---
title: "Labor Burden Rate in Ontraccr Budgeting"
url: "https://help.ontraccr.com/en/article/labor-burden-rate-in-ontraccr-budgeting"
language: "en"
last_updated: "2025-08-22T18:15:33.347Z"
---

# Labor Burden Rate in Ontraccr Budgeting

## 🧾 **Labor Burden Rate in Ontraccr Budgeting**

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### 📘 **Overview**

The **Labor Burden Rate** in Ontraccr allows you to account for indirect labor costs — expenses that go beyond just the employee’s wage. These may include payroll taxes, vacation pay, insurance, and benefits.

This feature ensures your labor budget reflects the true cost of employing field staff, not just their base hourly rate.

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### **🧾 Where It Appears**

The **Burden Rate field** only appears in **Step 5: Budget**, and only when the **“Build Estimate”** toggle is turned **off** (i.e., using the high-level budgeting view).

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### **🔢 What the Burden Rate Does**

-   It **adds a percentage markup** to your estimated labor cost
-   It does **not affect the worker’s wage or time tracking** — it’s purely for budgeting and profitability forecasting

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### **💡 Example**

You enter:

-   Estimated Labor Cost: $10,000
-   Burden Rate: 30%

Ontraccr calculates:

-   Adjusted labor cost = $13,000
-   This is the number used to calculate total project cost and expected profit

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### **🔍 Behavior Notes**

-   The Burden Rate field is **only available** in high-level budgeting
-   It’s **not visible** when using the **Build Estimate** mode (line-by-line cost code entry)
-   It applies to the **entire labor category** — not per cost code

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### **🧠 Why Use It?**

-   Ensures your budget reflects true employment cost
-   Useful for forecasting **profit margins**
-   Helps set more accurate **contract values** and billing rates