Posts in Service Contract Act
A Thumb on the Scale? Department of Labor Establishes “Partnership” with Union

The Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) of the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced last week a three-year “collaborative agreement” with a union to educate workers and identify labor law violations. Is this an unfair thumb on the scale? Hopefully not, but this agreement arguably erodes the degree of independence that should accompany the Government’s enforcement of employment laws.

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How Low Can You Go? GAO Rejects Protest Alleging Below Cost Wage Rates

Here’s some old news that bears repeating. When it comes to prices offered to the Government to perform a fixed-price service contract, GAO won’t second guess the award of a contract with low-ball prices even though it might appear there’s no way the contractor would pay the minimum wage rates required by the Service Contract Act.

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Who Will Be the Bag Holder -- the TPAs or the Employers -- for the Admin Fees DOL Recently Disallowed For Davis-Bacon Act and Maybe SCA H&W plans?

DOL’s new DBRA regulations has some clarifications and guidance as to its future treatment of benefit plan administrative expenses charged by third party administrators to various DBRA and SCA H&W plans. Get ready for more enforcement actions by DOL to disallow plan expenses and for more disputes between employers and TPAs over the cost of such fees.

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Trees Don’t Grow to the Sky: New Service Contract Act Health and Welfare Levels Are Finally Set

The 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.

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Back to Basics: SCA Price Adjustments on Cost Reimbursement and Hybrid Contracts

Service 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.

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What the. . .? Another Arrest for Failure to Respond to DOL Subpoena

DOL recently announced that US Marshals arrested a New York restaurateur for failure to respond to a subpoena as part of a Fair Labor Standards Act investigation. This is the second such arrest in the last few months. As I said in my blog about the first arrest - things simply go better when employers take DOL investigations seriously.

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Arbitrability of Service Contract Act or Davis-Bacon Act Job Classification Disputes – Don’t Go There!

Some 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.

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Help Is on the Way – Polish Your Resume to Become a Procuring Agency Labor Advisor

Just 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.

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