Massachusetts Prevailing Wage Compliance

Yes — and it's one of the toughest in the country. M.G.L. Chapter 149, Sections 26-27H require workers on public construction to be paid rates set by the DLS based on collective bargaining agreements for the locality. Fun fact: Massachusetts was the first state in the U.S. to pass a prevailing wage law, way back in 1914.

Chapter 149, Sections 26-27H is MA's prevailing wage law. Every public works contract awarded by the Commonwealth, a county, city, town, or district has to include DLS-issued wage schedules. You pay at least those rates and submit weekly certified payroll. Sections 27B and 27D cover the certified payroll and posting rules.

DLS is MA's Department of Labor Standards. They issue the prevailing wage schedule for every public construction project. Awarding authorities have to request a schedule from DLS before putting the job out to bid. DLS also investigates complaints, audits certified payroll, and pursues civil and criminal enforcement of Chapter 149.

Yes. Chapter 149, Section 27B requires every contractor and sub on a public works job to submit weekly certified payroll to the awarding authority. Reports need worker name, address, occupational classification, daily hours, hourly rate, and deductions, plus a signed statement of compliance. Weekly means weekly — even on jobs where workers only put in a few hours of public work that week.

MassDOT requires prevailing wage compliance on every highway, bridge, and transit job — under both state law and federal Davis-Bacon on federal-aid work. Weekly certified payroll goes through MassDOT's electronic systems. MassDOT audits payroll records and has dedicated compliance officers who show up on site to interview workers.

Chapter 149 has some of the stiffest penalties in the country. Civil penalties up to $50,000 per violation. Willful violations are criminal — fines and imprisonment. The AG's Fair Labor Division can debar you from public works for up to 3 years. On federal-aid work, Davis-Bacon adds back wages, liquidated damages, and federal debarment on top.

MA prevailing wage schedules usually include a workforce training fund contribution as part of the fringe benefit total for each trade. You either contribute to the designated training fund or pay that amount to the worker as cash wages. Either way, it has to be documented right on the weekly certified payroll.

We build certified payroll reports formatted for MA public works under Chapter 149, plus federal WH-347 for Davis-Bacon and MassDOT federal-aid jobs. Our wage lookup pulls the right DLS schedule for each project's locality and craft, tracks training fund contributions, and Lydia flags underpayments, missed fringes, and classification issues before weekly submission.