Over the past decade, many economists and other experts have published articles, studies and reports demonstrating the important benefits of prevailing wage laws and refuting the claims of those who support their repeal. The National Alliance for Fair Contracting, Inc. has prepared this compilation, along with a brief description, of many of those studies.
= Study is available for download in .pdf format. All other studies are available by contacting NAFC directly. clicking on a non PDF link will scroll the page down
1) Davis-Bacon Works, Prevailing Wage Laws are good for America Professor Dale Belman, Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and Professor Peter Phillips, Economics Department, University of Utah (February 28, 1998)
2) Losing Ground: Lessons from the Repeal of Nine Little Davis-Bacon Acts Garth Mangum, Peter Philips, Norm Waitzman and Anne Yeagle, University of Utah. (February, 1995)
3) Rebuttal to Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimates of Davis-Bacon Repeal Dr. Steven Allen, et al. (May 1993)
4) Statement in Support of the Davis-Bacon Act Congressional Black Caucus (December 13, 1995). AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
5) Prevailing Wages Peter Cockshaw, Construction Labor News and Opinion, Vol. 29, No. 3 (March 1999)
6) The Davis-Bacon Act: A Response to the CATO Institute’s Attack AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department (1995) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
7) The Davis-Bacon Act: A Closer Look Dr. Anthony P. Carnevale, National Commission of Employment Policy, Statement presented to the United States Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee (February 1995) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
8) Prevailing Wage Laws Mechanical Electrical Sheetmetal Alliance, (February 1995) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
9) Public Sector Construction and the Underground Economy National Alliance for Fair Contracting, Washington, D.C. AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
10) Wages, Productivity and Highway Construction Costs National Alliance for Fair Contracting, Washington, D.C. (1995)
11) Report on Brazier Construction Co. vs. Reich Peter Philips, University of Utah (February 1996) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
12) Four Biases and a Funeral Peter Philips, Economics Department, University of Utah (February 2001)
13) Analysis on Claimed Cost Savings from Excepting School Construction from Prevailing Wage Requirements Herbert Weisberg (July 8, 2002)
14) Do Lower Prevailing Wages Reduce Public Construction Costs? Howard Wial, Keystone Research Center (July 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
15) The Effect of State Prevailing Wage Laws on Total Construction Costs Mark J. Prus, State University of New York, Cortland, N.Y. (January 1996)
16) Square Foot Construction Costs for Newly Constructed State and Local Schools, Offices and Warehouses in Nine Southwestern States Peter Philips, University of Utah (September, 1996)
17) Making Hay When It Rains: The Effect Prevailing Wage Regulations, Scale Economies, Seasonal, Cyclical And Local Business Patterns Have On School Construction Costs Hamid Azari-Rad, Peter Philips and Mark Prus, Journal of Education Finance 27, pp. 997-1012 (Spring 2002)
18) A Performance Audit of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry’s Prevailing Wage Program Auditor General Robert P. Casey, Jr. (February 2002)
19) Report on the Prevailing Wage Law of Nevada, Its History, Cost and Effects Peter Philips, Professor of Economics, University of Utah
20) Kansas and Prevailing Wage Legislation Peter Philips, University of Utah (February, 1998)
21) Kentucky’s Prevailing Wage Law: Its History, Purpose and Effect Peter Philips, University of Utah (November 1999)
22) Delaware’s Prevailing Wage Law, Its History, Purpose and Effect Peter Philips, University of Utah (May 1998) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
23) Prevailing Wage Laws and the California Economy Michael Reich, University of California, Berkeley (February 1996)
24) Prevailing Wage Laws in Construction: The Cost of Repeal to Wisconsin Dale Belman and Paula B. Voos, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee (October 1995)
25) A Summary and Critique of Oregon Boli’s 1997-98 Construction Industry Occupational Wage Survey Michael F. Sheehan, Oregon (January 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
26) The Repeal of the Prevailing Wage Law in Idaho: Economic Myths and Realities Michael DiNoto and Steven Petersen, University of Idaho, Center for Business Development and Research (2000)
27) Oregon’s Prevailing Wage Law: Benefiting The Public, The Worker, And The Employer Dr. Michael Sheehan, et al., Oregon & Southwest Washington Fair Contracting Foundation (2000)
28) The Effects of the Repeal of Utah’s Prevailing Wage Law on the Construction Labor Market Hamid Azari-Rad, Anne Yeagle, and Peter Philips. (November 1993) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
29) Why Keep Michigan’s Prevailing Wage? Dr. Daniel H. Kruger, School of Labor and Industrial Relations, Michigan State University
30) Michigan Prevailing Wage Symposium Video click VIDEO LIBRARY for file
31) Michigan’s Prevailing Wage Act: You Get What You Pay For Michigan State Building and Construction Trades Council
32) Worker Beware: The Relationship Between the Strength of State Prevailing Wage Laws and Injuries in Construction 1976-1991 Norman J. Waitzman, (nd.) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
33) HUD Audit Report on Monitoring and Enforcing Labor Standards Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, cited at p.5 in Prevailing Wage Laws in Construction: The Costs of Repeal to Wisconsin, Dale Belman and Paula Voos, The Institute for Wisconsin’s Future, University of Wisconsin, January 1996 (revised) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
34) Health Care and Pension Benefits for Construction Workers: The Role of Prevailing Wage Laws Jeffrey Petersen, Industrial Relations 39 (April 2000) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
35) The Impact of Skills Development and Fair Wage Policy on Construction Costs in British Columbia Roslyn Kunin et al, Roslyn Kunin & Associates, Vancouver, BC (May 1997)
36) The Effect of Skills Development and Fair Wage on Public Construction Costs Mark J. Prus, State University of New York, Cortland (nd.) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
37) The Effects for California Construction Workers from Changing the Method of Calculating Prevailing Fringe Benefits Jeffery S. Petersen, University of California, Berkeley (nd.)
