FEATURED
PLA Reform Legislation Poised to Pass in Georgia
Legislation to ban government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) in Georgia is poised to be considered by the state Senate this week, before the legislature adjourns for 2013. This legislation could block a potential PLA mandate on the construction of the new Atlanta Falcons’ stadium.
Another Accident on a Project Labor Agreement Jobsite: OSHA Investigating Construction Fatality on New 49ers Stadium
A tragic construction accident on a California project subject to a government-mandated project labor agreement (PLA) claimed a life last week. According to The San Francisco Chronicle, on June 11, 2013, an elevator mechanic was killed at the new 49ers stadium construction site in Santa Clara, Calif., (“49ers stadium accident kills worker,” 6/11/13): An elevator mechanic was killed [...]
New York’s Newburgh-Beacon Bridge Work Suspended Following Accidents on Project Labor Agreement Jobsite
Last week the New York Bridge Authority suspended work on the “Hamilton Fish” Newburgh-Beacon Bridge following two accidents on the $23 million contract. On June 13, a painter had to be airlifted to a hospital from the jobsite following an accident. A May 21 incident left two painters dangling from safety harnesses under the bridge (see article and image from [...]
South Carolina Becomes 17th State to Ban Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreements on Taxpayer Funded Projects
Great news out of South Carolina. Yesterday, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley signed S.438 into law, which will prohibit government entities in the state from requiring contractors to sign a project labor agreement (PLA) or other agreements with labor unions as a condition of performing work on public construction projects. South Carolina is the 17th state [...]
Central Ohio PLA Mandate Evokes Outcry and Opens Old Wounds
Big Labor’s latest attempt to secure a wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreement (PLA) mandate on a public construction project has opened some old wounds in the Columbus, Ohio, area. The Franklin County Commission instituted a PLA mandate as a condition of performing work on the $45 million Hall of Justice renovation project in downtown [...]
PLA Mandate on Allentown Fire Station Costs Taxpayers
City officials in Allentown, Pa., are determined to do everything they can to ensure local construction projects are built exclusively by union labor, despite the fact that the vast majority of the construction workforce in the area chooses not to join a union. After being forced in 2011 to repeal a blanket project labor agreement [...]
ABC California Critical of California High Speed Rail’s Union-Favoring Project Labor Agreement
At yesterday’s United States House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials field hearing in Madera, California, on the federally assisted California High Speed Rail project, ABC California submitted a statement for the record and issued a press release in opposition to the union-favoring project labor agreement (PLA) required by the California High Speed [...]
Georgia Becomes the 16th State to Ban Government-Mandated PLAs on Public Construction Projects
On May 6, 2013, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed S.B. 179, which will prohibit government entities in the state from requiring contractors to sign a project labor agreement (PLA) or other agreements with labor unions as a condition of performing work on public construction projects. This new law will ensure that taxpayers get the best [...]
Nine Ways Private Owners Are Coerced By Unions Into Requiring Project Labor Agreements
Sometimes, private owners of energy projects, banks, retail stores, manufacturing facilities, hotels, casinos and hospitals require contractors to agree to a project labor agreement (PLA) favoring trade unions as a condition of winning a construction contract funded by private money. This is known as a private PLA mandate or a private owner-mandated PLA. A private PLA [...]
How Much Construction Work is Subject to Project Labor Agreements?
Proponents of project labor agreements (PLAs) are in the habit of overstating their use in public and private construction markets. In an April 2012 letter in support of federal government-mandated PLAs to the U.S. Department of Labor, Building Construction Trades Department (BCTD), Council Victoria L. Bor stated: “These agreements are also commonly used by states [...]
Great Scott: Projects Bid With and Without PLA Mandates Show PLAs Increase Costs and Reduce Competition
While researching the use of government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) in West Virginia in advance of Wednesday’s deadline for a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) survey about a potential PLA mandate on a large-scale federal project in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., TheTruthAboutPLAs.com went back in time to revisit another real-world example of how discriminatory PLA [...]