Labor departments in several states have ruled that CoMET field representatives are subject to the prevailing-wage requirements of the Davis-Bacon Act, significantly elevating employer costs, especially when the decision in applied retroactively.

The State Labor Departments are wrong and ASFE/The Geoprofessional Business Association can prove it.

They have just discovered an obscure USDOT memorandum pointing out that the U.S. Department of Labor ruled in 1984 that field representatives are not “laborers or mechanics” within the meaning of the act, a ruling reaffirmed (orally) in 1995. Contact john@asfe.org for a copy of the documentation they now have available. They’re working to obtain more.