Under the Service Contract Act (“SCA”), negotiated CBA wage rates can be lower than the prevailing wage rate, and the CBA is not automatically displaced by the higher SCA wages or benefits set forth in a prevailing wage determination.
Read MoreA recent decision issued by the Court of Federal Claims discusses what happens if an employee says he plans to leave, but hasn’t departed, the company putting him forward as a key person for a contract. Read on for some thoughts about how this decision affects what can happen if a key person decides to bail.
Read MoreWe have two different Contractor Minimum Wage Executive Orders. One requires a $12.15 minimum wage. The other requires a $16.20 an hour minimum wage. But the curious thing is they both use the same FAR section clause number — FAR 52.225-55. Confused.? So am I.
Read MoreBan TikTok on all devices. Sound simple enough, but is it? Yeah, maybe not. Read on for some thoughts about what’s required to comply with the new federal contract clause that implements the ban of TikTok and ByteDance apps on federal “information technology” whatever that really means.
Read MoreThe new Service Contract Act (“SCA”) health and welfare (“H&W”) rates are out and made effective to new solicitations and contracts on June 27, 2023. Except for in Hawaii, the new H&W rates are $4.57 an hour if the sick leave executive order applies, and $4.98 an hour if it doesn’t.
Read MoreExplaining how we ended up with two different names for our construction and service contract wage laws and why the Department of Labor’s naming preference is superior.
Read MoreGovernment contractors, at least as an investment option, continue to underperform the S&P 5000 average. The lack luster 2023 year to date returns (and downright losses) come on the heals of a miserable 2022 performance. If you are working for a government contractor and invested heavily in its stock, perhaps you should be wishing for a recession to revive your lagging performnce.
Read MoreConventional wisdom holds that bid protests are an uphill battle. It can be tough to win them. And sometimes when you win, you still lose because the contract’s still awarded to your competitor. A recent bid protest decision illustrates how a successful protest prompted the agency to appoint a new evaluation team that changed the outcome.
Read MoreContractors who are experienced in the world of multiple award contracts likely are familiar with how the small business regulations operate under those contract vehicles. However, there are some wrinkles. Small businesses that are considering whether to dive into this world should learn more about the maze of small business regulations so they can anticipate the potential pitfalls that could come with success.
Read MoreYesterday’s tax filing deadline brought to mind a recent Small Business Administration decision in which a contractor lost out because it didn’t supply its tax returns. If SBA knocks on your door because a protest has been filed, don’t leave things to chance. Respond in a timely and complete manner—you want to make it easy for the SBA to see things your way.
Read MoreService Contract Act (“SCA“) covered fixed priced contracts generally have one of two FAR clauses for price adjustments — either FAR 52.222-43 or -44. But there are different price adjustment clauses and provisions for cost reimbursement contracts. Where the SCA provisions and the standard cost reimbursement clauses overlap is in hybrid contracting, involving both fixed price and cost reimbursement CLINS. In those circumstances the overlapping price adjustment issues can be murky.
Read MoreIt looks likes the sponsor of the government contractor FEDX ETF I like to blog periodically about has pulled the plug. As far as I can tell the ETF is no more. I speculate it had insufficient assets to be profitable for its sponsor. What this means about Government contracting I can’t discern, except to say that as an investment idea it didn’t catch on.
Read MoreSome disputes are not meant to be litigated in court or arbitrated. One example is job classification disputes under the Service Contract Act (“SCA”) or the Davis-Bacon Act (“ DBA”). Such disputes are committed to the exclusive jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Labor. Only DOL is supposed to decide them and then provide for administrative appeals. Don’t let your union drag you into an arbitration of job classification disputes on service and construction US government contracts.
Read MoreI suspect a word more colorful than “whoops” was said when the Air Force discovered that it had a awarded a contract to a supplier that technically was not permitted to furnish the part that was ordered. However, what followed that realization was not a whoops moment.
Read MoreJust out — a White House memorandum directing all federal contracting agencies to hire labor advisors to help coordinate with DOL and comply with the laws regarding labor and employment which pertain to federal procurements. This includes especially the Service Contract Act and the Davis-Bacon Act, but also many other labor requirements and Executive Orders.
Read MoreWith the new year comes new minimum wage rates applicable to employees who work on or in connection with many federal contracts. Consider this a courteous nudge to make sure you’re complying with the correct minimum wage requirements.
Read MoreThe Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 gives tax benefits to project owners who assure the payment of Davis-Bacon Act prevailing wages and benefits on certain energy construction projects. The devil, of course, is in the details.
Read MoreThe Biden Administration has issued an Executive Order and proposed regulations for project labor agreements which will likely get finalized and become effective in 2023. it is time for construction contractors to get prepared.
Read MoreDoD recently issued a “new” rule to implement a prohibition of confidentiality agreements that would forbid employees or subcontractors to report waste, fraud or abuse. While there’s nothing actually “new,” read on to refresh your understanding of the rule and how you can ensure that your confidentiality agreements won’t run astray.
Read MoreThis blog will serve as my final blog at Abrahams Wolf-Rodda. I have accepted a position with another law firm located in Washington D.C. in the Labor and Employment practice group. Thank you to all of the readers of my blogs. By Kirby M. Rousseau.
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