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Kern County · Plaster Tender
Plaster Tender prevailing wage in Kern County, California
$80.95an hour, base wage + fringe benefits
$51.32 base wage + $29.63 fringe benefits
Kern County uses the same plaster tender rates as 11 other counties. See all of them on one page.
On California public works in Kern County, a plaster tender must be paid at least $80.95 an hour in total: $51.32 in wages plus $29.63 in employer payments to health, pension, training and other funds. Daily overtime is $106.61 and Sunday and holiday work is $132.27.
DIR general determination 102-X-16, issued August 22, 2026. Expires August 3, 2027. Checked against dir.ca.gov on October 24, 2026.
DIR lists 2 plaster tender rates for Kern County, from $78.40 to $80.95 an hour. See all of them.
Base wage and fringe benefits: $51.32 + $29.63
The basic hourly rate is the taxable wage. The other lines, the fringe benefits DIR calls employer payments, are what DIR expects the employer to pay into health, pension and other plans for each hour worked. An employer can pay part of that as extra wages instead, as long as the total per hour stays at $80.95 or more.
| Basic hourly rate (taxable wage) | $51.32 |
| Health and welfare | $9.85 |
| Pension | $12.32 |
| Vacation and holiday (footnote AL) | $5.30 |
| Training | $1.20 |
| Other payments | $0.96 |
| Total straight-time hourly rate | $80.95 |
Straight time covers an 8-hour day.
When does this rate change?
- A project pays the rates in effect on its bid advertisement date for the life of the job, plus any increase DIR set in advance (DIR FAQ).
- DIR issues new determinations on February 22 and August 22, and they take effect 10 days later. This rate is from determination 102-X-16, issued August 22, 2026; DIR's expiration date for it is August 3, 2027.
Scheduled increases
DIR has already set these increases. Work on or after each date is paid the higher rate. DIR often leaves part of an increase "to be allocated to wages and/or employer payments" and confirms the split when it comes due, and it can reduce a scheduled increase in a later notice, so check DIR's increase page before you pay it.
| Takes effect | Increase per hour | Total after increase |
|---|---|---|
| August 4, 2027 | +$3.50 | $84.45 |
| August 2, 2028 | +$4.25 | $88.70 |
| August 1, 2029 | +$4.50 | $93.20 |
The double asterisk after DIR's expiration date means the next rate is already set. If the work runs past that date you have to pay the new rate, and DIR says to build it into contracts signed now (DIR FAQ, Q8).
Rate history since 2024
Total hourly rate for this classification in each DIR release. The chart above draws the same figures with the increases that follow.
| Release | Total | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-2 | $74.30 | |
| 2025-1 | $74.30 | no change |
| 2025-2 | $77.70 | +$3.40 |
| 2026-1 | $77.70 | no change |
| 2026-2 | $80.95 | +$3.25 |
Every plaster tender rate in Kern County
As DIR lists them. The highlighted row is the one this page leads with.
Davis-Bacon plaster tender rate in Kern County
Federally funded or assisted construction here uses the U.S. Department of Labor's wage determinations. When a California awarding body runs a federally funded or assisted project, DIR's rates must be paid where they are higher than the Davis-Bacon rates (DIR public works FAQ).
The federal determinations for Kern County list no plaster tender classification.
Davis-Bacon rates from SAM.gov, read October 25, 2026. Our federal totals are base plus fringe; DOL prints no total. California Davis-Bacon changes
How Kern County compares
The main plaster tender rate in every county that has one, and how the pay splits here and in the nearest counties. All bars use the same scale.
Every county in California
Base wage and fringe benefits, nearby
- Kern Countybase $51.32$80.95
- Tulare Countybase $44.52$78.13
- Ventura Countybase $51.32$80.95
- Los Angeles Countybase $51.32$80.95
Plaster Tender rates in nearby counties
Current DIR rates. You pay the rate for the county where the work is done, even if your shop is somewhere else.
DIR's plaster tender rates for Kern County are the same as in 11 other counties: Imperial, Inyo, Los Angeles, Mono, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and 3 more.
| County | Classification | Base wage | Total rate | vs Kern County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kern County | Plaster Tender | $51.32 | $80.95 | |
| Ventura County | Plaster Tender | $51.32 | $80.95 | same |
| Los Angeles County | Plaster Tender | $51.32 | $80.95 | same |
| Santa Barbara County | Plaster Tender | $51.32 | $80.95 | same |
| San Luis Obispo County | Plaster Tender | $51.32 | $80.95 | same |
| Tulare County | Plaster Tender | $44.52 | $78.13 | −$2.82 |
| Kings County | Plaster Tender | $44.52 | $78.13 | −$2.82 |
California plaster tender prevailing wage by county, with a map
Footnotes on this rate
DIR's footnotes, in DIR's words. Several change the rate itself: zone pay, a percentage added to the total, or which overtime hours get which rate.
- AL Includes an amount per hour worked or paid for supplemental dues.
- AM All work performed after twelve (12) hours in a day shall be paid at the Sunday/holiday rate.
- AN Rate applies to the first eight hours on Saturday. All other time is paid at the Sunday and holiday overtime rate. Saturday work may be paid at the straight time rate if the job is shut down during the normal work week due to inclement weather.
- AK The ratio of plaster tenders to plasterers shall be as follows: there shall be a plaster tender on the jobsite whenever there is a plasterer performing work on the jobsite, except on small patch work where only one plasterer is performing work. For inside brown coatings there shall be 2 plaster tenders for up to every 3 plasterers. For inside finish coatings there shall be 1 plaster tender for up to every 3 plasterers. On outside finish and brown coatings and for all other work, there shall be 1 plaster tender for up to every 2 plasterers.
DIR's other marks: # means an apprenticeable craft, * means in effect until superseded, ** means the next rate is already set.
More from DIR on this rate
- Holidays (DIR PDF)
- Scope of work: which tasks this rate covers
- Travel and subsistence
- Apprentice rates: DIR publishes these separately, by program. Look them up on DIR.
Are you being paid this rate?
Add your hourly wage to what your employer pays into health, pension and other plans for you, and compare it with $80.95. Plan payments only count if the money goes into the plan; your pay stub won't show them, but plan statements will. The training amount goes to the California Apprenticeship Council or an apprenticeship program, not to you. Check a week of pay.
Contractors on most public works jobs file certified payroll with the state, and anyone can look it up in DIR's CPR public search. If your total comes up short, you can file a public works complaint with the California Labor Commissioner.
Source
California Department of Industrial Relations, general prevailing wage determination 102-X-16: www.dir.ca.gov/oprl/2026-2/PWD/Determinations/Subtrades/KER.html
Each figure is copied from DIR's file and checked by a second, separate reader. How we check · How to read a determination · Download Kern County as CSV · Report an error