# What is a wage determination?

URL: https://us.falkview.com/glossary/wage-determination/
Updated: 2026-11-04

> **What is a wage determination?**
>
> A wage determination is the Department of Labor schedule of minimum hourly wages and fringe benefits, by occupation and area, that a contractor must pay service employees on a federal service contract. It is attached to the solicitation and the contract, and it sets the floor for labor cost in the bid price.

## Key facts

- Issued by the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division and published on SAM.gov.
- Lists occupations by code, such as 11150 Janitor, with an hourly rate for each.
- Fringe benefits include health and welfare, vacation and paid holidays.

## Why it matters for facility-services bids

Every bidder on the same solicitation starts from the same wage determination, so it sets the floor for labor cost. Price from the exact revision attached to the solicitation, for the right county.

## Sources

- [SAM.gov wage determinations](https://sam.gov/content/wage-determinations)
- [29 CFR part 4, labor standards for federal service contracts](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-4)
- [U.S. Department of Labor, Service Contract Act](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/government-contracts/service-contracts)

---

Falkview US finds federal, state and local solicitations, scores them, builds the compliance matrix and price build-up, and drafts proposals from a company's own documents. People review and submit. Book a demo: https://us.falkview.com/contact/