FAR 22.4—Subpart 22.4

Scope of subpart.

FAR 22.400 explains the scope of Subpart 22.4, which is the Davis-Bacon labor standards subpart for federal construction contracting. It tells readers that this subpart implements the statutes requiring labor standards on contracts over $2,000 for construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings and public works, including painting and decorating, and it points readers to the definition of "construction, alteration, or repair" in FAR 22.401. It also makes clear that these labor standards are not the only labor-related rules that may apply, because other labor relations requirements in Part 22 can also come into play depending on the contract and circumstances. In practice, this section is the gateway for determining whether a federal construction contract must include prevailing wage labor standards and related clauses, and it signals that contracting officers must evaluate both the nature of the work and the dollar threshold before awarding. For contractors, it is an early warning that wage, classification, and compliance obligations may attach to the work if it falls within this scope.

Definitions.

FAR 22.401 provides the core definitions used in the Davis-Bacon and related labor standards subpart, and those definitions control how wage requirements are applied on federal construction work. It defines who counts as an apprentice, trainee, laborer or mechanic, and working foreman; what counts as construction, alteration, or repair; what is a public building or public work; what is included in the site of the work, including primary and secondary sites and certain adjacent support facilities; and what wages means, including basic hourly pay and qualifying fringe benefits. These definitions matter because they determine which workers are covered, which locations are subject to prevailing wage rules, and which pay elements can be credited toward wage obligations. In practice, contractors and contracting officers use these definitions to decide whether Davis-Bacon wage determinations apply, whether a worker must be paid prevailing wages, whether a facility or transport activity is part of the covered site, and whether fringe benefits are properly counted. The section is especially important for construction contracts, off-site fabrication tied to the project, apprenticeship compliance, and wage audits or labor standards investigations.

Applicability.

FAR 22.402 explains when the Construction Wage Rate Requirements subpart applies and, just as importantly, when it does not. It covers construction contracts performed at a particular site, including site work by laborers and mechanics, dismantling/demolition/removal when tied to construction, on-site manufacture or fabrication of construction materials and components, and painting of public buildings or public works. It also identifies exclusions for off-site manufacturing, certain research and development work, railroad employees covered by the Railway Labor Act, and work performed at permanent home offices, fabrication shops, or tool yards unless employees actually go to the site and perform construction there. The section then extends the rule to nonconstruction contracts that include construction work, but only when the work is on a public building or public work, is substantial and above the statutory threshold, and is physically or functionally separable from the rest of the contract. In practice, this section is the gateway for deciding whether Davis-Bacon/Construction Wage Rate Requirements coverage applies, so it drives wage determinations, solicitation clauses, subcontract flowdown, and compliance planning.

Statutory, Executive Order, and regulatory requirements.

Construction Wage Rate Requirements statute wage determinations.

FAR 22.404 explains how Construction Wage Rate Requirements wage determinations work and what they cover in federal construction contracting. It identifies the Department of Labor as the agency responsible for issuing wage determinations, explains that those determinations reflect prevailing wages and fringe benefits, and limits their coverage to laborers and mechanics employed by a contractor on the site of the work. It also clarifies that the covered workers include drivers who transport materials and equipment to or from the site when those activities are part of contract operations. Finally, it explains that wage determinations are issued for different construction categories—building, heavy, highway, and residential—often called rate schedules, and that each determination applies only to the type of construction specifically designated in it. In practice, this section matters because it tells contracting officers and contractors which wage rates must be used, which workers are covered, and when a wage determination cannot be applied outside its proper construction category.

[Reserved]

Administration and enforcement.

Solicitation provision and contract clauses.

FAR 22.407 tells contracting officers exactly which Davis-Bacon/Construction Wage Rate Requirements clauses and related provisions must be included in construction solicitations and contracts, and when to use the special price-adjustment clauses for contracts with options. It covers standard labor standards clauses for construction over $2,000 within the United States, the special clause for cost-reimbursement construction, the treatment of mixed contracts that include only some construction work, and the three alternative price-adjustment clauses used when a fixed-price construction contract with options is subject to wage-rate changes. It also requires the secondary-site-of-the-work provision in applicable solicitations. In practice, this section is the checklist for making sure construction acquisitions carry the correct labor standards protections, wage payment rules, recordkeeping requirements, subcontract flowdowns, debarment consequences, dispute procedures, and wage-rate approval mechanics. It matters because missing or misapplying these clauses can create labor law noncompliance, pricing errors, option exercise problems, and enforcement risk for both the Government and the contractor.