If you're a general contractor or subcontractor working on public projects, you’ve probably felt the pressure that comes with just trying to get payroll right. Between WH-347s, fringe benefit calculations, and labor classifications, Davis-Bacon compliance can feel like a maze—especially if you're still relying on spreadsheets, paper timecards, or outdated software.
One misstep, one missing report, and suddenly you’re staring down penalties, audits, or even payment delays.
So here’s the real question: What if Davis-Bacon compliance didn’t have to be so painful?
Imagine a construction payroll system that works with your ERP, handles union and prevailing wage rules automatically, and lets your field crews track time right from their phones—without the risk of mistyped job codes or forgotten approvals.
This article will break down:
What Davis-Bacon compliance actually requires
Why traditional payroll processes put your business at risk
How modern tools like hh2 Remote Payroll are changing the game for contractors like you
Let’s dig in and show you how to take the stress out of certified payroll—for good.
The Davis-Bacon Act has been around since 1931, but for contractors working on federal or federally funded projects, it still looms large today. At its core, the law is meant to ensure that workers on public works projects earn fair, local prevailing wages, but for you—the contractor—it means extra work, extra scrutiny, and extra risk.
Applies to contracts over $2,000 for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works
Requires you to pay laborers and mechanics no less than the prevailing wage and fringe benefits for similar work in the area
Weekly certified payroll reports (WH-347) must be submitted to the contracting agency
You must classify each employee correctly, track work by job/location, and prove compliance through documentation
This isn't just some paperwork formality. Failing to comply with Davis-Bacon can mean:
Delayed payments on contracts
Back pay liabilities to employees
Fines or even contract debarment
Even when you're doing everything right, manual tracking makes it way too easy to miss something. A typo here. A late report there. The rules don’t bend, and the margin for error is razor-thin.
Jobsite foremen using paper timecards or verbal updates
Admins struggling to code hours to the right project, classification, and wage zone
Delays between the field and the office leading to incomplete or inaccurate WH-347s
And the more jobs you take on in different counties or states—especially with union labor—the more complex it gets.
But here’s the thing: you don’t have to do it alone.
Next, we’ll look at the real pain points Davis-Bacon introduces—and why traditional payroll systems just aren’t built to handle it.
If you’ve ever had to sort through a stack of timecards on a Friday night to meet a Monday certified payroll deadline, you already know: Davis-Bacon compliance goes beyond a simple legal requirement—it's a multifaceted logistical challenge.
Here’s where the real pain shows up:
Most field crews aren’t sitting in an office. They’re in the mud, the rebar, the scaffold—and they’re clocking in and out on whatever’s easiest: a clipboard, a text message, maybe a whiteboard in the trailer.
And guess what?
That data still has to get to the office. Usually by the end of the week. Often with:
Missing hours
Wrong cost codes
Unclear job classifications
One wrong code, and now your WH-347 shows a laborer getting paid electrician rates. Or worse—the other way around.
Certified payroll reports are no joke. You need to show:
Every employee’s classification
Hours worked per project and location
Base rate, fringe benefits, and gross wages
Deductions, withholdings, and net pay
Doing that by hand? In Excel? With last-minute changes from the field?
That’s a full-time job—and even then, you’re one formula error away from noncompliance.
Working across multiple locations? Now you’re juggling:
Different prevailing wage tables
Local labor laws
Union rules and benefits
Job classifications that don’t always match your internal roles
Your ERP doesn’t always keep up. And when your payroll system can’t flex with your job mix, you’re left stitching together workarounds that only increase the chance of errors.
Even if the data is accurate, it’s got to move fast.
But in most construction firms:
Timecards get collected late
Foremen don’t sign off until Monday morning
Payroll runs get delayed while accounting chases down missing info
By the time certified reports are due, the admin team’s in crisis mode, and nobody’s sleeping well.
Your ERP might be great at accounting. But it’s not built for jobsite payroll workflows.
So, your admin is stuck:
Manually keying in timecard data
Transferring numbers from one system to another
Running down errors between field reports and payroll records
The result? Time wasted. Compliance risk. Frustrated teams.
But what if your system actually worked with you?
That’s where hh2 Remote Payroll flips the script—by automating the workflows, syncing your systems, and making Davis-Bacon a whole lot easier to manage.
Let’s walk through how it actually works next.
Let’s be honest—Davis-Bacon compliance isn’t optional, but the way you handle it can be.
hh2 Remote Payroll was built specifically for construction firms like yours: contractors managing multiple crews, juggling union and prevailing wage jobs, and trying to keep all that payroll data straight without burning out your back office team.
