The Senate Health, Labor and Pensions Committee has approved President Barack Obama’s nominees to serve on the National Labor Relations Board. The nominees will next be considered by the full Senate. But Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), says he has strong reservations about one of the nominees, and led several Republicans in voting against him at an Oct. 20 committee meeting. Related Links: Obama Picks Two Democrats For NLRB Slots Before the committee vote, McCain said that he had no choice but to oppose the nomination of Craig Becker—a long-time union-side attorney—because the committee had not held a confirmation hearing, where
The Army Corps of Engineers will deactivate its Gulf Regional Division in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 23, transferring oversight responsibilities for Corps operations in Iraq and Afghanistan to the recently created Trans Atlantic Division, based in Winchester, Va. The predecessor division was created in 2004 to help manage Corps work in supporting maneuver forces and reconstruction in Iraq and Afghanistan. The new division is under the command of Brig. Gen. Kendall P. Cox. It supports Corps military and international missions in the entire U.S. Central Command operations area—including 20 countries in the Middle East and Central Asia—with engineering and construction
Attempts have failed to outlaw the U.K. government-set default retirement age of 65 years, marking the end of a three-year legal tussle. However, because of skills shortages, the High Court’s September decision allowing compulsory retirement to continue will have little impact on construction, claims an industry official. About 250 pending legal claims against compulsory retirement will now terminate, according to the London-based law firm Pinsent Masons LLP. The court ruling “is good news for employers,” says Jon Coley, a partner. “But...the government has brought forward the review of the [default retirement age, or DRA,] and the smart money is on
Unions within the Building and Construction Trades Department of the AFL-CIO are looking to extend training opportunities for Native Americans on tribal lands nationwide through a new partnership with the Council for Tribal Employment Rights. The Building Trades announced on Sept. 30 the creation of the Native Construction Careers Institute, which aims to provide career training and placement opportunities for Native Americans in construction trades. Although many unions currently have outreach programs to recruit Native Americans, NCCI will offer training on Indian lands. Training ranges from basic health and safety to bidding and estimating skills. Joining a union would not
The electric power industry stands to lose up to one-third of its professional and craft workers in both construction and operations to retirement in the next five years, and the industry needs a comprehensive plan to replace them, claims a new study released by the National Committee on Energy Policy. The study, released on Oct. 2, was conducted by Washington, D.C.-based NCEP’s Task Force on America’s Future Energy Jobs, which includes members from energy companies, unions, academia and construction. It estimates that, by 2020, the energy sector could need as many as 150,000 construction workers in both the professional and
Despite a pickup in federal stimulus projects, construction's unemployment rate grew worse in September, rising to 17.1%, from 16.5% in August, as the industry lost another 64,000 jobs, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Construction's September jobless rate also was well above the year-earlier mark of 9.9%. Construction's rate remains the highest among U.S. industries. In its latest monthly report, issued Oct. 2, BLS noted that construction has shed a total of 1.5 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007. Of September's 64,000 construction jobs lost, 39,000 were in the non-residential sector and 12,000 in heavy construction, BLS
Emerging job markets and sustainability are two key areas of business St. Louis, Mo.'s Sheet Metal Workers' Local 36 has focused on in recent years to help create and keep up with growth in the sheet-metal and HVAC industries. Local 36 will soon be making those key areas priorities as it unveils plans for a new $15-million green facility. Local 36 has announced approval from its members to move forward with the purchase and renovation of the former Missouri Boiler building on the northeast corner of Jefferson and Choteau avenues in downtown St. Louis to develop a new state-of-the-art, 96,023-sq-ft
The AFL-CIO convention in Pittsburgh this month was the backdrop for the latest salvo between the federation’s Building and Construction Trades Dept. and its long-missing member, the carpenters’ union, over recruiting practices in a recession-impacted marketplace. The AFL-CIO on Sept. 16 passed a resolution urging the carpenters’ union to reaffiliate but also authorizing member unions to compete with it in organizing carpenters in certain markets. Resolution 70, passed unanimously, urges the 500,000-member United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners to end its “go-it-alone policy” and realign with both the AFL-CIO and BCTD, which represents 13 construction craft unions. The carpenters left
Teaching engineering in K-12 grades would not only boost interest in the profession and in technical careers in general, but would also improve all students’ problem-solving, systems-thinking and teamwork skills, says the National Academy of Engineering in a Sept. 8 report. Even so, very few U.S. schools now include the discipline or have enough trained faculty to teach it. Says NAE: “Engineering might be called the missing letter in STEM [science, technology, engineering and math] education.” Slide Show Students in Wisconsin engineering instruction high school class design and build a racing car prototype. Sun Prairie, Wis., high school engineering class;
Construction wages and benefits have taken a sharp downturn this year as companies have seen job opportunities dry up nationwide. After nearly a decade of steady increases, compensation has flattened on average as many employers have frozen or decreased wages. Analysts hold a mixed view on the trend, noting the situation isn’t alarming today, but could worsen in the future. While the recession has eased cost-of-living pressures on wages, the health-care debate is raising concerns that employers may face considerable financial hurdles further out. Photo: Tudor Van Hamptom / ENR Union, nonunion labor costs are going flat but professional and