Existing law requires that, except as specified, not less than the general prevailing rate of per diem wages, determined by the Director of Industrial Relations, be paid to workers employed on public works projects. Existing law requires the body awarding a contract for a public work to obtain from the director the general prevailing rate of per diem wages for work of a similar character in the locality in which the public work is to be performed, and the general prevailing rate of per diem wages for holiday and overtime work, for each craft, classification, or type of worker needed to execute the contract. Under existing law, if the director determines during any quarterly period that there has been a change in any prevailing rate of per diem wages in a locality, the director is required to make that change available to the awarding body and their determination is final.

This bill would instead require the director, if the director determines during any semiannual period that there has been a change in any prevailing rate of per diem wages in a locality, to make that change available to the awarding body and that decision would have exceptions to its finality, including authorizing a contractor, awarding body, or representative to file a petition to review the director’s determination. The bill would provide that the director’s determination would apply to any public works contract awarded or for which notice to bidders is published, after July 1, 2025.

Under existing law, per diem wages include certain employer payments made pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement or for a program or committee established under the federal Labor Management Cooperation Act of 1978, as specified. Existing law provides that these payments are a credit against the obligation to pay the general prevailing rate of per diem wages.

Existing law requires the credit for employer payments to be computed on an annualized basis where the employer seeks credit for employer payments that are higher for public works projects than for private construction performed by the same employer, except under certain circumstances, including a determination that annualization would not serve the purposes of the provision relating to public works projects.

This bill would remove the exception permitting the director to determine that annualization would not serve the purpose and would instead require, subject to a specified exception, all other fringe benefits to be computed on an annualized basis. The bill would require employers to demonstrate that the credit for employer benefits was properly calculated, and would require employers to produce certain records to the Labor Commissioner, upon request. The bill would specify that all related prior exemptions issued by the director are revoked.

Existing law requires the Labor Commissioner to investigate allegations that a contractor or subcontractor violated the law regulating public works projects, including the payment of prevailing wages. Existing law requires each contractor and subcontractor on a public works project to keep accurate payroll records, showing the name, address, social security number, work classification, straight time and overtime hours worked each day and week, and the actual per diem wages paid to each journeyman, apprentice, worker, or other employee employed by the contractor or subcontractor in connection with the public work. Existing law requires any copy of records made available for inspection as copies and furnished upon request to the public or any public agency to be marked or obliterated to prevent disclosure of an individual’s name, address, and social security number but specifies that any copy of records made available to a Taft-Hartley trust fund for the purposes of allocating contributions to participants be marked or obliterated only to prevent disclosure of an individual’s full social security number, as specified. Existing law makes any contractor, subcontractor, agent, or representative who neglects to comply with the requirements to keep accurate payroll records guilty of a misdemeanor.

Commencing July 1, 2025, this bill would require job sites to give reasonable access, as defined, to representatives of a joint labor-management committee in order to monitor compliance with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements. The bill would exempt an awarding body, contractor, or subcontractor from liability for any violations of safety guidelines caused by a committee’s representative. The bill would authorize the committee to bring an action against an awarding body, contractor, or subcontractor that willfully denies the committee’s representative reasonable access.

This bill would authorize, if a contractor or subcontractor fails to make payroll records available for inspection by the Labor Commissioner within a 10-day specified period, the imposition of certain penalties.

Existing law authorizes contractors or subcontractors to request review of a civil wage and penalty assessment by submitting a written request to the Labor Commissioner within 60 days after service of the assessment. Existing law requires a hearing to be commenced, before the director, within 90 days of the request.

This bill would authorize the director to dismiss a request for review and issue a decision affirming the assessment if a contractor or subcontractor fails to appear at a hearing or prehearing conference. The bill would also require a petitioner, if seeking review of a decision by the superior court, to post a bond with the Labor Commissioner, as specified.