38) State Prevailing Wage Laws and School Construction Costs Hamid Azari-Rad, Peter Philips and Mark J. Prus, Industrial Relations, Vol. 42, Issue 3 (July 2003)
39) Prevailing Wage Regulations and School Construction Costs: Evidence From British Columbia Cihan Bilginsoy and Peter Philips, Journal of Education Finance 24 (Winter 2000)
40) A Comparison of Public School Construction Costs In Three Midwestern States that Have Changed Their Prevailing Wage Laws in the 1990’s Peter Philips, University of Utah (February 2001)
41) Prevailing Wage Laws and School Construction Costs, an Analysis of Public School Construction in Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic States Mark J. Prus, Ph.D., Economics Department, State University of New York (January 1999)
42) Prevailing Wage Laws, Unions and Minority Employment in Construction A Historical and Empirical Analysis Professor Dale Belman, Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and Professor Peter Phillips, Economics Department, University of Utah (February 28, 1998)
43) The Adverse Economic Impact from Repeal of the Prevailing Wage Law in Missouri Michael P. Kelsay, Ph.D., Research Associate and Instructor, L. Randall Wray, Ph.D., Professor, Kelly D. Pinkham, M.S., Research Associate (January 2004) VIEW THE POWERPOINTPRESENTATION OF THIS STUDY
44) The High Road to a Competitive Economy Professor Harley Shaiken (January 2004)
45) Health Care Subsities: Does the Public Sector Subsidize Low Wage Contractor C. Jeffrey Wadsoups
46) Analysis of Kentucky Governor's Study "The Impact of Prevailing Wage Laws on Labor Costs for Capital Construction Projects" Construction Labor Research Council 47) Low Road Detour: How Repealing Prevailing Wage will hurt Kentucky
48) An Evaluation of Prevailing Wage in Minnesota: Implementation, Comparability and Outcomes, Lisa M. Jordan, Ph.D. Lead Researcher Additional Contributors: Robert Bruno, Ph.D., Phil Schrader, Tony Sindone, Ph.D. (October 2006).
49) The Economic Development Benefits of Prevailing Wage, Fiscal Policy Institute (May 2006).
50) New York State Workers’ Compensation: How Big Is the Coverage Shortfall?Fiscal Policy Institute Report (January 25, 2007).
51) The Effect of Prevailing Wage Regulation on the Construction Industry in Iowa Peter Philips, Ph.D. Professor of Economics, University of Utah (March 31, 2008)
52) Wages, Productivity and Highway Construction Costs (March 2004)
1) Construction Apprenticeship And Training In Pennsylvania David H. Bradley and Stephen A. Herzenberg, Keystone Research Center
2) Apprenticeship Training In The U.S. Construction Industry Cihan Bilginsoy, University of Utah (September 1998)
3) Apprentice Training and Prevailing Wage Laws Cihan Bilginsoy, University of Utah (1996) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
4) Apprentice Training in Kentucky: A Comparison of Union and Non-Union Programs in the Building Trades William. J. Londrigan and Joseph B. Wise, Kentucky AFL-CIO (March 1997)
5) Analysis of Construction Industry Apprenticeship Programs in Indiana Jeff Vincent, Indiana University Institute for the Study of Labor in Society
6) Apprenticeship Utilization in Washington State Programs in the Building and Construction Trades Washington State Construction and Building Trades Council, AFL-CIO
7) Building Trades Apprentice Training in West Virginia: A Comparison of Union and Non-Union Building Trades Programs in the 1990s West Virginia University Extension Service, Institute for Labor Studies and Research
1.) The Social and Economic Costs of Employee Misclassification in Construction Elaine Bernard, Ph.D. Robert Herrick, Sc.D., Francoise Carre, Ph.D.; Randall Wilson, (University of Massachusetts, Boston; Construction Policy Research Center Labor and Work life Program, Harvard Law School and Harvard School of Public Health) (2004).
