registration is required.
