FHWA-1273

(a) No construction work shall be performed by convict labor at the work site or within the limits of any Federal-aid highway construction project from the time of award of the contract or the start of work on force account until final acceptance of the work by the State DOT unless it is labor performed by convicts who are on parole, supervised release, or probation.
(b) No procedures or requirement shall be imposed by any State which will operate to discriminate against the employment of labor from any other State, possession or territory of the United States, in the construction of a Federal-aid project.
(c) The selection of labor to be employed by the contractor on any Federal-aid project shall be by the contractor without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or handicap and in accordance with 23 CFR part 230, 41 CFR part 60 and Exec. Order No. 11246 (Sept. 24, 1965), 3 CFR 339 (1964-1965), as amended.
(d) Pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 140(d), it is permissible for State DOT's to implement procedures or requirements which will extend preferential employment to Indians living on or near a reservation on eligible projects as defined in paragraph (e) of this section. Indian preference shall be applied without regard to tribal affiliation or place of enrollment. In no instance should a contractor be compelled to layoff or terminate a permanent core-crew employee to meet a preference goal.
(e) Projects eligible for Indian employment preference consideration are projects located on roads within or providing access to an Indian reservation or other Indian lands as defined under the term “Indian Reservation Roads” in 23 U.S.C. 101 and regulations issued thereunder. The terminus of a road “providing access to” is that point at which it intersects with a road functionally classified as a collector or higher classification (outside the reservation boundary) in both urban and rural areas. In the case of an Interstate highway, the terminus is the first interchange outside the reservation.
(f) The advertisement or call for bids on any contract for the construction of a project located on the Federal-aid system either shall include the minimum wage rates determined by the Secretary of Labor to be prevailing on the same type of work on similar construction in the immediate locality or shall provide that such rates are set out in the bidding documents and shall further specify that such rates are a part of the contract covering the project.

Amended: 2017-01-03 · SHA-256 of the XML as served: ceec4ff6bf7239873eeb036d4317ce7678cc101bae9797bb1a09b511d95275bf · eCFR

The eCFR is an editorial compilation maintained by the Office of the Federal Register and GPO; it is updated daily and is not the official legal edition (the annual Code of Federal Regulations is). Text printed here is as the eCFR served it on the read date.

(a) Required contract clauses. The Agency head will cause or require the contracting officer to require the contracting officer to insert in full, or (for contracts covered by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR chapter 1)) by reference, in any contract in excess of $2,000 which is entered into for the actual construction, alteration and/or repair, including painting and decorating, of a public building or public work, or building or work financed in whole or in part from Federal funds or in accordance with guarantees of a Federal agency or financed from funds obtained by pledge of any contract of a Federal agency to make a loan, grant or annual contribution (except where a different meaning is expressly indicated), and which is subject to the labor standards provisions of any of the laws referenced by § 5.1, the following clauses (or any modifications thereof to meet the particular needs of the agency, Provided, That such modifications are first approved by the Department of Labor):
(1) Minimum wages—(i) Wage rates and fringe benefits. All laborers and mechanics employed or working upon the site of the work (or otherwise working in construction or development of the project under a development statute), will be paid unconditionally and not less often than once a week, and without subsequent deduction or rebate on any account (except such payroll deductions as are permitted by regulations issued by the Secretary of Labor under the Copeland Act (29 CFR part 3)), the full amount of basic hourly wages and bona fide fringe benefits (or cash equivalents thereof) due at time of payment computed at rates not less than those contained in the wage determination of the Secretary of Labor which is attached hereto and made a part hereof, regardless of any contractual relationship which may be alleged to exist between the contractor and such laborers and mechanics. As provided in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section, the appropriate wage determinations are effective by operation of law even if they have not been attached to the contract. Contributions made or costs reasonably anticipated for bona fide fringe benefits under the Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 3141(2)(B)) on behalf of laborers or mechanics are considered wages paid to such laborers or mechanics, subject to the provisions of paragraph (a)(1)(v) of this section; also, regular contributions made or costs incurred for more than a weekly period (but not less often than quarterly) under plans, funds, or programs which cover the particular weekly period, are deemed to be constructively made or incurred during such weekly period. Such laborers and mechanics must be paid the appropriate wage rate and fringe benefits on the wage determination for the classification(s) of work actually performed, without regard to skill, except as provided in paragraph (a)(4) of this section. Laborers or mechanics performing work in more than one classification may be compensated at the rate specified for each classification for the time actually worked therein: Provided, That the employer's payroll records accurately set forth the time spent in each classification in which work is performed. The wage determination (including any additional classifications and wage rates conformed under paragraph (a)(1)(iii) of this section) and the Davis-Bacon poster (WH-1321) must be posted at all times by the contractor and its subcontractors at the site of the work in a prominent and accessible place where it can be easily seen by the workers.
(ii) Frequently recurring classifications. (A) In addition to wage and fringe benefit rates that have been determined to be prevailing under the procedures set forth in 29 CFR part 1, a wage determination may contain, pursuant to § 1.3(f), wage and fringe benefit rates for classifications of laborers and mechanics for which conformance requests are regularly submitted pursuant to paragraph (a)(1)(iii) of this section, provided that:
(1) The work performed by the classification is not performed by a classification in the wage determination for which a prevailing wage rate has been determined;
(2) The classification is used in the area by the construction industry; and
(3) The wage rate for the classification bears a reasonable relationship to the prevailing wage rates contained in the wage determination.
(B) The Administrator will establish wage rates for such classifications in accordance with paragraph (a)(1)(iii)(A)(3) of this section. Work performed in such a classification must be paid at no less than the wage and fringe benefit rate listed on the wage determination for such classification.
(iii) Conformance. (A) The contracting officer must require that any class of laborers or mechanics, including helpers, which is not listed in the wage determination and which is to be employed under the contract be classified in conformance with the wage determination. Conformance of an additional classification and wage rate and fringe benefits is appropriate only when the following criteria have been met:
(1) The work to be performed by the classification requested is not performed by a classification in the wage determination; and
(2) The classification is used in the area by the construction industry; and
(3) The proposed wage rate, including any bona fide fringe benefits, bears a reasonable relationship to the wage rates contained in the wage determination.
(B) The conformance process may not be used to split, subdivide, or otherwise avoid application of classifications listed in the wage determination.
(C) If the contractor and the laborers and mechanics to be employed in the classification (if known), or their representatives, and the contracting officer agree on the classification and wage rate (including the amount designated for fringe benefits where appropriate), a report of the action taken will be sent by the contracting officer by email to DBAconformance@dol.gov. The Administrator, or an authorized representative, will approve,
[…] full text at the eCFR link

Amended: 2017-01-03, 2017-01-09, 2018-01-02, 2019-01-23, 2022-01-14, 2022-01-18, 2023-01-13, 2023-01-15, 2023-08-23, 2023-10-23, 2024-01-11, 2024-01-15, 2025-01-10, 2025-01-15 · SHA-256 of the XML as served: 6663c190cdc82b9503724ed55d049100549f907c8cfbdd7ccc80d4444854aa06 · eCFR

The eCFR is an editorial compilation maintained by the Office of the Federal Register and GPO; it is updated daily and is not the official legal edition (the annual Code of Federal Regulations is). Text printed here is as the eCFR served it on the read date.