Prevailing wage rates required on construction of public works
When a government body pays someone to build something (like a road or public building), workers doing that construction job have to be paid at least the standard going rate for that type of work in that area. On Sundays or certain holidays, workers get paid at least double that rate. For overtime (over 10 hours in a day or over 40 hours in a week), workers get at least one and a half times the normal rate. Workers also get a 30-minute unpaid lunch break each day. These rules only kick in when the total project cost is over $75,000. A government body cannot split one big project into smaller pieces just to stay under that $75,000 limit.
290.230. s required on construction of — who is employed upon public works — inapplicability of , when. — 1. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, not less than the for work of a similar character in the in which the work is performed or the , whichever is applicable, shall be paid to all workers employed by or on behalf of any engaged in the construction of public works, of .
(2) For all work performed on a Sunday or a holiday, not less than twice the prevailing hourly rate of wages for work of a similar character in the locality in which the work is performed or the public works contracting minimum wage, whichever is applicable, shall be paid to all workers employed by or on behalf of any public body engaged in the construction of public works, exclusive of maintenance work. For purposes of this , "holiday" shall include each of the following:
(a) January first;
(b) The last Monday in May;
(c) July fourth;
(d) The first Monday in September;
(e) November eleventh;
(f) The fourth Thursday in November; and
(g) December twenty-fifth;
(3) For all overtime work performed, not less than one and one-half the prevailing hourly rate of wages for work of a similar character in the locality in which the work is performed or the public works contracting minimum wage, whichever is applicable, shall be paid to all workers employed by or on behalf of any public body engaged in the construction of public works, exclusive of maintenance work or contractual obligation. For purposes of this subdivision, "overtime work" shall include work that exceeds ten hours in one day and work in excess of forty hours in one week; and
(4) A thirty-minute lunch period on each calendar day shall be allowed for each worker on a , provided that such time shall not be considered as time worked.
2. Only workers that are directly employed by s or s in actual construction work on the site of the building or construction job shall be deemed to be employed upon public works.
3. Any worker who agrees in writing to volunteer his or her labor without pay shall not be deemed to be employed upon public works, and shall not be entitled to the wage rates required sections 290.210 to 290.340. For the purposes of this section, the term "worker who agrees in writing to volunteer his or her labor without pay" shall mean a worker who volunteers his or her labor without any promise of or for such voluntary activity, and who is not a prisoner in any jail or prison facility and who is not performing pursuant to of a criminal case against him or her, and is not otherwise employed for at any time in the construction or maintenance work on the same public works for which the worker is a volunteer. Under no circumstances may an employer or a public body force, or otherwise intimidate a worker into performing work otherwise paid at a prevailing wage rate or at a public works contracting minimum wage rate as a volunteer.
4. When the hauling of materials or equipment includes some phase of construction other than the mere transportation to the site of the construction, workers engaged in this dual capacity shall be deemed employed directly on public works.
5. (1) The of sections 290.210 to 290.340 shall not apply to the construction of public works for which either the or the accepted by the public body for the total project cost is in the amount of seventy-five thousand dollars or less.
(2) The total project cost shall be based upon the entire project and not individual projects within a larger project.
(3) The total project cost shall include the value of work performed on the project by every person paid by a contractor or subcontractor for that person's work on the project. The total project cost shall additionally include all materials and supplies purchased for the project.
6. A public body shall not divide a project into multiple contracts for the purpose of lowering the total project cost below the described in 5 of this section.
7. For any public works project for which either the engineer's estimate or the bid accepted by the public body for the total project cost is in the amount of seventy-five thousand dollars or less that becomes subject to a that increases the total project cost in excess of seventy-five thousand dollars, the provisions of sections 290.210 to 290.340 shall apply only to that portion of the project that was in excess of seventy-five thousand dollars.
8. any of law to the contrary, for the purposes of construction of public works for which either the engineer's estimate or the bid accepted by the public body for the total project cost is in the amount of ten thousand dollars or less for all occupational titles, public bodies shall be from any law requiring the use of .
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Source & history notes
(L. 1957 p. 574 § 3, A.L. 2014 H.B. 1594, A.L. 2018 H.B. 1729, et al.)
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