THE H-1B WAGE RULE IS NOW ONE STEP FROM PUBLICATION The current floor is what creates the labor arbitrage of "Cheap Foreign Labor." This rule is not a solution, but it does help. The Labor Department sent its final prevailing wage rule to the White House for review on November 6. The White House lists it as economically significant. The rule sets the minimum pay an employer must offer on H-1B, H-1B1, E-3 and PERM green card filings. The proposal raised the Level I floor from the 17th percentile of local pay to the 34th. Level I is the entry-level wage. At the 17th percentile, about 83% of local workers in the same job earn more. Until published, the old wage floors still apply. New filings can still use them.