Certified Payroll and Daily Reports: How General Contractors Reconcile Sub Headcount for Payroll Audits
On prevailing wage jobs, each employer submits weekly certified payroll, and the general contractor's daily reports are the best way to check it. Compare each sub's daily headcount, hours and work described against the names, classifications and hours on its weekly payroll, flag gaps the same week, and keep both records together. Doing this weekly catches problems while the sub can still fix them, long before an auditor or owner finds them.
This guide is general information for general contractors and subs on Davis-Bacon and state prevailing wage work. Requirements vary by contract and state, so check your wage determination, contract clauses and agency guidance.
The two records and what each proves
| Certified payroll | Daily report | |
|---|---|---|
| Who prepares it | Each employer (prime and every sub) | General contractor superintendent, and each sub's foreman |
| How often | Weekly | Daily |
| What it shows | Workers, classifications, hours, rates and wages paid | Who was on site by company, headcount, hours, work performed, location |
| Main purpose | Prove workers were paid prevailing wages | Record what happened on site each day |
| Federal form | Optional form WH-347 | Contract or spec specific |
Under the Davis-Bacon labor standards clauses in 29 CFR 5.5, contractors and subcontractors submit weekly payrolls, and the prime contractor is responsible for compliance by its subcontractors. That responsibility is why the general contractor needs its own independent count.
What to compare each week
For each sub, line up the week's daily reports against its certified payroll for the same week:
- Headcount by day. Does the number of workers on payroll for each day match the daily report?
- Names. If your daily reports or sign-in sheets capture names, is every worker seen on site on the payroll?
- Hours. Do total hours by day roughly match? Large differences need an explanation.
- Classifications. Does the classification on payroll fit the work described? A worker listed as a laborer who was described pulling wire is a question.
- Apprentices. Are apprentices identified, and is their registration documented as the contract requires?
- Dates. Are there payroll entries for days the daily report shows the sub off site, or the reverse?
- No-work weeks. Did the sub submit a "no work performed" payroll if your contract requires one?
Red flags
- A sub shows 8 workers in your daily report and 5 on payroll
- Payroll hours exceed what the daily reports support, week after week
- The same worker appears on payroll under different classifications without explanation
- A sub's daily reports are missing for days it billed
- Payroll arrives late every week, so nobody compares it
- The daily report lists "crew" with no headcount, making any comparison impossible
The last one is the most common, and it is a daily report problem. If your sub reports do not include headcount and hours by company every day, you have nothing to reconcile against. See construction manpower tracking and subcontractor daily report requirements.
What the daily report needs to support reconciliation
- Company name for every crew on site
- Headcount by company, every day, including short visits
- Hours by company, regular and overtime if the contract asks
- Classification or trade, at least foreman, journeyman, apprentice, laborer
- Work performed with location, so classification can be checked against work
- Worker names or a sign-in reference when the owner requires it
- No-work days recorded as no-work days
- Superintendent review the same day
A weekly reconciliation routine
- Monday: pull last week's daily manpower totals by sub and day.
- When payrolls arrive: compare each sub's payroll to the daily totals using the list above.
- Same day: send each sub a short note listing specific mismatches with dates.
- Log the response: keep the explanation or corrected payroll with the week's file.
- Escalate repeat issues: a sub with mismatches several weeks running needs a conversation with the PM.
- File together: keep the daily reports and payrolls for the same week in the same place.
This takes minutes per sub when the daily data is clean, and hours when it is not.
Owner and agency audits
When an owner or agency reviews labor compliance, they often look for the same comparisons you can do yourself: workers seen on site who are missing from payroll, and classifications that do not match the work. Having already reconciled, with notes and corrections on file, shows the general contractor took its responsibility seriously. On public and institutional work, also see daily reports for public, school and hospital projects.
Keep the records long enough
Payroll records on Davis-Bacon covered work must be kept for at least 3 years after all work on the prime contract is completed, per 29 CFR 5.5. Many owners and states require longer. Keep the daily reports at least as long, since they support the payroll. See how long to keep construction daily reports.
How Cascade helps
Cascade Technology is SMS-first field intelligence for general contractors and subcontractors. Superintendents and foremen text in their day, along with their subs, and Cascade builds daily reports with manpower and hours by sub. A PM can ask in plain English, "how many hours did the electrical sub log each day last week?" and compare the answer to the payroll. Scope: Daily reports, manpower and hours by sub, photos, toolbox talks, pre-task plans (JHA), safety incidents and corrective actions, project + schedule planning, automatic sub reminders, analytics and plain-English answers.
Automatic sub reminders mean the daily numbers exist for every sub: general contractors using Cascade see 95%+ sub daily report compliance. Subcontractor access is free, onboarding and integration are free, and the general contractor plan starts with a one-month pilot with no contract lock-in. We beat Raken, Procore, and ACC on price, guaranteed. Start with the free daily report template, or see why Cascade.
Frequently asked questions
Is a daily report the same as certified payroll?
No. Certified payroll is a weekly statement from each employer of workers, classifications, hours and wages paid on a prevailing wage job. A daily report records who was on site and what they did each day. The daily report is a cross-check on the payroll.
Why should a general contractor compare daily reports to certified payroll?
On Davis-Bacon work, the prime contractor is responsible for subcontractor compliance with the labor standards. Comparing daily headcount and hours by company to each sub's weekly payroll catches missing workers, wrong classifications and hour gaps before an audit does.
What are common mismatches?
Workers on site in the daily report who are missing from payroll, more hours on payroll than the daily reports support, classifications that do not match the work described, and apprentices without registration noted.
How long are certified payroll records kept?
Under 29 CFR 5.5, payroll records on Davis-Bacon covered work must be kept for at least 3 years after all work on the prime contract is completed. Owners and states may require longer.