Here’s how hh2 turns your certified payroll chaos into a streamlined, automated workflow:
With hh2, your crews can clock in, switch tasks, and submit time—right from their phones or tablets. That means:
No more paper timecards
No more waiting until the end of the week
No more bad handwriting or missing info
You get accurate, real-time labor data coded to the right job, cost code, classification, and location—automatically.
“When I think back to the Stone Age, how we did payroll before, I can't imagine doing it without hh2.”
— Lorraine Searcy, ANCHOR 41 CONSTRUCTION
hh2 connects seamlessly with leading construction ERPs like:
Sage 100 Contractor
Sage 300 CRE
Trimble Vista
Spectrum
Foundation
This means that you are not merely gathering time data; you are seamlessly integrating it directly into your Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system without the need for redundant data entry.
This integration ensures that all critical elements such as cost codes, job numbers, pay groups, and additional relevant data remain consistently aligned and synchronized across your systems.
This eliminates the risk of discrepancies and enhances the accuracy and efficiency of your payroll processes, allowing for a more streamlined and error-free operation.
Real-time data. Fewer mistakes. No more Excel limbo.
Eliminate the need for late-night spreadsheet calculations and manual WH-347 data entry.
hh2:
Collects all the certified payroll data you need
Organizes it by job, classification, and wage type
Prepares it in the format needed for WH-347 reporting or export to eCPR systems
Need to break out data by state, county, union agreement, or benefit group?
With hh2 Remote Payroll, this complex task is already streamlined and automated for you. The system meticulously organizes and categorizes all necessary payroll data, ensuring that each piece of information is accurately sorted according to the specific requirements of different states, counties, union agreements, and benefit groups.
This means you can effortlessly generate detailed reports that comply with varying regional and contractual obligations, saving you time and reducing the risk of errors.
With hh2, you can:
Set rules for wage determinations by location or job
Configure fringe benefit rates by classification
Support multiple pay groups and union rules on a per-project basis
The system is designed to automatically retain all necessary information, ensuring that field personnel are relieved from the burden of memorizing complex compliance details.
This allows you to maintain adherence to regulations effortlessly, eliminating the stress and potential errors associated with manual tracking and data entry.
hh2 gives you flexible, role-based approval paths:
Foremen can approve their crew’s hours from the field
PMs can review labor cost data by job
Payroll admins can batch-review, flag exceptions, and finalize for processing
Every action within the system is meticulously timestamped, ensuring that all data is organized and readily available for audits. This comprehensive tracking eliminates the need to chase down signatures or struggle to recall who approved specific entries, providing a seamless and transparent approval process.
With this level of detail, you can confidently manage your payroll operations, knowing that every step is documented and easily accessible for verification, thereby reducing administrative burdens and enhancing compliance assurance.
You’re not just tracking time—you’re gaining insight.
hh2 gives your team:
Labor cost breakdowns by job, cost code, or classification
Real-time dashboards for hours worked, OT, and budget vs. actual
Audit trails for every timecard entry and change
That means you’re not just surviving the complexities and challenges of Davis-Bacon compliance; you’re effectively managing your labor force with the precision and expertise of a seasoned professional.
By leveraging advanced tools and streamlined processes, you are optimizing your workforce management to ensure efficiency, accuracy, and compliance.
This proactive approach allows you to focus on strategic project execution, confident in the knowledge that your labor management is both compliant and efficient, ultimately enhancing your overall operational success.
“We no longer have to go out to the job site to view a report. With hh2, we’ve got real-time data flowing right into Sage 300 from the field.”
— Steve Haynes, FAHS CONSTRUCTION GROUP
Imagine you’re running multiple jobs across different cities. Some are federal, others state-funded. A few require union labor. All of them require certified payroll reports, and each one seems to have its own set of rules, wage rates, and deadlines.
That’s exactly where ANCHOR 41 CONSTRUCTION found themselves.
Before hh2, their process looked like this:
Foremen filled out paper timecards
Office admins retyped hours into Excel
Reports were manually compiled to meet Davis-Bacon and union requirements
Errors were frequent, and compliance was always in question
“We were chasing approvals, cross-checking hours, correcting job codes—every single week,” said Lorraine Searcy, their payroll lead.
