§ 4.52 Fringe benefit determinations.

(a) Wage determinations issued pursuant to the Service Contract Act ordinarily contain provisions for vacation and holiday benefits prevailing in the locality. In addition, wage determinations contain a prescribed minimum rate for all other benefits, such as insurance, pension, etc., which are not required as a matter of law (i.e., excluding Social Security, unemployment insurance, and workers' compensation payments and similar statutory benefits), based upon the sum of the benefits contained in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Cost Index (ECI), for all employees in private industry, nationwide (and excluding ECI components for supplemental pay, such as shift differential, which are considered wages rather than fringe benefits under SCA). Pursuant to Section 4(b) of the Act and § 4.123, the Secretary has determined that it is necessary and proper in the public interest, and in accord with remedial purposes of the Act to protect prevailing labor standards, to issue a variation from the Act's requirement that fringe benefits be determined for various classes of service employees in the locality.