

It is the work you do on the public works project, not the title or qualifications your employer assigns you, that determines your applicable classification and prevailing wage rate. Can my employer pay me as laborer for these tasks? My employer considers me a laborer, but my job duties regularly involve operating power equipment and installing drywall. If you want to verify that the posted rates are correct, you can call the PWR Unit at (971)673-0839. ALL contractors and subcontractors are required to comply with this law. Your employer is required to post the applicable prevailing wage rates on the project site where you can readily access the information. How do I determine what my rate of pay is on a prevailing wage project? If you think the project you are working on is subject to PWR laws and you are not being paid as such, you can call the PWR Unit at 97 and BOLI will try to determine for you if the project is a public works. Additionally, the law requires employers to post the prevailing wage rates in a conspicuous place on the project and submit certified payroll for all work on covered projects to the contracting public agency. Your employer should be able to inform you about whether or not the work you are performing is subject to PWR laws. For example, if the total project cost is under $50,000 or if the project does not use funds of a public agency, then the project might not be subject to PWR laws. While a project might meet the definition of a public works project, not all public works are subject to PWR laws. How do I know if the project I am working on is subject to prevailing wage rate laws? That means it is possible that you could work on two prevailing wage projects in the same day and have two different prevailing wage rates for the same classification of work. Generally, the prevailing wage rates for Oregon public works projects vary depending on 1) the type of work performed, 2) the county in which the work is performed, and 3) the date when the public agency first advertised the project. The prevailing wage for each classification includes an hourly Base Rate and an hourly Fringe Rate, and it is the combination of these two amounts that must be paid to the worker. Plumber, Carpenter, Roofer, etc.) and each job classification has its own prevailing wage rate. BOLI classifies these typical duties to a “trade” or “occupation” (ex. The prevailing wage rate (PWR) is the minimum hourly wage rate, including all fringe benefits, that must be paid for covered work duties performed on public works projects subject to PWR laws. For workers What is the prevailing wage rate (PWR)?
