Arkansas has no state prevailing wage law, so prevailing wage in Arkansas is governed entirely by the federal Davis-Bacon Act on any construction contract over $2,000 that involves federal money.1U.S. Department of Labor. Dollar Threshold Amount for Contract Coverage The state repealed its own law in April 2017 through SB601.2Arkansas State Legislature. Bill Information – SB601 Purely state- or locally funded projects carry no prevailing wage requirement at all now. Federally funded ones carry a strict one, and getting it wrong can cost back wages, withheld contract payments, and a three-year ban from all federal work.
When Davis-Bacon Applies to Your Project
The Act covers every federal construction contract above $2,000 for building, altering, or repairing public buildings and public works.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 40 USC 3142 – Rate of Wages for Laborers and Mechanics In Arkansas that reaches highways, bridges, schools, courthouses, water treatment plants, and similar infrastructure.
The money doesn’t have to come directly from a federal agency. Dozens of assistance programs—grants, loans, and loan guarantees under what the Department of Labor calls the “Related Acts”—extend Davis-Bacon to projects that a state or local body administers day-to-day.4U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 66 – The Davis-Bacon and Related Acts If federal dollars are anywhere in the funding stack, assume prevailing wage rules apply and confirm before you bid.
Finding the Right Wage Rate
The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division surveys actual construction pay in each area and publishes wage determinations that list minimum hourly base pay and fringe benefit amounts for each job classification.5U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 81 – The Davis-Bacon Wage Survey Process Determinations are broken down by county and by construction type: building, residential, highway, or heavy. Look up the current one for your Arkansas county on SAM.gov before pricing any bid.6SAM.gov. Wage Determinations
The determination incorporated into your contract is binding for the life of that contract unless it is formally modified. If a new determination is published before the contract is awarded, the contracting agency must use the updated rates. Using the wrong county or the wrong construction type is a common and expensive mistake.
When a Classification You Need Isn’t Listed
If the determination lacks a classification you need, request one through the conformance process under 29 CFR 5.5(a)(1)(iii).7eCFR. 29 CFR 5.5 – Contract Provisions and Related Matters You propose a rate that bears a reasonable relationship to similar classifications already listed, and the DOL has 30 days to approve, modify, or deny it.8U.S. Department of Labor. Davis-Bacon Conformance Process Conformance only works for genuinely unlisted work—you can’t use it to split classifications that already exist. Putting workers into an unapproved classification is a violation even if you’re paying them generously.
Base Pay Plus Fringe: How to Pay Correctly
Every wage determination has two parts: a base hourly rate and a fringe benefit rate. You can meet the fringe portion by providing qualifying benefits worth at least the listed amount, by paying the full fringe as additional cash directly to the worker, or by combining the two.9eCFR. 29 CFR Part 5 Subpart B – Interpretation of the Fringe Benefits Provisions of the Davis-Bacon Act
The math is where contractors slip. If a determination requires $28.50 per hour in fringes and your benefit package is worth only $26.00 per hour, you owe each worker $2.50 in additional cash for every hour worked. Benefits also have to qualify as “bona fide”—funded plans require irrevocable contributions made at least quarterly, and unfunded plans paid from general assets need written communication to employees, set-aside funds, and prior DOL approval before you can take credit.10U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 66E – Compliance With Fringe Benefit Requirements
Which Workers Are Covered
Davis-Bacon covers laborers and mechanics performing construction on covered projects: carpenters, electricians, plumbers, ironworkers, equipment operators, and general laborers all sit squarely inside the requirement.11U.S. Department of Labor. Davis-Bacon and Related Acts A few categories cause most of the classification headaches.
Working Supervisors
Foremen and project managers are normally exempt. But if a supervisor spends more than 20% of their time on hands-on construction work, that time must be paid at the prevailing rate for the classification they’re performing.12HUD Exchange. Davis-Bacon and Labor Standards Agency and Contractor Guide On smaller crews with a working foreman, this comes up often.
Apprentices
Apprentices enrolled in a DOL- or state-approved registered program can be paid at the program’s reduced rate and must follow its structured progression. Anyone learning on the job outside a registered program must be paid the full prevailing wage for their classification.
Truck Drivers
As of June 2024, a nationwide court injunction blocks enforcement of the rule that would have required prevailing wages for delivery drivers’ onsite time beyond a minimal amount. While that injunction holds, time spent delivering materials, loading, unloading, and waiting is not covered. Time a driver spends doing actual construction work on site is covered at the appropriate classification rate.11U.S. Department of Labor. Davis-Bacon and Related Acts
Independent Contractors
Only employees of contractors and subcontractors are covered. Calling someone an independent contractor to duck the prevailing wage is one of the fastest ways to draw a DOL investigation. Both the DOL and the IRS examine the actual working relationship, not the label on paper.
Payroll, Posting, and Records
Most compliance failures start with paperwork.
