Delaware General Assembly


CHAPTER 380

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 6913, 6914, AND 6915, TITLE 29, DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO WAGES.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Delaware:

Section 1. Sections 6913, 6914 and 6915 are repealed and a new section is substituted as follows:

§ 6913. Wage Provisions in Public Construction Contracts

(a) The advertising specifications for every contract in excess of $2,000.00 to which the State of Delaware or any sub-division thereof is a party, and for which the State appropriated any part of the funds for construction, alteration and/or repair including painting and decorating of public buildings or public works located within the geographical limits of the State of Delaware, and which requires or involves the employment of mechanics and/or laborers, shall contain a provision stating the minimum wages to be paid various classes of laborers and mechanics which shall be based upon the wages that will be determined by the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations of the State of Delaware to be prevailing for the corresponding classes of laborers and mechanics employed on projects of a character similar to the construction work in the city, town, village or other civil subdivision of the State in which the work is to be performed. Determination of the prevailing wage rates shall be based on the average of the actual wages paid to a majority of the employees employed in the type construction work involved, and performing the work in the county for which a prevailing wage is being determined. Every contract based upon these specifications shall contain a stipulation that the contractor or his subcontractor shall pay all mechanics and laborers employed directly upon the site of the work, unconditionally and not less often than once a week, and without subsequent deduction or rebate on any account, the full amounts accrued at time of payment, computed at wage rates not less than those stated in the advertised specifications, regardless of any contractual relationship which may be alleged to exist between the contractor or subcontractor and such laborers and mechanics, and that the scale of wages to be paid shall be posted by the contractor in a prominent and easily accessible place at the site of the work; and a further stipulation that there may be withheld from the contractor so much of accrued payments as may be considered necessary by the contracting officer to pay to laborers and mechanics employed by the contractor or any subcontractor on the work the difference between the rates of wages required by the contractor to be paid laborers and mechanics on the work and rates of wages received by such laborers and mechanics and not refunded to the contractor, subcontractor, or their agents.

Section 2. This Act shall take effect thirty days after its enactment, but shall not affect any contract then existing or any contract that may thereafter be entered into pursuant to invitations for bids that are outstanding at the time of the enactment of this Act.

Approved May 16, 1962.