prevailing wage

USAGE SUMMARY

"prevailing wage" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it in contexts related to labor laws, construction contracts, or discussions about wage standards. For example, "The contractor must pay workers the prevailing wage as mandated by law." Alternative expressions include "market rate" and "standard wage."

✓ Grammatically correct

Academia

News & Media

Formal & Business

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

56 human-written examples

(e) There is no prescribed method for tabulating the results of a prevailing wage survey.

Cornell University

In contrast, observability plays no role in affecting take-up of jobs at the prevailing wage.

University of California, Berkeley

The prevailing wage varies depending on the job and ranges from $28.05 to $70.62 per hour.

The New York Times

And I would like workers to be paid the prevailing wage.

The New York Times

The Labor Department, rather than employers, determines the local prevailing wage in almost all instances.

The Washington Post

No prevailing wage necessary for Canadians.

University of Chicago

In every labor market, the more workers that enter the market, the lower the prevailing wage in that market.

TechCrunch

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

4 human-written examples

Speaking of the construction industry in general, he said prevailing-wage violations were a common problem.

The New York Times

For decades, prevailing-wage laws benefited from bipartisan consensus.

HuffPost

They moved to exempt school construction from its state prevailing-wage law.

HuffPost

The current attacks on prevailing-wage statutes are a perfect example.

HuffPost

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

In economic analysis, distinguish between the "prevailing wage" (what is actually paid) and the living wage (what is needed for subsistence).

Common error

Do not use "prevailing wage" as a synonym for the baseline minimum wage. While both are legal standards, the "prevailing wage" is typically much higher and determined by the average pay for a specific craft or locality rather than a single national or state floor.

Linguistic Context

As a noun phrase, "prevailing wage" typically functions as the direct object of verbs like "pay", "determine" or "calculate". According to Ludwig AI, it is frequently used to describe a benchmark or a legal requirement in labor relations.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

55%

Academia

25%

Formal & Business

15%

Less common in

Wiki

3%

Science

1%

Social Media

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In conclusion, "prevailing wage" is a highly specialized term that bridges the gap between labor economics and law. Ludwig AI indicates that it is most prevalent in discussions concerning public works and fair labor standards. Unlike more general terms like "standard pay", this phrase carries a heavy legal weight, often implying a mandatory requirement rather than a suggestion. Writers should use it when referring to the specific hourly rate, benefits and overtime paid to the majority of workers in a specific area and craft.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

market rate

emphasizes economic supply and demand rather than regulatory mandates

going rate

a more idiomatic and slightly less formal way to describe standard pay

standard wage

more generic and lacks the specific legal connotation of government contracts

union rate

refers specifically to wages negotiated by a labor organization

scale wage

industry-specific jargon often used in trade unions

statutory wage

focuses specifically on the law that mandates the payment

living wage

focuses on the cost of living rather than the average industry rate

fair market value

typically used for services or assets rather than hourly labor

competitive salary

used in recruitment to suggest pay is at or above market levels

minimum wage

refers to the legal floor which is usually lower than the prevailing rate

FAQs

What is the difference between "prevailing wage" and "minimum wage"?

While both are legally mandated, "prevailing wage" refers to the average pay for a specific trade in a specific area (often for government projects), whereas "minimum wage" is the lowest hourly rate an employer can legally pay any worker.

Can I use "market rate" instead of "prevailing wage"?

You can use "market rate" in general business contexts, but "prevailing wage" is the required term in legal or government contracting documents.

How do you use "prevailing wage" in a sentence?

A common way to use it is: "The contractor is required by law to pay all employees the "prevailing wage" for their specific trade."

What is a more casual way to say "prevailing wage"?

In informal conversation, you might refer to the "going rate" for a particular job.