DOL announces new contractor minimum wage but limits coverage

On February 6, 2026, the Department of Labor (DOL) published a notice stating that the new minimum hourly wage for federal contractors would be $13.65, while the minimum wage for tipped employees will be $9.55 per hour. This federal contractor minimum wage is based on President Obama’s Executive Order (EO) 13658. President Biden’s EO 14026 had increased the contractor minimum wage to $15 for certain federal contractors and had superseded EO 13658 to the extent it was inconsistent with EO 14026. President Trump rescinded EO 14026 but left EO 13658 in place.

At this time, EO 13658 remains in effect, but in its announcement in the February 9, 2026, Federal Register, the DOL stated that the federal contractor minimum wage applies only to contracts entered into between January 1, 2015, and January 29, 2022, that were not renewed or extended on or after January 22, 2022. The notice doesn’t state what rate contractors should pay covered workers on contracts entered after January 29, 2022. With EO 13658 still in effect, questions remain about whether the DOL’s interpretation on its coverage is correct.

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