💰Labor Department rescinds Davis-Bacon prevailing wage for federal contractors

Workers building highways, military bases, and government buildings lose wage premiums when Trump suspends the 1931 law requiring federal contractors pay local prevailing wages. Construction workers see immediate pay cuts of $10-20 per hour while contractors pocket the savings, demonstrating how regulatory elimination transfers worker compensation directly to corporate profits.

Companies winning government contracts routinely underpay workers when federal investigators disappear and violations carry no consequences. Janitorial, security, and construction workers lose billions in stolen wages while their employers collect full federal payments, socializing costs through taxpayer funding while privatizing savings through worker exploitation.

Federal workplace safety inspectors lose jobs while industrial accidents increase at federal contractor worksites. Construction deaths, chemical exposures, and equipment injuries multiply when employers know federal safety inspections will not occur, trading worker lives for construction cost savings on taxpayer-funded projects.

Organized labor loses leverage to negotiate higher wages when federal projects no longer require prevailing wage compliance. Non-union contractors gain competitive advantages by cutting worker compensation, accelerating the decline of construction unions and skilled trades that provide middle-class employment without college education requirements.