Local Hire | The Truth About PLAs

Labor Department to Mandate Controversial Project Labor Agreement on Manchester Job Corps Center

December 29, 2011 – 4:56 am

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a pre-solicitation on Dec. 22, 2011, for a $20 million to $50 million DOL Job Corps Center in Manchester, New Hampshire, indicating the project will be subject to an anti-competitive and costly project labor agreement (PLA) mandated by the DOL. Bidding is open only to certified small business [...]

By Ben Brubeck | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Executive Order 13502, Federal Construction, Federal Contracting, GAO, H.R. 735, Legal Challenge, local, local hire, Manchester, New Hampshire, New Hampshire Union Leader, PLAs, President Obama, Project Labor Agreements, Rep. Bass, Rep. Guinta, S. 119, Sen. Ayotte, Take Action, Union-only PLAs harm local workers | Comments (0)

San Diego Unified School District PLA Fails to Meet Local Hiring Goals

July 11, 2011 – 1:13 pm

Longtime readers of this blog remember that a PLA requirement was adopted by the San Diego Unified School District for all projects funded by Proposition S, a $2.1 billion voter-approved school construction bond. We have already seen this PLA requirement lead to expensive cost increases. Media reports now find that projects covered by the PLA [...]

By Andy Conlin | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged ABC California, Ballot Initiative, California, Chula Vista, local hire, Oceanside, San Diego, SavePropS.com, School Construction, Union-only PLAs harm local workers | Comments (1)

ABC Virginia Tells MWAA Phase 2 Metro Rail Construction Project Labor Agreement Scheme Will Increase Costs and Hurt Virginia’s Construction Workforce

April 26, 2011 – 10:56 am

The Virginia Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC VA) continues to raise objections to the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority’s (MWAA) resolution mandating a union-favoring project labor agreement (PLA) on $3.5 billion worth of Phase 2 construction for the Dulles Metro Rail Project. On Friday, ABC VA sent a letter (pdf) to MWAA chair Charles Snelling [...]

By Ben Brubeck | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Dennis Martire, Dulles Corridor Committee, Dulles Transit Partners, LIUNA, local hire, Metro Washington Airport Authority, MWAA, PLAs, PLAs Cut Competition, PLAs Discriminate, PLAs Increase Costs, Project Labor Agreements, Rep. Wolf, Union-only PLAs harm local workers, VA, Virginia | Comments (0)

Solving Euclid’s Project Labor Agreement Problem

January 18, 2011 – 11:31 am

Corruption, Big Labor’s powerful special interest lobby, a change in Ohio’s political leadership, and poorly researched and half-baked public policy are all variables in a complicated equation the people of Euclid, Ohio, are desperate to solve. In November 2009, Euclid City School District voters barely passed Issue #105 – a $40.3 million bond measure (see election results [...]

By Ben Brubeck | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Corruption, Euclid, Gov. Kasich, Gov. Strickland, local hire, Ohio, Ohio School Facilities Commission, PLAs, PLAs are political payoffs to union leaders, Project Labor Agreements, Union-only PLAs harm local workers | Comments (1)

Evidence That Project Labor Agreements Do Not Guarantee a Safer Workplace

September 11, 2010 – 9:35 am

Big Labor Bosses and their hand-picked political puppets claim that anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreements(PLAs) are in the public’s best interest. In reality, PLAs are crony contracting schemes implemented by corrupt elected officials that funnel lucrative public works contracts to union contractors and their union employees in exchange for political support. Taxpayers are [...]

By Ben Brubeck | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Big Dig, Evidence That Project Labor Agreements Don't Guarantee a Safer Workplace, featured, local hire, PLA Accidents, PLAs, Project Labor Agreements, Union-only PLAs harm local workers | Comments (0)

Project Labor Agreements and Big Labor Fail at Local Job Creation

August 5, 2010 – 10:42 am

Big Labor bosses and government-mandated project labor agreement (PLA) advocates frequently claim that PLAs are the only way to guarantee local hire on construction projects funded by tax dollars. Of course, this is another myth promoted by special interests to convince lawmakers and taxpayers that there is a public benefit to anti-competitive and costly PLA [...]

By Ben Brubeck | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged ABC California, ABC Iowa, ABC Michigan, Baltimore, California, checkerboarding, Des Moines, Detroit, Detroit Free Press, featured, Iowa, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Review Journal, local hire, Michigan, Nationals Park PLA, New York, NY Daily News, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Inquirer, PLAs, San Diego Union Tribune, San Francisco, San Francisco Examiner, The Politics of PLAs, Travelers/Boomers, Union-only PLAs harm local workers, Washington DC, Yankee Stadium | Comments (4)

Baltimore Community Partnership Agreement (PLA) Bill Gets a Hearing

July 30, 2010 – 1:11 pm

The Baltimore City Council held a hearing Thursday, July 29 to examine local legislation (Bill 10-0455) that would require community partnership agreements – also known as wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreements (PLAs) – on all construction projects costing more than $5 million and that have some form of city financial support. Here is an [...]

By Andy Conlin | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged ABC Baltmore, AFL-CIO Metropolitan Washington Council, Baltimore, Baltimore Sun, legal opinion, local hire, local legislation, Ordinance, PLAs, Union-only PLAs harm local workers | Comments (0)

Baltimore City Solicitor Opposes Baltimore Project Labor Agreement Ordinance

July 23, 2010 – 12:23 pm

“For the reasons listed above, the Law Department does not approve the bill for form and legal sufficiency.” That is the legal opinion of Ashley H. Brown, Baltimore’s Assistant Attorney Solicitor, on controversial legislation (Bill No. 10-0455) before the Baltimore City Council that would require the city to include government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) in all contracts for construction projects with a total [...]

By Ben Brubeck | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged ABC Baltimore, ABC Metro Washington, AFL-CIO Metropolitan Washington Council, Baltimore, D.C. Council, legal opinion, local hire, local legislation, Ordinance, PLAs, PLAs Cut Competition, Project Labor Agreements, Union-only PLAs harm local workers | Comments (0)