PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Secretary enforces these rules and can make regulations, issue orders, hold hearings, find facts, decide cases, and take other needed actions. The Secretary may allow limited changes, tolerances, or exemptions only in special situations when they are needed for the public good or to avoid serious harm to federal operations, and only if those changes still protect prevailing labor standards. When one contract replaces another for basically the same services, the new contractor must pay workers at least the wages and fringe benefits they would have gotten under the old contract, including earned benefits and future wage increases set by a union contract, unless after a hearing the Secretary finds the old pay was far out of line with local rates. A covered contract may run up to 5 years if the Secretary allows it and the contract agrees to update wages and benefits at least once every 2 years under the process in section 6703. Fringe benefits that are excluded from the FLSA “regular rate” under section 7(e) are not counted when figuring overtime pay. Congress wants wage and benefit determinations under section 6703(1) and (2) done as soon as possible, and the Secretary must at least make them for contracts that will employ more than 5 service employees.

Title 41, §6707

Public Contracts, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Enforcement of Chapter.—

section 6506 and 6507 of this title govern the Secretary’s authority to enforce this chapter, including the Secretary’s authority to prescribe regulations, issue orders, hold hearings, make decisions based on findings of fact, and take other appropriate action under this chapter.

(b)Limitations and Regulations for Variations, Tolerances, and Exemptions.—

The Secretary may provide reasonable limitations and may prescribe regulations allowing reasonable variation, tolerances, and exemptions with respect to this chapter (other than subsection (f)), but only in special circumstances where the Secretary determines that the limitation, variation, tolerance, or exemption is necessary and proper in the public interest or to avoid the serious impairment of Federal Government business, and is in accord with the remedial purpose of this chapter to protect prevailing labor standards.

(c)Preservation of Wages and Benefits Due Under Predecessor Contracts.—

(1)In general.—

Under a contract which succeeds a contract subject to this chapter, and under which substantially the same services are furnished, a contractor or subcontractor may not pay a service employee less than the wages and fringe benefits the service employee would have received under the predecessor contract, including accrued wages and fringe benefits and any prospective increases in wages and fringe benefits provided for in a collective-bargaining agreement as a result of arm’s-length negotiations.

(2)Exception.—

This subsection does not apply if the Secretary finds after a hearing in accordance with regulations adopted by the Secretary that wages and fringe benefits under the predecessor contract are substantially at variance with wages and fringe benefits prevailing in the same locality for services of a similar character.

(d)Duration of Contracts.—

Subject to limitations in annual appropriation acts but notwithstanding any other law, a contract to which this chapter applies may, if authorized by the Secretary, be for any term of years not exceeding 5, if the contract provides for periodic adjustment of wages and fringe benefits pursuant to future determinations, issued in the manner prescribed in section 6703 of this title at least once every 2 years during the term of the contract, covering each class of service employee.

(e)Exclusion of Fringe Benefit Payments in Determining Overtime Pay.—

In determining any overtime pay to which a service employee is entitled under Federal law, the regular or basic hourly rate of pay of the service employee does not include any fringe benefit payments computed under this chapter which are excluded from the definition of “regular rate” under section 7(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207(e)).

(f)Timeliness of Wage and Fringe Benefit Determinations.—

It is the intent of Congress that determinations of minimum wages and fringe benefits under section 6703(1) and (2) of this title should be made as soon as administratively feasible for all contracts subject to this chapter. In any event, the Secretary shall at least make the determinations for contracts under which more than 5 service employees are to be employed.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised SectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 6707(a)–(d)41:353.Pub. L. 89–286, § 4, Oct. 22, 1965, 79 Stat. 1035; Pub. L. 92–473, § 3, Oct. 9, 1972, 86 Stat. 789. 6707(e)41:355.Pub. L. 89–286, § 6, Oct. 22, 1965, 79 Stat. 1035. 6707(f)41:358.Pub. L. 89–286, § 10, as added Pub. L. 92–473, § 5, Oct. 9, 1972, 86 Stat. 790; Pub. L. 94–273, § 29, Apr. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 380. In subsection (e), the words “the definition of ‘regular rate’ under section 7(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207(e))” are substituted for “the regular rate under the Fair Labor Standards Act by provisions of section 7(d) thereof ” for clarity, to correct the reference to “the Fair Labor Standards Act” in accordance with section 1 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29:201), which provided the

Short Title

for the Act, and to correct the reference to “section 7(d) thereof ” in accordance with section 204(d)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards

Amendments

of 1966 (Public Law 89–601, 80 Stat. 836), which amended the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 by redesignating section 7(d) as 7(e). In subsection (f), the words “paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 2”, which appear in section 10 of the Service Contract Act of 1965, as added by section 5 of Public Law 92–473 (86 Stat. 790), are treated as a reference to paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 2(a) of the Service Contract Act of 1965 to reflect the probable intent of Congress. The words “which are entered into during the applicable fiscal year”, 41:358(1)–(4), and the words “On and after July 1, 1976” are omitted as obsolete.

§6707 Enforcement and Administration of Chapter