IMPLEMENTATION OF DOL RULE INCREASING PREVAILING WAGES DELAYED

The US Department of Labor (DOL) has delayed the new rule which would change the method for calculating prevailing wages for 18 months. 

In October 2020, the DOL announced an Interim Rule which changed the computation of wage levels and dramatically increased prevailing wages.  The October 2020 Interim Rule was later struck down by the courts, but was later re-issued as a Final Rule in January 2021. 

On January 14, 2021 the DOL published its Final Rule regarding increases in prevailing wages for H-1B, H-1B1, E-3, and Green Card cases. You can find our blog post summarizing the Final Rule here.  

The Final Rule was initially set to take effect May 14, 2021 and wages issued after July 1, 2021 would be impacted. However, the DOL has postponed the effective date of the Final Rule by 18 months until November 14, 2022. The DOL delayed the start of the transition period to the new prevailing wage levels from July 1, 2021 to January 1, 2023. 

The DOL is implementing this delay to allow for more time to fully analyze the legal and policy issues raised by the rule, as well as to validate the prevailing wage data. This official delay is expected to be effective on March 22, 2021.