The Department of Labor (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Nov. 29 the effective date for its revised H-2B wage calculation methodology from Nov. 30, 2011 to Jan. 1, 2012.

The final rule, issued in January 2011, for establishing wage rates for H-2B temporary workers with a system emphasizing Davis-Bacon Act wage determinations.  

Under the rule, employers are required to pay the highest of the following:

• wages established under a collective bargaining agreement;
• wages established under the Davis-Bacon Act or Service Contract Act for the appropriate occupation in the area of employment; or
• the mean wage rate established by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

ÀÏÅ£Ó°ÊÓhas opposed the proposed rule due to its substantial cost, as well as the unscientific methodology used by DOL’s Wage and Hour division to establish Davis-Bacon Act rates that often inflate local wages.