FEATURED
Reduced Competition Increases Costs
One fundamental economic principle is rarely wrong: Reduced competition increases costs. It is a fairly intuitive premise. Unfortunately, some government officials (often controlled by special interests) fail to grasp this basic economic concept. They often unwittingly—or even worse, knowingly—implement policies that unfairly cater to special interests or address both legitimate and erroneous public policy concerns at the [...]
Taxpayers Win Big Without Federal Project Labor Agreement on New Hampshire Job Corps Center
Taxpayers will save more than $6 million on the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Manchester, New Hampshire, Job Corps Center project thanks to the benefits of fair and open competition free from anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs). This important example of a federal project bid with and without a PLA requirement undermines [...]
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 [...]
Told You So: Project Labor Agreement on Connecticut High School Increased Costs and Reduced Competition
In 2012, the merit shop contracting community and city employees predicted Meriden, Conn., would face increased costs and reduced competition if the city council mandated a union-favoring project labor agreement (PLA) on $220 million worth of contracts to renovate two local high schools. (TheTruthAboutPLAs.com covered the controversy here and here). Despite the warnings, testy public [...]
Why Unionized Contractors Are Opposed To Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreements
TheTruthAboutPLAs.com has documented why government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) are opposed by some union contractors and union members for a variety of reasons. Dissent in the labor movement is a thorn in the side of PLA advocates attempting to gain public support by painting the PLA debate as a union vs. nonunion dispute. The truth is that government-mandated PLAs are bad public [...]
Maryland Cozies Up to Project Labor Agreement Schemes
Free enterprise is under attack in Maryland and the merit shop contracting community, which employs 88.6 percent of the state’s construction workforce, will be denied a fair opportunity to compete for construction contracts due to the rise of special interest favoritism. Two recent media reports highlight how Maryland lawmakers and the administration of Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) are capitulating to Big [...]
Who Is Hill International and Why Does It Promote Government-Mandated PLAs?
Who is Hill International and why does it consistently support and promote anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs)? In short, Hill International is a corporate PLA pimp. Read on to learn why this isn’t hyperbole. Many local, state and federal entities in charge of taxpayer-funded construction contracts are required by law or directed [...]
Michigan Again Bans PLA Mandates on Taxpayer-Funded Construction
Determined to ensure that taxpayers get the best construction at the best price, Michigan’s elected leaders have again enacted legislation (Public Act 238) that will ensure government neutrality with regard to project labor agreements (PLAs) on taxpayer-funded construction in the Great Lakes state. Although Michigan adopted a similar bill in 2011, a federal district court [...]
First Project under Prince George’s County’s New Pro-PLA Policy a Disaster
Prince George’s County’s first attempt to implement a wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreement (PLA) mandate under a November 15, 2011, policy (read the Prince George’s County press release on the policy here) is poised to be a costly disaster for county residents. Bids have been submitted for a fire station construction project in Brandywine, Md., [...]
Santa Fe City Council Delays Implementation of Discriminatory CWA/PLA Mandate
Last week, the Santa Fe City Council delayed the implementation of a wasteful and discriminatory community workforce agreement (CWA) mandate for all city projects costing more than $500,000 after city officials struggled to implement the requirement on a small firehouse renovation and expansion. They did not have any bidders willing to work under a PLA. [...]
Santa Fe Struggles to Implement CWA Mandate; Will Likely Delay Requirement’s Effective Date
Readers of this blog remember that earlier this year the Santa Fe City Council adopted a policy that requires the use of community workforce agreements (CWA) – a wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreement (PLA) by another name – on all city projects costing more than $500,000. Since this requirement was adopted, the city negotiated [...]