March 30, 2012 – 12:01 pm
Two taxpayer-funded bridge projects in Mass. illustrates the stark contrast between the benefits of fair and open competition versus anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) advanced by well-connected special interests. The Boston Globe published a scathing editorial opposed to a PLA mandate on the $260 million reconstruction of the Longfellow Bridge in Mass. (“Patrick shouldn’t bar [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Big Dig, Boston Globe, Editorial, Gov. Patrick, Longfellow Bridge, Massachusetts, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Increase Costs, Project Labor Agreements, Strikes, UMASS
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August 11, 2010 – 9:35 am
Yesterday, The Boston Globe reported that a group of nonunion contractors filed a complaint with the State Ethics Commission alleging that a project labor agreement (PLA) favoring union labor on $750 million worth of construction at the UMass Boston campus violated the state’s conflict of interest law when it was approved by a board that includes two [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Charles Baker, Editorial, Executive Order 13502, Federal Construction, Federal Contracting, Gov. Patrick, Gov. Strickland, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Ohio, Ohio School Facilities Commission, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Increase Costs, President Obama, Project Labor Agreements, The Politics of PLAs, UMASS, Union-only PLAs harm local workers
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h/t Red Mass Group The Boston Herald editorial board summarized this doublespeak nicely (“A Labored Response,” 7/8): Gov. Deval Patrick yesterday seemed baffled by the notion that unions have any advantage in the competition for certain public construction jobs. He should read his own public comments more closely. During his monthly radio appearance on WTKK [...]
By Andy Conlin
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Charles Baker, Editorial, Gov. Patrick, Massachusetts, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Increase Costs, Project Labor Agreements, The Politics of PLAs, UMASS, Union-only PLAs harm local workers
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A Boston Globe editorial opposes the anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreement (PLA) on $750 million worth of Umass-Boston construction projects (“Public benefits don’t justify labor deal on Umass project,” 7/5). It comes on the heels of intense media coverage, op-eds and editorials in Massachusetts newspapers of the Umass PLA and The Boston Globe columnist Jeff Jacoby’s sharp criticism of [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Boston Globe, Charles Baker, Editorial, Gov. Patrick, Massachusetts, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, PLAs Cut Competition, Project Labor Agreements, The Politics of PLAs, UMASS
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The Boston Globe columnist Jeff Jacoby blasts Mass. Gov. Patrick’s support of anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) on Umass-Boston construction projects (“Labor agreements make no sense,” 6/27). THIS IS the kind of thing, Charlie Baker was saying one day last week, that “makes people crazy about state government.’’ The Republican gubernatorial candidate was [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Big Dig, Boston Globe, Charles Baker, Gov. Patrick, Massachusetts, Op-Ed, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, Project Labor Agreements, The Politics of PLAs, UMASS
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As reported in the Boston Globe here and here, this week the UMass Building Authority board of directors voted for a project labor agreement (PLA) on the Boston campus’ master plan, a 10-year blueprint with an estimated $750 million in future construction projects. The UMass Building Authority’s vote comes after Mass. Governor Deval Patrick pledged to unions that [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Big Dig, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Charles Baker, Federal Contracting, Gov. Patrick, Massachusetts, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Increase Costs, Project Labor Agreements, UMASS, Union-only PLAs harm local workers
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According to an editorial in the Worcester Telegram, government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) have been a divisive issue between incumbent Democrat Deval Patrick and GOP challenger Charles Baker in the Massachussetts gubernatorial race (“Shop Talk: Patrick and Baker camps spar over PLAs,” 5/6/10): The verbal dispute between the Patrick administration and GOP gubernatorial candidate Charles Baker over project labor agreements [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Boston Globe, Charles Baker, Editorial, Gov. Patrick, Massachusetts, PLAs, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Increase Costs, Project Labor Agreements, Union-only PLAs harm local workers, Worcester Telegram
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April 12, 2010 – 12:37 pm
TheTruthAboutPLAs.com has breaking news about the federal government’s final rule promoting government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal construction projects costing more than $25 million. Today, the Office of the Federal Register’s Public Inspection Desk published a notice online that the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council’s final rule implementing President Obama’s Feb. 6, 2009, pro-PLA Executive Order [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Boston Globe, Cartoon, Executive Order 13502, FAR Case 2009-005, FAR Council Proposed Rule, FAR Final Rule, Federal Construction, Federal Contracting, OMB, OMB Memo, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Increase Costs, President Obama, Project Labor Agreements, Section 7, Union-only PLAs harm local workers
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Today’s Boston Globe column by Scot Lehigh criticizes Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick’s support of project labor agreements (PLAs) on future construction projects in exchange for political support from construction trade unions in the upcoming election (“Courting Trade Unions,” 3/31). Lehigh nails a key point questioning the alleged benefits of PLAs: But that PLA benefit is [...]
March 22, 2010 – 11:28 am
The federal government is one step closer to issuing a regulatory rules that promote project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal construction projects costing more than $25 million. It’s a controversial White House gift to Big Labor that may increase federal construction costs and will reduce competition from quality nonunion contractors and their skilled employees. Today a notice was published [...]
By Ben Brubeck
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Posted in Uncategorized
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Tagged Boston Globe, Cartoon, Executive Order 13502, FAR Case 2009-005, FAR Council Proposed Rule, Federal Construction, Federal Contracting, OMB, OMB Memo, PLAs, President Obama, Project Labor Agreements, Section 7
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