Exploring pattern detection tools

There is a column in our data that needs a bit of history. It is labeled Prevailing Wage Status and it is derived from the Davis-Bacon Act, requiring building contractors to pay unskilled laborers the prevailing wage, which reduces opportunities for unskilled or low-skilled workers. Prevailing wages reflect the compensation paid to the majority of workers within a certain area and are often described as union wages.

Smaller firms owned by minorities are typically non-unionized and unable to pay these higher wages. The history of the act is tinged with its passage in 1931 to prevent non-unionized black and immigrant workers from working on federally funded construction projects. The modern implications of the act in NYC can be observed in Figure 3.9:

Figure 3.9 – Prevailing wages (red) and non-prevailing wages (white) in NYC

When we analyze the data, we ask questions and notice patterns in our data. After reviewing...