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November 4, 2008    DOL Home > ESA > WHD   

Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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ESA OFCCP OLMS OWCP WHD
Wage and Hour Division - To promote and achieve compliance with labor standards to protect and enhance the welfare of the nation's workforce.

McNamara-O-Hara Service Contract Act (SCA)

Overview

The McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act requires contractors and subcontractors performing services on prime contracts in excess of $2,500 to pay service employees in various classes no less than the wage rates and fringe benefits found prevailing in the locality, or the rates (including prospective increases) contained in a predecessor contractor's collective bargaining agreement. The Department of Labor issues wage determinations on a contract-by-contract basis in response to specific requests from contracting agencies. These determinations are incorporated into the contract.

For contracts equal to or less than $2,500, contractors are required to pay the federal minimum wage as provided in Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

For prime contracts in excess of $100,000, contractors and subcontractors must also, under the provisions of the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act, as amended, pay laborers and mechanics, including guards and watchmen, at least one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. The overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act may also apply to SCA-covered contracts.

General Guidance

Guides

Fact Sheets

E-Tools

Workplace Posters


Forms:

Interpretive Guidance

  • Field Operations Handbook
    • Chapter 14 — The McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act (PDF)
    • Chapter 64 — Employment of Workers with Disabilities at Special Minimum Wages under Section 14(c)

Applicable Laws and Regulations

 



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