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.
Spotlight on Big Labor’s ‘Middle Class’ Task Force
A piece by Washington Examiner Commentary Staff Writer Mark Hemingway argues that the, “White House’s Middle Class Task Force is nothing but a shibboleth for instituting a number of expensive pro-union regulatory reforms…” (“Big Labor’s ‘Middle Class’ Task Force,” 4/19). TheTruthAboutPLAs.com reported March 3 that the Feb. 26 report from the White House Middle Class Task […]
More Required Reading: April 14 Media on Obama’s Project Labor Agreement Final Rule
The public continues to cover the Obama administration’s controversial final rule encouraging federal agencies to require project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal construction projects costing more than $25 million. It’s a sop to Big Labor that is sure to increase construction costs, cut competition and inject some Chicago-style cronyism into the federal construction procurement process. A Washington […]