Davis-Bacon Act – Contractor and Subcontractor Compliance
Are you familiar with the Davis-Bacon Act? The Davis-Bacon Act is a federal law that applies to contractors and subcontractors performing work on federal contracts or District of Columbia contracts in excess of $2,000 for the construction, alteration, or repair, including painting and decorating of public buildings or public works. Davis-Bacon Act contractors and subcontractors are required to pay their laborers and mechanics no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits for corresponding work on similar projects in the area. The Davis-Bacon Act directs the Department of Labor to determine what the locally prevailing wage rates in each area are. These ranges are established by geographic region and my change periodically. Under the Davis-Bacon Act, fringe benefits are a component of these prevailing wages. The Wage Determination obligation of this Act may be satisfied by paying the basic hourly rate and fringe benefits in cash, contributing payments to a bona fide plan or any combination of the two. Examples of fringe benefits can include Life Insurance, Health Insurance, Pension, Vacation, Holiday and Sick Leave. The Department of Labor provides templates for companies to use when reporting their prevailing wages and fringe benefits. The Davis-Bacon Act requirements also extend to numerous “Related Acts,” under which federal agencies assist construction projects through grants, loans, loan guarantees, and insurance. An example of a “Related Act” would be HUD financed construction on low-income housing projects. This law encompasses a lot of information so if you have any questions regarding if your company is in compliance with this law, please contact any of our HR Professionals at the Achilles Group.
Achilles Group helped us with recruiting for a critical position on our finance team. Their team posted the position, sifted through all the applicants, and then screened them via phone interviews. The candidates they brought to us were all top notch–any one of them would have been a great fit! The person we hired ended up being one of the best decisions we ever made!
First Presbyterian
We are a small company and yet we don’t feel like a number. Large payroll companies have reached out to help us with HR, but I fear we would be just a number with them. We can call Achilles and they can be here on site in a couple of hours if needed. And because of that relationship, I feel like I am talking to someone who understands our company.
CEO, Slow Dough
Before we engaged with Achilles Group, our HR was more on the reactive side and we felt something was missing, and we didn’t know how to get there. We worried about many HR topics like compliance gaps, records retention, how to on-board new employees, and how to develop our leaders. Achilles not only guided in all those areas, but they spent a lot of time with us and provided the manpower needed to take that burden off our shoulders. It would have been very difficult to accomplish all this from a time standpoint without their team involved.
CEO, Engineered Air Balance
“We started out as a new company in 2020 that emerged from a group of experienced leaders and employees in the flight services industry. We knew we needed HR support through a real partner so we would not have to figure things out on our own, and we were not going to bring that function in-house. The Achilles team has been vitally important given the many dynamics to HR. It’s reassuring and gives us the confidence that our questions, issues, and problems will be resolved."
COO, Flight Pro Services
“Achilles has helped us navigate this exciting time by reducing some growing pains via thoughtful counsel, offering timely guidance as we hit different periods in our growth, and providing much needed insight into organizing our larger team.
Achilles has played a vital role in assisting us to keep the culture that has been such a key component of our success. As a bonus, we have been voted one of the Best Places to Work for four years running!”
Vice President, 2H Offshore, Inc.
Achilles Group was crucial to the transition off a PEO. Achilles Group engaged to help us roll off the PEO, and immediately it felt like a partnership. The process was absolutely seamless. The Achilles team not only assisted in streamlining HR compliance, but they focused on a strategic approach to ensure our policies and processes were more in line with our business’ vision and not just the PEO’s way. They advised how to cascade our team communications effectively and how to use benefits as a competitive advantage. Achilles Group is our ally and confidante in our business.
Director of HR, Dayrise Residential
One of our leaders created a toxic working culture. Our Achilles expert helped guide our company through the transition. If it weren’t for Achilles, we would have been stuck for years. Instead we experienced a lot of storm for about four months and it’s been a complete rainbow ever since.
CEO, Avanti Senior Living
I am very grateful with all the things Achilles helps us with. The people at Achilles Group are very professional. The team is good with communication. It’s so good to have someone to bounce things off, and we are looking forward to a long-lasting relationship. We like that we have one designated consultant to manage the interface with other Achilleans on various workstreams.