Once they implemented hh2:
Foremen used the mobile time app to log hours and select the correct union classification
The payroll team set up rules for prevailing wage rates based on job and location
All time data synced directly with their Sage ERP
WH-347 reports were automatically generated—accurate and on time
Weekly payroll prep went from days to hours
Certified payroll reports were audit-ready, without manual work
Compliance with union rules and wage determinations was automated
And most importantly, the back office team could finally breathe
“When I think back to how we used to do it, I can’t imagine going back. hh2 just handles it—it’s one less thing I have to worry about,” said Searcy.
There’s no shortage of payroll tools out there—but most weren’t built with prevailing wage, Davis-Bacon, and union jobs in mind. hh2 Remote Payroll was.
Here’s a breakdown of the features your construction business actually needs—and how hh2 delivers:
Let your crews clock in from the field with ease—on any device.
Track regular, OT, double time, and shift differentials
Assign time to the correct job, cost code, classification, and location
Built-in GPS and geofencing options for accurate records
Ideal for GCs and Subs managing multiple crews across jobsites
No two jobs are alike. hh2 supports:
Multiple pay groups and fringe benefit setups
Union and non-union configurations
State-, county-, and city-specific wage rules
Whether you’re working on a federal bridge project or a state-funded school, hh2 adapts—not the other way around.
hh2 connects and syncs with the systems you already use:
Sage 300 CRE
Sage 100 Contractor
Trimble Vista
Spectrum
Foundation
No more importing/exporting CSVs. No more re-keying. Just real-time data that flows cleanly from field to office and back again.
Certified payroll shouldn’t require a spreadsheet degree.
With hh2:
WH-347 reports are generated in seconds
eCPR files are formatted and ready to upload
Reports are organized by job, classification, and labor type—automatically
You stay compliant without wasting your team’s time.
Control who approves what and when—without bottlenecks.
Foremen approve crew time daily or weekly
PMs can review by job or task
Payroll admins finalize with full visibility
Everything’s timestamped, archived, and ready for audit.
With hh2, payroll is no longer a black box.
View labor cost by job, phase, or cost code
Spot timecard anomalies early
Export reports for project management or forecasting
Compliance isn’t just about avoiding penalties—it’s about having control.
When you're managing public projects, complex payrolls, and tight compliance deadlines, you can’t afford to gamble on unproven tech. You need a partner that understands construction—one that integrates with your tools and actually helps you sleep at night.
That’s where hh2 stands apart.
hh2 isn’t a generic payroll platform that got retrofitted for construction.
It was built by construction professionals, specifically for:
General contractors with self-performing crews
Subcontractors navigating union rules and multiple prevailing wage jobs
Finance and payroll teams working inside Sage, Vista, and Foundation ERPs
From labor classifications to WH-347 reports, hh2 was designed to handle the complexity that construction payroll demands.
hh2 connects directly with:
Sage 100 Contractor
Sage 300 CRE
Trimble Vista
Spectrum
Foundation Software
This means:
No double entry
No disconnected databases
No clunky middleware
Just clean, two-way sync of cost codes, job info, timecards, classifications, and payroll data.
“All of our documents are approved before they go in the AP module. No more paper, no more manual entry.”
— Brian Kelling, METRO AIR CONDITIONING COMPANY
Your crews are in the field. Your admins might be remote. Your PMs are everywhere.
hh2’s cloud-first platform gives everyone access to what they need:
Mobile time tracking for field teams
Browser-based dashboards for admins
Secure, real-time data for controllers and CFOs
No VPNs. No installs. Just smooth, secure access—anytime, anywhere.
Trusted by 3,600+ construction companies
Over $16 billion in payroll and documents processed annually
Backed by real-world results and testimonials from contractors who live the Davis-Bacon grind
“We’ve cut our payroll prep time in half. Everything flows into Sage—no more last-minute panic.”
— Steve Haynes, FAHS CONSTRUCTION GROUP
You’ve got enough to deal with—tight schedules, labor shortages, inspections, rising material costs. Payroll compliance shouldn’t be another fire to fight.
With Davis-Bacon and prevailing wage requirements tightening—and public project opportunities on the rise—you need a payroll system that’s as tough and reliable as your crews.
hh2 Remote Payroll was built for this moment:
It automates the headaches of Davis-Bacon and certified reporting
It integrates seamlessly with your construction ERP
It empowers your field, finance, and back office teams to work in sync
So whether you're juggling multiple wage determinations, union agreements, or reporting deadlines, hh2 has your back.
👉 Learn more about hh2 Remote Payroll
👉 Or schedule a personalized demo and see how hh2 can streamline your certified payroll process—from jobsite to back office.
You don’t have to keep duct-taping spreadsheets and crossing your fingers every week.
Let’s make Davis-Bacon compliance the easiest part of your job.