The saga of administrative fees paid to third party administrators (“TPA”) by prevailing wage fringe benefit plans took an ugly turn with claims by the Department of Labor that a small TPA called AXIM has breached its fiduciary duties. AXIM was administering a benefit plan organized to satisfy the health and welfare (“H&W”) requirements of the Service Contract Act (“SCA”).
Read MoreIf you’re cutting a deal to work out a change order, price adjustment, or something similar - watch out for boilerplate release clauses! It’s tempting to gloss over the fine print to pin down a settlement, get paid, and move on. But, if there’s something lurking on the edges that could come up later, think carefully before you sign.
Read MoreNew rules are now issued and Project Labor Agreements (“PLAs”), which are pre-hire collective bargaining agreements with one or more labor organizations that establishes the terms and conditions of employment will be mostly mandatory for federal government construction projects of $35M or more.
Read MoreA newly proposed policy and related rules would require federal contractors to disclose the compensation and benefits they intend to furnish to job applicants. Contractors also would be prohibited from seeking or using an applicant’s salary history as part of its hiring decision. If adopted, the proposal would apply to almost all federal contractors.
Read MoreInflation is yet again pushing up DOL civil money penalties assessed under the wage and hour laws.
Read MoreRequiring employees to take a lunch break is fine. But if they don’t, you shouldn’t cut their hours because… there’s no such thing as a free working lunch.
Read MoreThe numbers tell a story about the Wage & Hour Division’s investigatory activities in 2023.
Read MoreThe Department of Labor (“DOL”) has finalized its long-awaited “new” rule that really just restores the decades-old approach to assessing whether a worker is an employee covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act or if they’re a mere independent contractor. Truly this is little more than the same old smell test that employers have lived with for ages.
Read MoreNew Year’s Day is a time to nurse hangovers and to raise a glass and toast the new higher state minimum wages.
Read MoreHere’s a gentle reminder. New federal contractor minimum wage rates went into effect on New Year’s Day. Federal contractors should be sure they have revisited their payrolls to verify their wage rates are where they should be. Read on for a refresher about what should be considered.
Read MoreThe Congressional Review Act (“CRA”) gives Congress a shot at nullifying executive branch regulations. Look for the Republicans to try to invoke it as we approach election day and in the next session of Congress thereafter, depending on the election outcome.
Read MoreLast week, the Department of Labor published a Final Rule implementing the latest iteration of the “nondisplacement rule.” The rule (which has come and gone depending on who’s in the White House) is intended to protect federal contract service employees at risk of losing their jobs when the contract they’re working on expires. This gives them a right of first refusal to accept jobs that must be offered to them by a successor contractor.
Read MoreLast week my distinguished colleague wrote about the new Davis Bacon “operation of law” rule that requires the use of a new DOL-issued contract clause. But what’s happening now? Is there a currently valid contract clause that federal Contracting Officers can modify into a contract? For now, the answer appears to be no.
Read MoreNew Davis-Bacon Act (“DBA”) regulations went into effect at the end of October 2023. Among other things, they purport to make the DBA clauses and wage determinations apply by operation of law. But they also provide for price adjustments for contractors. Exactly how it plays out is yet to be determined, but it might be prudent for the contractor to take any omitted clauses or wage determination problem slowly, and not just jump ahead into supposed compliance only to find out they have a fight to get a price adjustment.
Read MoreThe Service Contract Act (“SCA”) Price Adjustment clause provides for certain timely notices to be given by both the Government and the contractor. This blog explores several timeliness issues which can show up as a result of late notice furnished by either the Government or the contractor.
Read MoreThe DOL and IRS effort to fight misclassification of independent contractors soldiers onward here in 2023.
Read MoreWe’ve been blogging about various aspects of the new Davis-Bacon rules that went into effect last month. We turn now to changes in the recordkeeping requirements applicable to all prime contractors and subcontractors.
Read MoreUse or lose leave policies are generally not permissible when it comes to Service Contract Act (“SCA”) vacation benefits.
Read MoreMany construction projects are made up of components that are fabricated at locations other than the place where a building or work is being erected. The Department of Labor’s recent revisions to the Davis-Bacon Act (“DBA”) regulations update its take on when work at a secondary site is DBA covered.
Read MoreThe Inflation Adjustment Act comes with extended tax credits, but also with extended liabilities. Owners of alternative energy projects who want to claim the extended credits need to devote resources to complying with the Davis-Bacon Act. There is no free ride.
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