What are the apprentice rules on a Davis-Bacon job?

Who counts as an apprentice on a Davis-Bacon job?

Only a worker individually registered in a bona fide apprenticeship program that is itself registered with the DOL's Office of Apprenticeship (OA) or with a State Apprenticeship Agency (SAA) recognized by the OA (29 CFR 5.2 and 5.5(a)(4)(i)(A)). The one exception is a new hire in the first 90 days of probationary employment who isn't registered yet but whom the OA or SAA has certified as eligible for probationary employment as an apprentice.

Which agency registers programs depends on the state. The OA registers and oversees programs in states without a recognized SAA, and a recognized SAA does it in its own state. Apprenticeship.gov has a map of which states are which.

If the OA or SAA withdraws approval of a program, the contractor can't pay apprentices below the wage determination rate until an acceptable program is approved (29 CFR 5.5(a)(4)(i)(A)).

How are apprentices paid?

At the percentage of the journeyworker rate set by the registered program for the apprentice's level. The DOL's guidance says the percentage is applied to the basic hourly rate on the wage determination for the classification. For example, a program that sets a level at 60% of the journeyworker rate, on a wage determination line with a $40.00 basic hourly rate, works out to $24.00 an hour for that level. The real percentages come from the program's standards, not from this page.

Do apprentices get fringe benefits?

Yes. Apprentices get fringe benefits as the apprenticeship program provides. If the program doesn't specify fringe benefits, they get the full fringe amount listed on the wage determination for the classification. If DOL's Administrator determines a different practice prevails for the apprentice classification, that practice applies (29 CFR 5.5(a)(4)(i)(B)).

What ratio of apprentices to journeyworkers is allowed?

The ratio allowed under the registered program, or the ratio that applies in the locality of the project, counted in each craft classification on the job site (29 CFR 5.5(a)(4)(i)(C)). The DOL's compliance guidance says the ratio is checked daily, not weekly, and that when it's exceeded, only the apprentices who were working before the ratio was exceeded can be paid at apprentice rates.

The regulation doesn't set one federal ratio. The number comes from the registered program or, since the 2023 rule, the locality where the work is performed.

Which state's ratio applies when you work outside your program's state?

Since the 2023 rule, the ratio and wage percentages of the locality where the work is performed. The text at 29 CFR 5.5(a)(4)(i)(D) says that when a contractor works in a locality other than the one where its program is registered, the ratios and wage rates (as percentages of the journeyworker rate) that apply in the project's locality must be observed. If the project's locality has no applicable ratio or wage rate, the contractor's own registered program applies.

Before the 2023 rule, it was the other way around: the ratios and wage rates in the contractor's own registered program traveled with it to jobs in other states. The DOL changed this in its final rule published August 23, 2023 (88 FR 57526), effective October 23, 2023, and the rule applies to contracts entered into after that date. The DOL's FAQ on the rule says the locality standard applies whether several programs are registered in the same state or the contractor is working outside its program's area.

What happens to an unregistered or over-ratio apprentice?

They're owed the full wage determination rate for the work they perform. Under 29 CFR 5.5(a)(4)(i)(C), any worker listed on a payroll at an apprentice rate who isn't registered (or in a certified probationary period) must be paid not less than the wage determination rate for the classification of work actually performed. Any apprentice working on the job site above the allowed ratio must also be paid not less than the wage determination rate for the work performed.

What about trainees and helpers?

The 2023 rule removed the old trainee provisions. The DOL explained that the definition referred to on-the-job training programs approved by its Employment and Training Administration, and ETA no longer reviews or approves those programs. The apprentice paragraph at 29 CFR 5.5(a)(4) no longer mentions trainees.

One carve-out remains in the definition: the apprentice rules don't apply to apprentices and trainees on highway projects under 23 U.S.C. 113 who are enrolled in programs certified by the Secretary of Transportation (29 CFR 5.2).

Helpers are a separate classification. Under 29 CFR 5.2, a helper classification appears on a wage determination only where its duties are clearly defined and distinct, using helpers is an established practice in the area, and the helper isn't a trainee in an informal training program. One can be added after award only through conformance, which our wage determination page covers.

How do apprentices show up on the WH-347?

On the WH-347 (Rev. January 2025), apprentices show up in two places:

By checking box 4, the signer certifies that workers paid as apprentices are registered in a program registered with the OA or a recognized SAA and that the program information is accurate. The regulation also requires contractors with apprentices to keep written evidence of the program's registration, each apprentice's registration, and the ratios and wage rates in the program (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(i)(D)). Our statement of compliance page covers the rest of page 2.