Working for a company that has a federal contract does not, by itself, prove that you are owed a federal-contractor minimum wage. Coverage turns on the contract’s type and dates, the work you perform, which wage law governs your job, and specific exclusions. For contracts still covered by Executive Order 13658, the Department of Labor lists a minimum of $13.65 an hour for non-tipped workers and $9.55 an hour for tipped workers beginning May 11, 2026. A Service Contract Act or Davis-Bacon Act wage determination, or a higher state or local rate, can require more.
Use the records-based process below. You need the contract or subcontract number, wage clause, award and renewal dates, wage determination, your job duties, and time records for the workweek you are checking.
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The federal contractor wage rules in force in 2026
Two executive orders are often confused. Executive Order 14236, issued March 14, 2025, revoked Executive Order 14026. The Department of Labor (DOL) says it is no longer enforcing EO 14026 or its implementing regulation, 29 CFR part 23, and is taking steps to rescind that regulation. The former $15-per-hour EO 14026 rate should therefore not be presented as a currently enforced federal contractor minimum.
EO 13658 remains relevant mainly for an older contract cohort: contracts entered into, renewed, or extended from January 1, 2015 through January 29, 2022, and not renewed or extended on or after January 30, 2022. For qualifying EO 13658 work, DOL’s 2026 annual update lists these floors beginning May 11, 2026:
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| Worker category | EO 13658 rate beginning May 11, 2026 | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Non-tipped worker | $13.65 per hour | An SCA, DBA, state, local, or other applicable requirement may be higher. |
| Tipped worker | $9.55 per hour | Tip-credit and other wage-law rules still apply; use the applicable wage determination and records. |
These are order-specific floors, not a universal wage for every employee of a contractor. Your actual entitlement can be higher, and a contract-specific determination is needed before deciding what you are owed.
Step 1: Obtain the contract records
Start with documents rather than the employer’s description of the project. Ask payroll, human resources, your supervisor, the company’s contract-compliance contact, or the prime contractor if you work for a subcontractor for:
- the federal contract or subcontract number;
- the contract’s wage clause;
- the original award date;
- each exercised option, renewal, or extension date;
- the wage determination attached to the contract;
- the name of the federal agency and the prime contractor; and
- your time records showing hours on the contract and hours supporting it during each workweek.
Federal contractor notices and wage determinations are intended to tell workers which wage rules apply. A missing document does not automatically defeat your claim; it means you should ask the employer or contracting agency to identify the clause and determination in the instrument that governs your work.
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EO 13658 coverage is tied to specified federal contracts, not to a company’s general status as a government supplier. Compare the contract with these categories:
Procurement construction covered by the Davis-Bacon Act
Qualifying construction procurement contracts subject to the Davis-Bacon Act (DBA) can fall within EO 13658. The DBA wage determination normally identifies the classification and prevailing wage that must be paid for the covered construction work.
Services covered by the Service Contract Act
Service contracts subject to the Service Contract Act (SCA) are another principal category. An SCA wage determination can set a monetary wage and fringe-benefit obligation that is higher than the EO floor. Read the determination for the location, occupation, and contract number rather than relying on a generic job title.
Concessions on federal property
Concessions contracts can include food, lodging, fuel, souvenirs, or recreational equipment offered on federal property. The contract and the property connection matter; a private business that happens to serve federal workers away from federal property is not automatically a covered concession.
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Contracts connected with federal property or land
Some contracts connected to federal property or land provide services to federal employees, their dependents, or the public. The contract’s clause and the agency’s treatment of the instrument determine whether it fits this category.
Categories that may be excluded
DOL identifies exclusions that can change the result, including grants; certain tribal agreements; some construction procurement outside DBA coverage; some SCA-exempt services; and contracts solely for manufacturing or furnishing goods. Do not infer coverage from the presence of a federal customer alone.
Step 3: Apply the contract-date test
Dates are often decisive. Build a simple timeline from the award and every renewal or extension:
- Write down the original award date.
- List each renewal, option exercise, or extension and its effective date.
- Identify whether a renewal or extension occurred on or after January 30, 2022.
- Compare those dates with the January 1, 2015–January 29, 2022 EO 13658 cohort.
- Ask the agency or prime contractor which wage clause is in the current instrument.
DOL says EO 13658 primarily covers contracts entered into, renewed, or extended during the 2015–January 29, 2022 period that were not renewed or extended on or after January 30, 2022. A qualifying post-January 29, 2022 renewal or extension generally moved the instrument into EO 14026’s framework. Because EO 14026 was revoked in 2025 and is no longer being enforced by DOL, the clause and the agency’s treatment of that particular contract must be checked rather than guessed.
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Step 4: Match your duties to the contract
Coverage follows the work you perform, not only your job title. Separate two kinds of work:
Work “on” the contract
You are working on the contract when you perform the specific services or construction the contract requires. Examples include a cleaner assigned to the buildings listed in an SCA contract or a laborer performing the construction described in a DBA contract.
Work “in connection with” the contract
You may be working in connection with the contract when your support work is necessary to its performance even though you are not performing the principal service described in the statement of work. DOL’s guidance treats these workers differently depending on their wage-law status and the amount of time spent on the contract.
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Keep a workweek-by-workweek record. A worker can perform covered duties during one week and unrelated duties during another, so an annual job description is not a substitute for time records.
Step 5: Check worker status and the 20-percent rule
For a worker performing directly on a covered contract, DOL generally looks to whether the worker’s wages are governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), SCA, or DBA. Then test the exceptions.
