Before an applicant files most employment based green card petitions for foreign workers, an employer is required to file a labor certification. A labor certification is an application that the employer files with the department of labor indicating that it has taken necessary recruitment efforts to test the US labor market to see if it can find qualified US workers. The employer must also offer a wage for the position that is at or above prevailing wage. Thus, prior to recruitment, an employer would obtain a prevailing wage determination from the Department of Labor (DOL) for the position. Prevailing wages are distributed amongst 4 levels, and the DOL uses the position, and job requirements set by the employer to make determine the wage level. In this video, immigration attorney Hasan Abdullah explains how the DOL makes these determinations.