Practical guides on NYC construction labor law, prevailing wage compliance, union rate analysis, and project governance — written for owners, estimators, and project managers.
For an owner-side project manager, the labor budget is the single most volatile line item in the Pro Forma. Learn the critical difference between union wages and prevailing wage — and why confusing the two can cost you six figures.
Every contractor on a prevailing wage project must submit certified payrolls — sworn statements that workers were paid correctly. This guide covers what to submit, when, and the six most common violations that trigger enforcement action.
A PLA shapes labor relations, wage obligations, and dispute resolution for an entire project. Learn what a PLA covers, when it's required, how it interacts with prevailing wage, and the key clauses every owner should negotiate.
NYC construction is organized by dozens of trade locals, each with its own jurisdiction, rate schedule, and benefit fund structure. How to use the WageHound Union Registry to identify the right local for your project and read benefit data correctly.
A line-by-line breakdown of the NYC Comptroller Article 8 and NYSDOL Article 9 prevailing wage schedules — what every column means, the difference between the two, and the four most common misreading mistakes.
Where WageHound rates come from, how verification works, when data updates, and how to use WageHound responsibly as a reference tool vs. an authoritative compliance source.
The gap between a rough blended rate and a classification-level hours estimate can cost you six figures on a large project. A practical guide to NYC union labor cost modeling — including overtime, bid-leveling, and escalation.
A $90/hr journeyman rate becomes $155+ once you add fringes, FICA, SUTA, workers' comp, and general liability. This guide breaks down every component of the full employer cost stack and when OCIP/CCIP changes the math.
How to use WageHound's contractor upload tool to systematically compare submitted payroll rates against the prevailing wage schedule — from CSV preparation to reading comparison output to issuing cure notices.
The WageHound Lookup searches every trade and classification in the database. Learn effective search strategies, how to interpret each field in a result card, and when to use Lookup vs. the Prevailing Wage page.
A single rate check is useful. A structured project record with monthly payroll uploads and correction histories is what survives a Comptroller investigation. How to use WageHound's project system to build that audit trail.