2.) The Social and Economic Costs of Employee Misclassification in the Maine Construction Industry,
Maine Report (April 2005) Massachusetts Report (December 2004) These two studies have taken a first and significant step in documenting employee misclassification in the Massachusetts and Maine construction industries. Misclassification occurs when employers treat workers who would otherwise be waged or salaried employees as independent contractors (self employed). Forces promoting employee misclassification include the desire to avoid the costs of payroll taxes and of mandated benefits. Employee misclassification creates severe challenges for workers, employers, and insurers as well as for policy enforcement. This report documents the dimensions of misclassification and its implications for Unemployment Insurance and Income tax collection and for worker compensation insurance. 3.) The Economic Costs of Employee Misclassification in the State of Illinois Michael P. Kelsay, Ph.D., James I. Sturgeon, Ph.D., Kelly D. Pinkham, M.S., (Department of Economics University of Missouri-Kansas City) (December 2006) Because living wage laws are similar to prevailing wage laws, these studies provide data and policy arguments in defense of prevailing wage laws as well as living wage laws. The full text of these studies can be found on the internet at the website of the Economic Policy Institute (www.epinet.org) and on the Living Wage website (www.acorn.org ) 1) The Forgotten Workforce: More Than One in 10 Federal Contract Workers Earn Less Than a Living Wage Chauna Brocht, Economic Policy Institute (November 2000) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC 2) The Effects of the Living Wage in Baltimore Christopher Niedt, Greg Ruiters, Dana Wise, and Erica Shoenberger Working Paper 119, Economic Policy Institute (February 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC 3) The Living Wage Movement: Pointing the Way Toward the High Road Jared Bernstein, Community Action Digest, Vol. 1, Issue 1 (Spring, 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC 4) Higher Wages Lead to More Efficient Service Provision – The Impact of Living Wage Ordinances on the Contracting Process Jared Bernstein (2000) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC 5) Montgomery County Stands to Benefit From a Living Wage, Jared Bernstein and Chauna Brocht Maryland’s Montgomery Gazette (July 23, 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC 6) Choosing the High Road: Businesses That Pay a Living Wage and Prosper Karen Kraut, Scott Klinger and Chuck Collins (from Responsible Wealth, a project of United for a Fair Economy) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC 7) Impact of Detroit’s Living Wage Law on Non-Profit Organizations Wayne State University’s Labor Studies Center (2000) 8) The Impact of the Detroit Living Wage Ordinance Wayne State University’s Labor Studies Center (1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC -TOP-
3.) The Economic Costs of Employee Misclassification in the State of Illinois Michael P. Kelsay, Ph.D., James I. Sturgeon, Ph.D., Kelly D. Pinkham, M.S., (Department of Economics University of Missouri-Kansas City) (December 2006)
Because living wage laws are similar to prevailing wage laws, these studies provide data and policy arguments in defense of prevailing wage laws as well as living wage laws. The full text of these studies can be found on the internet at the website of the Economic Policy Institute (www.epinet.org) and on the Living Wage website (www.acorn.org )
1) The Forgotten Workforce: More Than One in 10 Federal Contract Workers Earn Less Than a Living Wage Chauna Brocht, Economic Policy Institute (November 2000) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
2) The Effects of the Living Wage in Baltimore Christopher Niedt, Greg Ruiters, Dana Wise, and Erica Shoenberger Working Paper 119, Economic Policy Institute (February 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
3) The Living Wage Movement: Pointing the Way Toward the High Road Jared Bernstein, Community Action Digest, Vol. 1, Issue 1 (Spring, 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
4) Higher Wages Lead to More Efficient Service Provision – The Impact of Living Wage Ordinances on the Contracting Process Jared Bernstein (2000) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
5) Montgomery County Stands to Benefit From a Living Wage, Jared Bernstein and Chauna Brocht Maryland’s Montgomery Gazette (July 23, 1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
6) Choosing the High Road: Businesses That Pay a Living Wage and Prosper Karen Kraut, Scott Klinger and Chuck Collins (from Responsible Wealth, a project of United for a Fair Economy) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
7) Impact of Detroit’s Living Wage Law on Non-Profit Organizations Wayne State University’s Labor Studies Center (2000)
8) The Impact of the Detroit Living Wage Ordinance Wayne State University’s Labor Studies Center (1999) AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING NAFC
-TOP-
