City of Spokane v. Department of Labor & Industries

**Court Rules City Must Pay Prevailing Wages for Maintenance Work** This case involved a dispute over wage requirements at a waste-to-energy facility in Spokane. The city owned the facility but hired Wheelabrator Spokane, Inc. to operate it under contract. During annual maintenance shutdowns, workers performed various repair and maintenance tasks. The question was whether these workers had to be paid "prevailing wages" - the standard pay rates for similar work in the area, which are typically higher than regular wages. Initially, an administrative judge ruled that prevailing wage laws didn't apply to this maintenance work. However, the Washington Court of Appeals disagreed and reversed that decision. The court determined that because the facility was publicly owned, workers performing maintenance during shutdowns must be paid prevailing wages, even though a private company was managing the facility. **What This Means for Workers:** This ruling protects workers on public projects by ensuring they receive fair, standardized pay rates. Even when private companies operate publicly-owned facilities, maintenance workers are still entitled to prevailing wage protections. This prevents contractors from underpaying workers on taxpayer-funded projects and helps maintain decent wage standards in the construction and maintenance industries.