U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
WORKPLACE STANDARDS ADMINISTRATION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20210
September 15, 1971
MEMORANDUM #100
TO: All Government Contracting Agencies of the Eiden.1
Government and the District of Columbia
SUBJECT: EXECUTIVE ORIER 11615 OF AUGUST 15, 1971: EFFECT ON
WAGE DETERMINATION UNDER DAVIS-BACON AND RELATED ACTS
AND SERVICE CONTRACT ACT.
The Department of labor has received a number of inquiries from
contracting agencies concerning the effect of the Executive Order of
August 15, 1971, providing for stabilization of prices, rents, wages
and salaries an wage determinations issued pursuant to the Davis-Bacon
Act and related Acts and the Service Contract Act.
Existing wage determinations issued under these Acts prior to Applet 15, 1971,
will be applied as before and the Department of labor will continue to
issue wage determinations. However, in determining prevailing wages for
purposes of the Davis-Bacon Act and related Acts and the Service Contract
Act during the period covered by Section 1 of the Order the Department of
labor will consider only those wage rates and economic benefits which
meet the specific requirements of the Order or are otherwise approved
by those authorized to carry out the Order. Thus, all wage determinations
issued under the Davis-Bacon Act and related Acts or the Service Contract
Act take the Order into account and shall be accepted, and applied by
contracting agencies accordingly.
This principle is illustrated by the Question and Answer approved by
the Office of Emergency Preparedness and noted below:
Q. A construction worker is employed on a non-Federal
project at X number of dollars per hour. The contractor
shifts the worker from that project to a Federal project,
but he continues doing exactly the same work with exactly
the same responsibilities. The Davis-Bacon Act re quires
a higher rate of pay for that job on Federal contracts
than he had been receiving. May the worker's pay be
increased?





















2
A. Yes, the rate attaches to the job in that locality. The
wages applied to Federal contract activities are those
wages established by determinations in the base period.
If no rates had been established in the base period for
that locality, a determination can be made but it must
be calculated on the statutory base period ending
August 14.
Horace E. Menasco
Administrator