Weekly Certified Payroll
You must submit a weekly certified payroll report—typically Form WH-347—to the contracting agency or the entity transmitting records to the federal agency.13U.S. Department of Labor. Instructions for Completing Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Weekly Certified Payroll Form, WH-347 Every covered worker’s name, classification, hourly rate, daily and weekly hours, and fringe benefits must appear. Late or missing reports can hold up your contract payments and invite closer scrutiny.
Job Site Posting
Post the Davis-Bacon poster (WH-1321) and the applicable wage determination in a prominent, accessible spot at the work site.14U.S. Department of Labor. Davis-Bacon Poster (Government Construction) The current poster includes anti-retaliation language, so don’t leave an old copy up.
Record Retention
Keep payroll records and supporting documentation for at least three years after all work on the prime contract is completed.7eCFR. 29 CFR 5.5 – Contract Provisions and Related Matters The clock runs from completion of the whole prime contract, not your piece of it.
Liability for Your Subcontractors
A prime contractor is ultimately liable for Davis-Bacon violations by subcontractors at any tier. If a lower-tier sub underpays workers, you can owe those back wages even without direct knowledge. Flow down the labor standards clauses into every subcontract and actually review sub payrolls. If you fail to include the clauses at all, your subcontractor may escape responsibility, and you’ll still owe their workers the prevailing rate from your own pocket.15U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 66C – The Davis-Bacon and Related Acts
Overtime on Top: CWHSSA
The Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act adds overtime on top of Davis-Bacon. On contracts over $100,000 (or $150,000 under Federal Acquisition Regulation procurement), you must pay at least one and a half times the basic hourly rate for every hour worked beyond 40 in a workweek.16U.S. Department of Labor. Overtime Pay on Government Contracts
Three points routinely trip contractors up. Overtime is calculated on the basic hourly rate only; the fringe portion is excluded. Neither CWHSSA nor the FLSA requires premium pay for weekend or holiday work by itself—overtime is driven by hours worked past 40. Paid holidays and paid leave don’t count toward that 40-hour threshold.
The penalty for CWHSSA overtime violations is $33 per worker per calendar day the worker performed unpaid overtime.17eCFR. 29 CFR Part 5 – Labor Standards Provisions Applicable to Contracts Covering Federally Financed and Assisted Construction On a 20-person crew running unauthorized overtime for a week, that’s over $3,000 in liquidated damages before any back wages.
Kickbacks and Payroll Deductions
The Copeland Anti-Kickback Act bars anyone from pressuring workers on federal construction projects to return part of their pay, and it restricts what contractors can deduct from wages. Every covered contract must include a Copeland Act compliance clause, and each certified payroll submission must be accompanied by a weekly statement of compliance confirming correct payment and no prohibited deductions.18Acquisition.GOV. FAR 22.403-2 – Copeland Act
29 CFR 3.5 and 3.6 identify deductions permitted without DOL approval and those requiring written permission first.19U.S. Department of Labor. Employment Law Guide – Prohibition Against Kickbacks in Federally Funded Construction Taxes and union dues generally need no special approval; anything outside the listed categories requires a written request to the Wage and Hour Division before you take it. Copeland Act violations can carry both civil and criminal penalties.
Penalties for Getting It Wrong
The Wage and Hour Division enforces Davis-Bacon through both complaint-driven and random investigations. Consequences escalate with the severity of the violation.
- Back wages. The contractor pays every underpaid worker the full difference owed.
- Contract fund withholding. The contracting agency can hold back enough of your accrued payments to cover the shortfall, and the Comptroller General can then pay workers directly from those funds.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 40 USC 3142 – Rate of Wages for Laborers and Mechanics20U.S. Department of Labor. The Davis-Bacon Act, as Amended
- Debarment. Contractors who disregard their obligations face a three-year ban from all federal and federally assisted contracts, covering the firm, responsible officers, and related firms.21eCFR. 29 CFR 5.12 – Debarment Proceedings
- Criminal referral. Willful violations—falsified payrolls, intentional misclassification—can be referred to the Department of Justice.
Retaliation against a worker who asserts Davis-Bacon rights is separately prohibited under 29 CFR 5.5(a)(11), with make-whole relief that can include back pay, reinstatement, or front pay when reinstatement isn’t practical.22Federal Register. Updating the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Regulations Firing or demoting a worker for raising a wage concern converts a back-pay problem into something much larger.
How Workers File a Complaint
Workers who believe they’ve been underpaid on a covered project can file with the Wage and Hour Division. Complaints can be anonymous, though pay stubs, project details, and employer information make the investigation stronger. The investigator reviews certified payrolls, interviews workers, and compares actual pay to the wage determination; confirmed shortfalls are paid to every affected worker.
Time limits are strict. Non-willful violations must be pursued within two years of the underpayment. Willful violations—where the employer knew or should have known it was breaking the law—extend the deadline to three years.23Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 255 – Statute of Limitations After those windows close, claims are permanently barred no matter how clear the violation.