Davis-Bacon wages: what they are and how to find your rate
Davis-Bacon wages are the minimum pay a laborer or mechanic must get on a covered federal or federally assisted construction job. Each wage has two parts: a basic hourly rate and a fringe benefit rate. The Department of Labor publishes both, trade by trade and county by county, in wage determinations on SAM.gov. Your contract names the one that applies to your job.
This guide covers what the two parts mean, how to find the rate for your trade, how the Department of Labor sets the numbers, who must be paid them, and where they show up on certified payroll.
What are Davis-Bacon wages made of?
The regulations define “wages” as the basic hourly rate of pay plus contributions or costs for bona fide fringe benefits (29 CFR 5.2). Fringe benefits include things like health care, pensions, life and disability insurance, vacation and holiday pay, and apprenticeship costs.
On a wage determination, each classification has two columns:
| Column | What it means |
|---|---|
| Rates | The basic hourly rate of pay. |
| Fringes | The hourly fringe benefit rate on top of the base. |
The worker must get at least both. The labor standards clause requires the full basic hourly wage and bona fide fringe benefits “or cash equivalents thereof” (29 CFR 5.5(a)(1)(i)). So you can meet the fringe by paying into a plan, by paying the fringe as extra cash, or by a mix. For how plan costs turn into an hourly credit, see Davis-Bacon fringe benefits.
Here is a real example. North Carolina building determination NC20260061, modification 1, published May 18, 2026, lists:
- Pipefitter: $31.66 base plus $12.69 fringe, so at least $44.35 an hour.
- Electrician: $15.37 base plus $0.40 fringe, so at least $15.77 an hour.
Those two numbers are far apart, and the reason is in the codes printed above each group of rates. More on that below.
How do you look up the Davis-Bacon wage for your trade and county?
Wage determinations are on SAM.gov, which has been the official source since June 14, 2019 (DOL FAQ).
- Start with your contract. It should name a general decision number and modification, such as NC20260061, modification 1. That version generally applies for the life of the contract.
- Search SAM.gov. On SAM.gov wage determinations, pick the Davis-Bacon category and search by the decision number. Before bidding, you can also search by state, county and construction type.
- Find your classification. Match the work your crew will actually do, not their job titles. Read the notes in the classification name, such as “excludes HVAC unit installation.”
- Ask if your trade is missing. If no classification fits, the contractor that will employ the worker proposes one through conformance, and the contracting officer sends it to the Department of Labor. See Davis-Bacon conformance.
For a full walkthrough of the header, modification table and footnotes, see how to read a Davis-Bacon wage determination.
How does the Department of Labor set Davis-Bacon wages?
The Wage and Hour Division runs surveys. It collects wage data from contractors, unions, public officials and others, and it may also use signed collective bargaining agreements and rates set by state and local prevailing wage laws (29 CFR 1.3).
It then applies the definition of “prevailing wage” in 29 CFR 1.2, one classification at a time:
- If one rate is paid to a majority (more than 50 percent) of workers in the classification, that rate prevails.
- If not, the rate paid to the greatest number of workers prevails, as long as that is at least 30 percent.
- If no rate reaches 30 percent, the prevailing wage is the weighted average of all the rates reported.
Step 2 is the “30 percent rule.” The Department of Labor brought it back in its 2023 final rule, restoring the three-step process it used before 1983 (DOL rule FAQ). The rule took effect on October 23, 2023, and its wage-setting changes apply only to wage determination revisions completed on or after that date (Federal Register, 2023).
The same rule made two other changes to how rates are set:
- Updates to non-union rates. The Department can adjust non-collectively bargained rates using the Employment Cost Index, no more than once every 3 years and no sooner than 3 years after the rate was published (29 CFR 1.6(c)(1)).
- Adopting state rates. It can adopt rates set by a state or local government, if that government’s process meets conditions such as open participation and a separate base and fringe (29 CFR 1.3(g)-(h)).
What do union, UAVG, SU and SA rates mean?
Every wage determination groups its rates under a short code. The explanation printed on the determinations themselves, including NC20260061, reads like this:
| Code | Example | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Union code | PLUM0421-004 | A union rate prevailed in the survey. It is updated as changes to the bargaining agreement are reported to the Wage and Hour Division. |
| UAVG | UAVG-OH-0010 | No single rate prevailed, but all the data was union rates. It is a weighted union average, updated once a year, usually in January. |
| SU | SUNC2011-042 | A single non-union rate prevailed, or the rate is a weighted average of all survey data. The year is the survey year. |
| SA | SAME2023-007 | The rate was adopted from a state or local government. |
This explains the example above. The pipefitter rate sits under a union code. The electrician rate sits under SUNC2011-042, which points to a 2011 survey. The determination says SU rates “typically remain in effect until a new survey is conducted,” though the Wage and Hour Division can update them under 29 CFR 1.6(c)(1).
Who must be paid Davis-Bacon wages, and when?
The rules cover contracts over $2,000 for the construction, alteration or repair of public buildings or public works, plus construction paid for in whole or in part with federal grants, loans, loan guarantees or insurance under the Related Acts (DOL). Both primes and subcontractors must pay them.
- Who: Laborers and mechanics, meaning workers whose duties are manual or physical. Mainly administrative or clerical staff are not covered. A foreperson who is not an exempt executive and spends more than 20 percent of a workweek on laborer or mechanic duties must get the prevailing wage for that time (DOL FAQ).
- When: At least once a week, unconditionally, with only the deductions the rules allow (29 CFR 5.5(a)(1)(i)).
- At what rate: The rate for the classification of work actually performed, regardless of skill (registered apprentices are the exception). A worker who does two kinds of work can be paid each rate for the time spent in it, if your payroll records show that split.
- Posted: The wage determination and the Davis-Bacon poster (WH-1321) must be posted at the site where workers can easily see them.
The determination sets a floor. You can always pay more.
How do Davis-Bacon wages show up on certified payroll?
Each week of covered work, you send a certified payroll. Your records must show each worker’s classification, hourly rates paid (including fringe contributions or cash equivalents), daily and weekly hours, deductions and actual wages paid (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)). The prime must turn in all subcontractors’ payrolls.
Before you submit, check each line against the wage determination: the classification, the modification number, and how the fringe credit is figured. For the form itself, see how to fill out a WH-347.
Where Payrung fits
Payrung is being built to load the wage determination named in your contract, match each worker’s hours to a classification, and flag any line where base plus fringe falls short before the payroll goes out. If that would help your office, join the waitlist.
This guide is general information, not legal or payroll advice. Confirm the rates and rules for your job with the contracting agency or a qualified advisor.