Discrimination

97% of ABC Contractors Say Biden’s Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreement Policies Would Make Federal Construction More Expensive

0 October 17, 2022  Featured, Federal Construction

According to a September 2022 survey of ABC contractor members published Sept. 28, 2022, 98% oppose President Biden’s proposed rule mandating project labor agreements on federal construction projects of $35 million or more. PLA schemes needlessly increase costs and exacerbate the construction industry’s skilled labor shortage because they exclude almost nine out of 10 workers […]

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Survey: ABC Members Strongly Oppose Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreements

0 January 30, 2019  Featured, Federal Construction, Open Competition Works, State & Local Construction

ABC members overwhelmingly reported that government-mandated project labor agreements harm their businesses, hiring and workforce development practices and ability to complete work safely, on time and on budget, according to the results of a December 2018 membership survey published today. Ninety-eight percent of survey respondents said they were less likely to bid on a taxpayer-funded construction contract […]

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Project Labor Agreement Failure: Is Seattle’s Tunnel the West Coast’s Big Dig Boondoggle?

0 March 13, 2015  Featured, State & Local Construction, Transportation & Infrastructure

Bad news continues to plague Washington state’s Highway 99 tunnel mega-project underneath Seattle’s downtown waterfront, contradicting a number of key points lawmakers and construction union lobbyists use to sell government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) to owners, taxpayers and the media. It has not been a model government-mandated project labor agreement, as media reports indicate the job […]

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ABC and National Black Chamber of Commerce Form Alliance to Promote Free Enterprise

0 March 11, 2014  Featured

TheTruthAboutPLAs.com readers know The National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) has been a long-time advocate of fair and open competition in government contracting. Harry Alford, NBCC President and CEO, has been an outspoken critic of President Obama’s pro-project labor agreement (PLA) Executive Order 13502, which encourages federal agencies to require PLAs, on a case-by-case basis, on federal construction […]

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Jersey City Project Labor Agreement Policies Fail to Deliver Local Jobs

1 January 28, 2014  Featured, State & Local Construction

Jersey City residents are upset jobs on construction projects subject to government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) are not going to local minority residents, despite promises made by unions and lawmakers promoting PLAs. A video, Jersey City Need Not Apply, released last week by the Jersey City Political Action Committee (JCPAC), documents how Jersey City policies […]

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Project Labor Agreement on Seattle Tunnel Mega-Project Fails to Deliver on Many Promises

0 January 23, 2014  Featured, Federal Construction, State & Local Construction, Transportation & Infrastructure

Bad news continues to plague Washington state’s $2 billion Highway 99 tunnel project underneath Seattle’s downtown waterfront, contradicting a number of key points lawmakers and construction unions use to sell government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) to owners, taxpayers and the media. Despite promises by Big Labor and advocates of these union-friendly deals that allegedly prevent costly […]

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Construction Fatalities and Protest by Minority Contracting Community Plague New 49ers Stadium Project

2 October 15, 2013  Featured, State & Local Construction

Construction of the San Francisco 49ers’ $1.2 billion Levi’s stadium, subject to a controversial government-mandated project labor agreement (PLA), has been plagued by two fatal jobsite accidents and a protest by a coalition of community groups and activists outraged by the lack of construction contracts awarded to minority businesses. PLA advocates claim anti-competitive and costly PLA schemes promote safe jobsites and […]

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National Black Chamber of Commerce Blasts Lack of Diversity in Construction Trade Unions

2 July 29, 2013  Featured, Federal Construction, State & Local Construction

Earlier this month, the National Black Chamber of Commerce penned an open letter to U.S. Representative Marica Fudge, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, claiming construction unions have “consistently discriminated against Black workers and contractors” and are “a prime contributor to Black unemployment”  (“Strange Bedfellows – Unions and Black Politicians“): “We are very disturbed that elected officials […]

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Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreements Harm Union Contractors and Tradespeople

1 August 24, 2011  State & Local Construction

The debate surrounding government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) is often framed by the media and elected officials as a dispute pitting union signatory contractors and their union employees against nonunion contractors and their nonunion employees. However, a recent lawsuit attacking government-mandated PLAs on $6 billion worth of taxpayer-funded infrastructure projects through 2014 in New York City sheds light on unsung victims of these controversial, anti-competitive and costly special interest handouts that deny hardworking taxpayers the accountability they deserve from government contracts: Union contractors and some construction trade union members.

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