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Chelan County · Refrigeration & A/C Mechanic
Refrigeration & A/C Mechanic prevailing wage in Chelan County, Washington
$80.19an hour, base wage + fringe benefits
$56.85 base wage + $23.34 fringe benefits
On Washington public works in Chelan County, a refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic must be paid at least $80.19 an hour in total: $56.85 in wages plus $23.34 in fringe benefits for health, pension, vacation, training and other plans. L&I's rate took effect September 2, 2026.
L&I published this rate on August 3, 2026 and it took effect September 2, 2026. Checked against L&I's wage lookup on October 24, 2026.
L&I also sets a residential refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic rate in Chelan County: $19.50 an hour. It applies only to the residential projects L&I defines. Residential rates and when they apply.
Base wage and fringe benefits: $56.85 + $23.34
The wage is the taxable hourly rate. The other lines are what Washington law calls "usual benefits": contributions to health, pension, vacation and holiday, apprenticeship and similar plans. A contractor that doesn't provide a benefit pays its value as wages instead (RCW 39.12.010).
| Base wage (taxable) | $56.85 |
| Health and welfare | $11.96 |
| Pension | $9.50 |
| Training | $1.53 |
| Other benefits | $0.35 |
| Total straight-time hourly rate | $80.19 |
Set from: collective bargaining agreement, Labor/Management Agreement between United Association Local #32 of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada and Mechanical Contractors Association Eastern Washington. Where a county has a collective bargaining agreement, L&I adopts its wage and benefits; with more than one, the higher rate prevails. Otherwise L&I uses wage surveys (RCW 39.12.015).
When does this rate change?
- Rates lock at the bid date. A project uses “the rates that are in effect on the date when bids by prime contractors are due”, and they stay for the life of the contract. If the contract isn't awarded within six months of the bid date, the award-date rates apply. Contracts without bids use the date they're signed (WAC 296-127-011).
- L&I publishes on the first business day of February and August, and rates take effect 30 days later. Corrections can be published at any time and also take effect 30 days later (WAC 296-127-011(1); L&I publications and corrections). L&I's next set is due February 1, 2027, effective March 3, 2027.
- L&I doesn't republish every rate each period. A rate stays until L&I changes it, so each one has its own date. This one was published August 3, 2026 and took effect September 2, 2026.
Residential refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic rates in Chelan County
Residential rates apply only to construction, alteration, repair, improvement or maintenance of single-family homes, duplexes, apartments, condominiums and other residential buildings no more than four stories tall (basement included), and only for affordable housing (including permanent supportive and transitional housing), weatherization or rehabilitation of low-income homes, and homeless and domestic-violence shelters. Utilities, streets and structures unrelated to the housing use commercial rates. (WAC 296-127-010(9))
| Classification | Base wage | Fringe benefits | Total rate | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Mechanics: Journey Level | $19.50 | $0.00 | $19.50 | Mar 2, 2024 |
Davis-Bacon refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic rate in Chelan County
Federally funded or assisted construction here uses the U.S. Department of Labor's wage determinations. When a contract requires both the state rate and the Davis-Bacon rate, paying the higher of the two meets both. The contract documents say which apply.
We don't put a federal figure next to L&I's here, because the federal determinations split this trade into groups that don't line up with L&I's. The federal rows for this trade are below; match the classification to the work.
| Construction | Federal classification | Base wage | Total rate | WD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highway | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: GROUP 2- A-FRAME TRUCK (SINGLE DRUM); ASSISTANT REFRIGERATION PLANT (UNDER 1000 TON); ASSISTANT PLANT OPERATOR, FIREMAN OR PUGMIXER …ENGI0302-124 | $38.56 | $61.96 | WA20260001 Mod 4 |
| Highway | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: GROUP 3- A-FRAME TRUCK (2 OR MORE DRUMS); ASSISTANT REFRIGERATION PLANT & CHILLER OPERATOR (OVER 1000 TON); BACKFILLERS (CLEVELAND & …ENGI0302-125 | $42.31 | $65.71 | WA20260001 Mod 4 |
Davis-Bacon rates from SAM.gov, read October 25, 2026. Our federal totals are base plus fringe; DOL prints no total. Washington Davis-Bacon changes
Holidays
L&I holiday code 5A:
Holidays: New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Friday after Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day (7).
How Chelan County compares
The main refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic 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 Washington
Base wage and fringe benefits, nearby
- Chelan Countybase $56.85$80.19
- Douglas Countybase $65.20$103.41
- Snohomish Countybase $70.89$106.46
- Kittitas Countybase $65.20$103.41
Refrigeration & A/C Mechanic rates in nearby counties
Current L&I rates. You pay the rate for the county where the work is done. The statute defines “locality” as “the largest city in the county wherein the physical work is being performed”, and L&I publishes rates county by county (RCW 39.12.010).
| County | Classification | Base wage | Total rate | vs Chelan County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| King County | Journey Level | $73.77 | $107.19 | +$27.00 |
| Snohomish County | Journey Level | $70.89 | $106.46 | +$26.27 |
| Skagit County | Journey Level | $70.89 | $106.46 | +$26.27 |
| Douglas County | Journey Level | $65.20 | $103.41 | +$23.22 |
| Kittitas County | Journey Level | $65.20 | $103.41 | +$23.22 |
| Okanogan County | Journey Level | $65.20 | $103.41 | +$23.22 |
| Chelan County | Journey Level | $56.85 | $80.19 |
Washington refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic prevailing wage by county, with a map
More from L&I on this rate
- Scope of work, WAC 296-127-01367: which tasks this trade covers. L&I says the right classification “depends upon determinations published by L&I” (L&I).
- L&I's prevailing wage lookup, for any county, trade and bid date
- Apprentices: registered apprentices are paid L&I's apprentice rate for the trade. Anyone without a registered agreement counts as a journey-level worker (RCW 39.12.021).
Are you being paid this rate?
Add your wage to what your employer pays into health, pension and other plans for you, and compare it with $80.19. Each contractor files an L&I-approved Statement of Intent to Pay Prevailing Wages before it's paid, and an Affidavit of Wages Paid when the job is accepted (RCW 39.12.040). On contracts over $10,000 the approved intent and L&I's contact details are posted on the job site (RCW 39.12.020).
Source
Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, prevailing wage lookup, Chelan County, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Mechanics (REFR), L&I wage record 149769, published August 3, 2026, effective September 2, 2026: secure.lni.wa.gov/wagelookup/
Each figure comes from L&I's lookup and is checked against L&I's CSV export and a second, separate query. How we check · Download Chelan County as CSV · Report an error