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Kings County · Tunnel Worker
Tunnel Worker prevailing wage in Kings County, California
$86.16an hour, base wage + fringe benefits
$53.39 base wage + $32.77 fringe benefits
Kings County uses the same tunnel worker rates as 45 other counties. See all of them on one page.
On California public works in Kings County, a tunnel worker must be paid at least $86.16 an hour in total: $53.39 in wages plus $32.77 in employer payments to health, pension, training and other funds. Daily overtime is $112.855 and Sunday and holiday work is $139.55.
DIR general determination NC-23-102-11-2026-1, issued August 22, 2026. Expires June 30, 2027. Checked against dir.ca.gov on October 24, 2026.
DIR lists 6 tunnel worker rates for Kings County, from $85.17 to $86.64 an hour. See all of them.
Base wage and fringe benefits: $53.39 + $32.77
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 $86.16 or more.
| Basic hourly rate (taxable wage) | $53.39 |
| Health and welfare | $12.00 |
| Pension | $15.46 |
| Vacation and holiday (footnote c) | $4.00 |
| Training | $0.98 |
| Other payments | $0.33 |
| Total straight-time hourly rate | $86.16 |
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 NC-23-102-11-2026-1, issued August 22, 2026; DIR's expiration date for it is June 30, 2027.
Every tunnel worker rate in Kings County
As DIR lists them. The highlighted row is the one this page leads with.
- Diamond driller, groundman, gunite or shotcrete nozzleman$86.64
- Rodman, shaft work and raise (below actual or excavated ground level)$86.41
- Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable)$86.16
- Steel form raiser and setter, timberman, retimberman (wood or steel or substitute materials), tugger, cabletender, certified welder, chucktender, powderman-primer house$86.16
- Vibratorman, pavement breaker, bull gang-mucker, trackman, concrete crew including rodding and spreading$85.71
- Dumpman (any method), grout crew, reboundman, swamper/brakeman, watchman$85.17
| Classification | Base wage | Fringe benefits | Total rate | Daily OT | Determination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable) | $53.39 | $32.77 | $86.16 | $112.855 | NC-23-102-11-2026-1 |
| Diamond driller, groundman, gunite or shotcrete nozzleman | $53.87 | $32.77 | $86.64 | $113.575 | NC-23-102-11-2026-1 |
| Dumpman (any method), grout crew, reboundman, swamper/brakeman, watchman | $52.40 | $32.77 | $85.17 | $111.37 | NC-23-102-11-2026-1 |
| Rodman, shaft work and raise (below actual or excavated ground level) | $53.64 | $32.77 | $86.41 | $113.23 | NC-23-102-11-2026-1 |
| Steel form raiser and setter, timberman, retimberman (wood or steel or substitute materials), tugger, cabletender, certified welder, chucktender, powderman-primer house | $53.39 | $32.77 | $86.16 | $112.855 | NC-23-102-11-2026-1 |
| Vibratorman, pavement breaker, bull gang-mucker, trackman, concrete crew including rodding and spreading | $52.94 | $32.77 | $85.71 | $112.18 | NC-23-102-11-2026-1 |
Davis-Bacon tunnel worker rate in Kings 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).
We don't put a federal figure next to DIR's here, because this page leads with a classification the federal determinations don't list one to one. The federal rows for this trade are below; match the classification to the work.
| Construction | Federal classification | Base wage | Total rate | WD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Building, Highway, Heavy | TUNNEL AND SHAFT LABORERS: GROUP 2- RODMEN; SHAFT WORK & RAISE (BELOW ACTUAL OR EXCAVATED GROUND LEVEL)LABO0073-005 | $45.66 | $73.38 | CA20260018 Mod 8 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | TUNNEL AND SHAFT LABORERS: GROUP 4- VIBRATOR OPERATOR, PAVEMENT BREAKER; BULL GANG - MUCKERS, TRACKMEN; CONCRETE CREW - INCLUDES RODDING AND SPREADING, DUMPMEN …LABO0073-005 | $44.96 | $72.68 | CA20260018 Mod 8 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | TUNNEL AND SHAFT LABORERS: GROUP 5- GROUT CREW; REBOUNDMAN; SWAMPER/ BRAKEMANLABO0073-005 | $44.42 | $72.14 | CA20260018 Mod 8 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | TUNNEL AND SHAFT LABORERS: GROUP 2- RODMEN; SHAFT WORK & RAISE (BELOW ACTUAL OR EXCAVATED GROUND LEVEL). (FRESNO, KINGS, AND MADERA COUNTIES)LABO0294-005 | $45.66 | $73.38 | CA20260018 Mod 8 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | TUNNEL AND SHAFT LABORERS: GROUP 4- VIBRATOR OPERATOR, PAVEMENT BREAKER; BULL GANG - MUCKERS, TRACKMEN; CONCRETE CREW - INCLUDES RODDING AND SPREADING, DUMPMEN …LABO0294-005 | $44.96 | $72.68 | CA20260018 Mod 8 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | TUNNEL AND SHAFT LABORERS: GROUP 5- GROUT CREW; REBOUNDMAN; SWAMPER/ BRAKEMAN. (FRESNO, KINGS, AND MADERA COUNTIES)LABO0294-005 | $44.42 | $72.14 | CA20260018 Mod 8 |
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 Kings County compares
The main tunnel worker 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
- Kings Countybase $53.39$86.16
- Fresno Countybase $53.39$86.16
- San Luis Obispo Countybase $56.45$86.16
- Tulare Countybase $53.39$86.16
Tunnel Worker 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 tunnel worker rates for Kings County are the same as in 45 other counties: Alameda, Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Contra Costa, Del Norte and 37 more.
| County | Classification | Base wage | Total rate | vs Kings County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kings County | Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable) | $53.39 | $86.16 | |
| Fresno County | Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable) | $53.39 | $86.16 | same |
| San Luis Obispo County | Group I | $56.45 | $86.16 | same |
| Tulare County | Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable) | $53.39 | $86.16 | same |
| Kern County | Group I | $56.45 | $86.16 | same |
| San Benito County | Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable) | $53.39 | $86.16 | same |
| Madera County | Bit grinder, blaster, driller, powderman-heading, cherry pickerman- where car is lifted, concrete finisher in tunnel, concrete/screed man, grout pumpman and potman, gunite and shotcrete gunman and potman, headerman, high pressure nozzleman, miner-tunnel, including top and bottom man on shaft and raise work, nipper, nozzleman on slick line, sandblaster-potman (work assignment interchangeable) | $53.39 | $86.16 | same |
California tunnel worker 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.
- a Saturdays in the same work week may be worked at straight-time if job is shut down during the normal workweek due to inclement weather. Excludes Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco Counties.
- b All work performed on Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays shall be paid for at double (2x) the regular time hourly rate, except maintenance work, in the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco.
- c Includes an amount for supplemental dues.
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 $86.16. 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 NC-23-102-11-2026-1, page 1: www.dir.ca.gov/oprl/2026-2/PWD/Determinations/Northern/NC-023-102-11.pdf
Each figure is copied from DIR's file and checked by a second, separate reader. How we check · How to read a determination · Download Kings County as CSV · Report an error