Contractors Who Already Utilize a Prevailing Wage Plan

If you are a contractor that is currently using a prevailing wage fringe benefit plan(s), you are probably well aware of the benefits to not only your company but to your employees who work on prevailing wage projects.

Contractors Have a Fiduciary Obligation to Evaluate Their Plan(s)

The Department of Labor regulations impart a fiduciary obligation upon contractors to evaluate their current fringe benefit plan(s). It is the contractor’s duty to act prudently as a plan fiduciary under ERISA. To act “prudently,” requires expertise in a variety of areas, including plan compliance and investments. Many contractors who lack specific expertise in these areas can choose to work with prevailing wage service providers who help the contractor fulfill its obligations under ERISA. It is important for contractors to realize that the selection of a prevailing wage service provider is in itself a fiduciary responsibility.

The code of federal regulations to which contractors must adhere states, “at reasonable intervals the performance of the plans trustee, administrators, record keepers and investment provider(s) should be reviewed by the adopting employer (contractor) in such manner as may be reasonably expected to ensure that the service providers have been in compliance with the terms of the plan and statutory standards, and satisfies the needs of the prevailing wage plan.”

Contractors throughout the United States have expressed to Beneco the three key reasons they adopted a prevailing wage benefit plan(s) for their company was to:

  • Save Labor Burden
  • Bid More Competitively
  • Attract and retain skilled workers

Since 1989, Beneco has helped contractors throughout the United States evaluate and benchmark their current prevailing wage plan(s). The majority of contractors who have engaged Beneco to benchmark their current prevailing wage plan(s) have been surprised to learn that their current prevailing wage plan(s).

  • Does not meet the definition of bona fide under prevailing wage regulations.
  • The total fees and costs to the plan and the plans participants were different than the service providers disclosed in the marketing and sales material.
  • The owner of the company was the named fiduciary for selecting and monitoring the investments.
  • The tax savings to the contractor and the employees was not maximized due to poorly drafted plan documents.

Contractors Partner with Beneco to Help Them with Fiduciary Risk

As a contractor, with an existing prevailing wage plan(s), it is your obligation to seek the proven expert who can help alleviate the fiduciary mandates and requirements imposed by law. Beneco is that expert partner that specializes in the construction and service industries and that is recognized throughout the United States as the leader in bona fide prevailing wage plans.

Diagram of Beneco Prevailing Wage Fringe Benefit Solutions

*BeneCoach is provided by Beneco Trust Company through the use of computer models. Neither Beneco nor Beneco, Inc. provide, or are responsible for providing, investment advice.