Wage determinations are developed based on available data showing the rates that are prevailing in a specific locality. Where a single rate is paid to a majority (more than 50%) of the workers in a classification of service employees engaged in similar work in a particular locality, that rate is determined to prevail. When information is used from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) or other surveys, statistical measurements of central tendency (median) and the average (mean) are considered reliable indicators of the prevailing rate. Which of these statistical measurements will be applied in a given case will be determined after a careful analysis of the overall survey, separate classification data, patterns existing between survey periods, and the way separate classification data interrelate. Use of the median is the general rule. However, the mean may be used in situations where, after analysis, it is determined that the median is not a reliable indicator.
In addition, some occupational rates on the wage determination may be taken directly from the Non-Appropriated Fund schedule, Federal Wage System schedule, or the General Schedule “white collar” pay scales. Finally, several methodologies were developed to aid the analyst in developing rates for classes where no survey data exists.
October 2018
Tags: Wage and Hour