(a) The wage requirements of the Act will not be met where
unauthorized deductions, rebates, or refunds reduce the wage payment
made to the employee below the minimum amounts required under the
provisions of the Act and the regulations thereunder, or where the
employee fails to receive such amounts free and clear because he ``kicks
back'' directly or indirectly to the employer or to another person for
the employer's benefit the whole or part of the wage delivered to him.
Authorized deductions are limited to those required by law, such as
taxes payable by employees required to be withheld by the employer and
amounts due employees which the employer is required by court order to
pay to another; deductions allowable for the reasonable cost or fair
value of board, lodging, and facilities furnished as set forth in
Sec. 4.167; and deductions of amounts which are authorized to be paid to
third persons for the employee's account and benefit pursuant to his
voluntary assignment or order or a collective bargaining agreement with
bona fide representatives of employees which is applicable to the
employer. Deductions for amounts paid to third persons on the employee's
account which are not so authorized or are contrary to law or from which
the contractor, subcontractor or any affiliated person derives any
payment, rebate, commission, profit, or benefit directly or indirectly,
may not be made if they cut into the wage required to be paid under the
Act. The principles applied in determining the permissibility of
deductions for payments made to third persons are explained in more
detail in Secs. 531.38-531.40 of this title.
(b) Cost of maintaining and furnishing uniforms. (1) If the
employees are required to wear uniforms either by the employer, the
nature of the job, or the Government contract, then the cost of
furnishing and maintaining the uniforms is deemed to be a business
expense of the employer and such cost may not be borne by the employees
to the extent that to do so would reduce the employees' compensation
below that required by the Act. Since it may be administratively
difficult and burdensome for employers to determine the actual cost
incurred by all employees for maintaining their own uniforms, payment in
accordance with the following standards is considered sufficient for the
contractor to satisfy its wage obligations under the Act:
(i) The contractor furnishes all employees with an adequate number
of uniforms without cost to the employees or reimburses employees for
the actual cost of the uniforms.
(ii) Where uniform cleaning and maintenance is made the
responsibility of the employee, the contractor reimburses all employees
for such cleaning and maintenance at the rate of $3.35 a week (or 67
cents a day). Since employees are generally required to wear a clean
uniform each day regardless of the number of hours the employee may work
that day, the preceding weekly amount generally may be reduced to the
stated daily equivalent but not to an hourly equivalent. A contractor
may reimburse employees at a different rate if the contractor furnishes
affirmative proof as to the actual cost to the employees of maintaining
their uniforms or if a different rate is provided for in a bona fide
collective bargaining agreement covering the employees working on the
contract.
(2) However, there generally is no requirement that employees be
reimbursed for uniform maintenance costs in those instances where the
uniforms furnished are made of ``wash and wear'' materials which may be
routinely washed and dried with other personal garments, and do not
generally require daily washing, dry cleaning, commercial laundering, or
any other special treatment because of heavy soiling in
work usage or in order to meet the cleanliness or appearance standards
set by the terms of the Government contract, by the contractor, by law,
or by the nature of the work. This limitation does not apply where a
different provision has been set forth on the applicable wage
determination. In the case of wage determinations issued under section
4(c) of the Act for successor contracts, the amount established by the
parties to the predecessor collective bargaining agreement is deemed to
be the cost of laundering wash and wear uniforms.
(c) Stipends, allowances or other payments made directly to an
employee by a party other than the employer (such as a stipend for
training paid by the Veterans Administration) are not part of ``wages''
and the employer may not claim credit for such payments toward its
monetary obligations under the Act.
