NYS DOL
Compliance — what it controls, and what it wants from youNew York State Department of Labor - Public Work does not build anything and does not award construction contracts. It is the prevailing-wage regulator and contractor registry, and it controls public-work contractor and subcontractor registration, prevailing wages, certified payroll and labor-law enforcement. That makes it a gate rather than a customer: get it wrong and the job you wanted is gone before anyone reads your number.
Who this applies to
All NYS public-work contractors and subcontractors.
What you have to do
Public-work contractor registration is required where Section 220-i applies.
What firms get wrong
Treat registration, wage rates and certified payroll as separate short explainers.
Rates by trade and county: the wage matrix.
This is a plain-language guide to a public rule, not legal advice. The controlling text is the rule itself and the contract you signed.
The rest of the rules: how to bid in New York. The owners who actually award the work: agencies.