Op-Ed: Project Labor Agreements Build Nothing But Unions
Eric Christen from the Coalition for Fair Employment in Construction penned a new op-ed for the Los Angeles Business Journal in which he calls out Los Angeles area leaders for their love affair with project labor agreement (PLA) mandates. Here are the highlights: Project Labor Agreements Build Nothing but Unions OPED By ERIC CHRISTEN January […]
Los Angeles is Laboring Under Greenmail
The January 17 Los Angeles Business Journal includes an opinion piece (Laboring Under ‘Greenmail’) by thetruthaboutPLAs.com blogger Kevin Dayton of Associated Builders and Contractors of California explaining that Los Angeles-based construction unions are exploiting the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and other environmental laws to hold up permits until the private developers of proposed projects […]
Do Project Labor Agreements Ensure Compliance with Labor Laws?
It is a myth that anti-competitive government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) — schemes public officials beholden to Big Labor’s special interests execute to funnel lucrative public construction contracts to unionized contractors and union members in return for continued political support — ensure compliance with labor and employment laws and regulations.
An audit found violations by 55 contractors working on a $150 million Los Angeles Unified School District high school under construction in San Fernando, Calif., subject to a government-mandated PLA. The violations include failure to pay prevailing wages and inadequate supervision of apprentices. Four of the contractors had expired or suspended licenses.
The audit results demonstrate contractors working under a government-mandated PLA violate labor laws, yet PLA proponents frequently perpetuate the myth that a PLA prevents labor law infractions on PLA projects. This example shows how the presence of a PLA does little to ensure compliance with labor laws and the arguments in support of PLA mandates are weak.