The Business Review (Albany) reports that GlobalFoundries has committed to building its $4.2 billion chip plant, the largest public/private industrial investment in the state’s history, with a discriminatory and costly project labor agreement (PLA) (“Done deal: Work begins on $4.2 billion chip fab,” 6/12).
GlobalFoundries this week submitted a letter to the Empire State Development Corp., sealing an agreement that will reward the future chip maker with $650 million in cash to help build the $800 million building, and another $550 million in tax breaks.
New York taxpayers are investing in this deal, but local non-union contractors and their employees won’t be able to work on this project unless they agree to the discriminatory and inefficient terms of a PLA.
The PLA prohibits companies like Bast Hatfield, a non-union company that employs 200 laborers, from working on the site.
“My 200 employees that pay taxes in New York state can’t work on the project that we all paid for. It’s a sad day for New York,” said Bast.
“Most of my guys live within a half-hour of the site and they won’t be able to work there,” Bast said.
It’s a shame that the largest public/private industrial investment in the state’s history isn’t benefiting all New York construction workers — it will only benefit workers who belong to a union.
We have Governor Patterson to thank for this sweetheart deal for unions.
New York construction unions are powerful contributors of cash and man-hours to pro-union Democrat candidates. Unfortunately, this quid pro quo is common between politicians and construction unions throughout New York and across the country. It is one of the major reasons PLAs are implemented on public projects.
Check out the PLA lovefest by Governor Paterson and New York Senators and Assemblymen here.
Despite the investment of public dollars, it is unlikely taxpayers will have oversight to monitor this project for inefficiencies and increased costs that have plagued other PLA projects. GlobalFoundries will claim that construction of their plant is proprietary information and politicians and taxpayers will never know how far tax dollars could have been stretched with genuine open competition free from a union-only PLA.