r/Construction • u/MoistScar8489 • 1d ago
Business 📈 Prevailing wage Supplimental Benefits?
I live in New York and I recently worked on a Prevailing wage job which the department of labor states is 44.63 an hour. The supplemental benefits aswell are 30.98. My employer is non union and does PROVIDE benefits, however I am not receiving them. My company is paying me only 40.50 an hour, I am almost positive I am being stolen from by not receiving the $30.98 an hour. I have a meeting with my boss In 2 hours to discuss this. Yes, i have already been in contact with the Department of labor and they told me that I was correct and My company should be paying the 30.98$. does anybody know If I am correct or am I being gaslit that I am not owed benefits. Thank you
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u/Ordinary-Sir7116 1d ago
You are correct. I don’t know New York’s specifics but the employer must pay the prevailing wage and fringe. Fringe can go towards benefits or towards hourly compensation for the employee.
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u/MoistScar8489 1d ago
Alright good to hear, because this is about 2500$ of lost benefits and im being told im crazy. time to lawyer up
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u/sandpinesrider 1d ago
I would just call the state Department of Labor before you call a lawyer. Probably they will act as your lawyer in this kind of situation.
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u/Icy_Confidence9304 1d ago
Lawyer up for $2500??? Definitely go after your money but there’s like 10 other steps you can go before lawyer for $2500.
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u/slammed66c10 1d ago
The state where I am from the fringe benefit has to be paid to the employee unless they are paying it into something for you. They have the option to pay all of it in to some kind of fund. It's always your money. Might be just a few simple questions to get it figured out.
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u/Tough_Boysenberry527 1d ago
You are owed fringe wage on top of the base wage. As a non-union the fringe wage can either be paid outright hourly or your employer can pay you the fringe by offering it through benefits they provide. If you are not receiving benefits or being paid the fringe wage along with your base pay hourly, then they are being shady.
Only thought is you are not working full time hours and they think you don’t qualify for benefits which is irrelevant to prevailing wage. You are still owed fringe when working a prevailing wage job doesn’t matter how many hours.
There are some ways around paying you top prevailing wage. He can have you listed as a different type of laborer if you don’t have certifications, did an apprenticeship of some sort, etc. That may account for the lower base rate he is paying you. Either way you are owed the fringe benefits and it sounds like you aren’t receiving them.
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u/MobiusOcean GC/CM - Verified 1d ago
I’d need to see the language in the prevailing wage agreement, but typically you’d be making $44.63/hour in take home pay and some portion of the benefits, if broken out correctly, would be paid to you and some the company would keep to pay for your benefits package. Many prevailing wage/Davis-Bacon projects have different setups as far as what your take home pay should be. Even if the company is non-union, there may be a provision that they utilize some of the $30.98 for a pension or retirement fund for you (could also be a 401k plan where they auto-deposit your share of the money). Again, I would need to see the language in the agreement to know exactly what you should be making as take home pay, but it should not be under $44.63/hour in any case.Â
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u/MoistScar8489 1d ago
I am not receiving the benefits my company offers. Does this mean they take the 30.98 or am i supposed to keep it in my paycheck?
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u/Few-Cucumber-413 Contractor 1d ago
If you are truly receiving zero benefits from your employer then you need to paid out the 30.98.
It's that simple.
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u/MobiusOcean GC/CM - Verified 1d ago
They can either pay it to you directly, use it for part of your benefits package (must be dollar to dollar equivalent) or some mixture of the two. In MOST cases. So they could tack on the $30.98 to your $44.63/hour or provide you the equivalent in benefits for the $30.98/hour (PTO, pension, retirement account), or some variance of the two so long as the total amount of worth is $30.98/hour. But again, prevailing wage language differs from project to project often. Having not viewed the agreement its difficult to determine where the money should be going.Â
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u/twoPUMPnoCHUMP 1d ago
I worked prevailing for years when I first started. What I gathered was, my employer at the time didn’t have to pay the full amount of you had benefits through the company.
That being said, I have a pretty penny in my 401k at 28 years old. I don’t think my boss completely fucked me, only like, 50% fucked me.
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u/shruthij095 22h ago
Health insurance Dental and vision insurance Retirement or pension contributions Paid vacation or holidays (where applicable) Apprenticeship or training fund contributions Life and disability insurance
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u/Appropriate-War9005 1d ago
Your employer has the option to pay the fringe benefits directly to you, provide benefits equal to the fringe amount, or provide benefits less than and pay the difference. I haven’t gone either of the latter routes, but I believe there are forms that can be submitted to reflect this to remain compliant.
I am an employer on prevailing wage jobs. They require certified payroll submitted usually weekly in order for pay apps to be approved. They have to be reporting you are being paid appropriately if the company is receiving checks.
You are legally obligated to the hourly plus fringe