FLSA-covered support workers
For an FLSA-covered worker who performs only work in connection with a covered contract, DOL states that the worker is excluded when less than 20% of the hours in a particular workweek are spent on that connection work. The threshold is measured in that workweek; it is not a universal percentage that can be averaged over a month or year.
If the worker spends 20% or more of that workweek’s hours on connection work, the 20-percent exclusion does not apply. You still must check the contract category, dates, wage law, and every other exclusion.
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FLSA-exempt executive, administrative, and professional employees
Bona fide executive, administrative, and professional employees who are exempt from the FLSA minimum-wage requirement are excluded from the EO 13658 minimum-wage coverage described by DOL. A title such as “manager” is not enough to establish an exemption; the applicable FLSA duties and salary tests must support it.
Workers governed by SCA or DBA rules
When SCA or DBA rules govern the worker’s wages, use the contract’s wage determination and classification. The EO rate is only a floor. Fringe benefits, overtime rules, classification errors, and a higher prevailing wage can affect what the worker is owed.
Step 6: Compare your pay with every applicable floor
Once the contract, dates, duties, and worker status point to coverage, compare your actual pay with the highest applicable requirement:
- Identify the EO 13658 rate for the work date and whether the work is tipped or non-tipped.
- Read the SCA or DBA wage determination for the exact locality and classification.
- Check any applicable federal wage requirement under the FLSA.
- Check the state and local minimum-wage rules for the place where the work was performed.
- Compare the required cash wage and, where relevant, permitted tip credit and fringe obligations with payroll records.
A higher SCA, DBA, state, or local requirement is not displaced by an EO minimum. Work location matters: use the location where you performed the covered duties and the classification that matches those duties, not the employer’s headquarters address.
Use this evidence checklist before deciding
| Question | Record to review | What a “yes” answer establishes |
|---|---|---|
| Is there a covered federal contract category? | Contract, statement of work, wage clause, and agency | The instrument may fall within DBA, SCA, concession, or federal-property coverage. |
| Was the relevant instrument in the EO 13658 date cohort? | Award, renewal, option, and extension history | The contract-date requirement may be satisfied. |
| Did you perform the contract work? | Assignment records, schedules, job duties, and time sheets | Your hours can be matched to work “on” or “in connection with” the contract. |
| Does an exclusion apply? | FLSA status, weekly hours, contract type, and exemption records | You can determine whether the 20-percent or another exclusion removes coverage. |
| What is the controlling rate? | Wage determination, pay stubs, tip records, and state/local rules | You can compare the highest applicable floor with actual pay. |
Worked examples
Example 1: Direct SCA work on an older contract
A janitor works at a federal installation under an SCA contract awarded in 2020. The contract has not been renewed or extended on or after January 30, 2022. The worker’s duties are the cleaning services listed in the statement of work, and the wage determination lists a higher local wage than the EO floor. The worker should use the SCA classification and wage determination; the higher SCA requirement controls.
Example 2: Support work below the weekly threshold
An FLSA-covered warehouse employee spends 6 hours in a 40-hour workweek preparing materials for a covered federal contract and the remaining hours on unrelated commercial orders. Six hours is 15% of that week. If the employee performs only connection work and no other rule brings the employee within coverage, the DOL-described 20-percent exclusion applies for that workweek. The employer should preserve the time records supporting the calculation.
Example 3: A post-2022 renewal
A service contract began in 2020 but was renewed in 2023. The renewal date must be examined because a qualifying renewal on or after January 30, 2022 generally moved the instrument into the EO 14026 framework. Since DOL says EO 14026 is no longer enforced after its 2025 revocation, the worker should request the current clause and the agency’s written treatment instead of assuming either the old EO 13658 floor or the former $15 rate applies.
What to do when the employer will not provide the records
Make the request in writing and identify the exact documents: contract or subcontract number, wage clause, award and renewal dates, wage determination, work location, classification, and weekly time records. If you work for a subcontractor, ask the prime contractor’s compliance contact as well as your employer. You can also ask the contracting agency to identify the applicable clause and wage determination.
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The DOL Wage and Hour Division provides federal-contractor wage guidance and accepts complaints alleging violations. Use the division’s current contact and complaint instructions before filing because procedures and available remedies can change. A complaint should state the contract information, dates, work location, duties, hours, rate paid, and the records you requested.
Common mistakes that produce the wrong answer
- Assuming every contractor employee is covered: coverage is contract- and duty-specific.
- Using the former $15 EO 14026 figure: DOL says EO 14026 and 29 CFR part 23 are no longer being enforced.
- Ignoring renewals and options: a post-January 29, 2022 renewal or extension can change the applicable framework.
- Applying the 20-percent test to everyone: it is described for FLSA-covered workers doing work in connection with a covered contract, measured by a particular workweek.
- Checking only the company’s headquarters: the wage determination and work location control the comparison.
- Using a broad job title: classification must match the duties actually performed.
- Looking only at the EO floor: SCA, DBA, state, or local requirements can be higher and may include fringe obligations.
- Averaging hours across several weeks: the support-work threshold is evaluated by workweek.
Your determination
You have a credible coverage answer only when the contract category, date history, clause, duties, weekly hours, FLSA/SCA/DBA status, exclusions, work location, classification, and pay records line up. If any one of those facts is missing, label the result unresolved and obtain the underlying contract record rather than relying on a general statement that the employer is a federal contractor. For qualifying EO 13658 work, use the DOL’s 2026 rate update and then apply whichever higher wage determination or state or local requirement governs the job.
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