The National Labor Relations Board has proposed changes that would speed up elections that determine whether workers in construction and other industries will be represented by unions. As with other recent NLRB moves, reaction to the proposal, which the board announced on June 21, was sharply divided, with pro-union congressional Democrats supporting the move and business groups and Republicans criticizing it. The proposal would for the first time allow electronic filing of election petitions and other documents and shorten the time employers have to produce lists of those eligible to vote in representation elections. It also would require companies and
Professional and prospective architects and engineers will live life in the fast lane as they compete in the second annual Iron Designer Challenge in New York on Thursday, June 9. Patterned after the cooking show Iron Chef, eight teams consisting of three high school students and four professionals will go head to head as they build life-size and freestanding “Portals”—structures that mediate two spaces—in less than three hours. Photo courtesy School of Design and Construction During last year's competition, teams built emergency shelters that could be assembled within hours of a natural disaster. Related Links: Student Teams Strive To Build
Construction's unemployment rate continued to decline in May, dipping to 16.3%, from April's 17.8%, and also was a significant drop from May 2010's level of 20.1%. But construction's rate still is the highest among U.S. industries.The Bureau of Labor Statistics' latest monthly employment report, released on June 3, shows that construction did gain jobs last month, but only 2,000, according to preliminary figures. "At the current rate of growth, the construction industry will continue to experience double-digit unemployment rates for a long time," said Ken Simonson, the Associated General Contractors' chief economist. Related Links: Newest Labor Dept. Employment Report Simonson
Craig DeFinis enjoys watching a craftsperson lose 15 minutes of work time about as much as he likes discovering that he just left his wallet in the back seat of a taxi. As the owner of Pittsburgh plumbing and HVAC contractor DeFinis Mechanical Contractors, he grants his union plumbers a quarter-hour morning break, even though his contract doesn’t require it, and hopes the workers don’t stretch it the way the half-hour lunch break sometimes goes to 45 minutes. Because each worker costs about $60 an hour in wages and benefits, extra minutes add up over the long run. “Multiply that
After lengthy delays from bid protests and legal action, the Army Corps of Engineers' Savannah District held a ceremonial groundbreaking last month for the $333-million Martin Army Community Hospital at Fort Benning, Ga. Turner Construction Co., Atlanta, will lead the design-build contract for construction of the 745,000-sq-ft facility. The Corps first awarded Turner the contract in 2009.Shortly thereafter, Ellerbe Becket, Turner's design partner, was acquired by AECOM. Competing bidders cited that fact as a conflict of interest because another AECOM entity, HSMM, had been previously contracted to work on the project. The U.S. Government Accountability Office ultimately recommended that Turner's
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal (R) signed legislation on May 13 that expands state requirements to use the federal E-Verify system to check the immigration status of employees. It also closes a loophole for project worker identification and sets severe penalties for violations. Building on previous state rules that required public owners and public-works contractors to use E-Verify, the new law expands mandates to all businesses with more than 10 employees. The new rules will take effect on Jan. 1 for employers with 500 or more full-time employees; on July 1, 2012, for those with between 100 and 499 workers; and
Missouri's transportation department unveiled plans on May 5 for dramatic cost cutting measures that will trim 1,200 staff positions, or 19% of its workforce. The department also will close 135 facilities and sell 740 pieces of equipment. The agency's five-year, $1.2-billion budget is being halved to $600 million due to severe revenue shortfalls. The reductions will create an estimated $512-million onetime savings as well as $117 million in long-term annual savings. The proposed program is “a matter of survival,” says state transportation director Kevin Keith. The cuts will scale back department facilities by 40% and reduce its equipment fleet by
Union painters in New York City finalized a collective bargaining agreement on May 3 that makes several wage, benefit and work-rule concessions to employers, a result contractor groups hope will set a pattern for other city pacts now being negotiated. The Association of Master Painters of New York Inc., District Council No. 9 of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, and AFL-CIO ratified the new contract after 10 weeks of bargaining. The four-year contract includes a wage freeze in the first year and wage hikes totaling $4.50 in the second, third and fourth years, averaging about 2% a
Construction's jobless rate improved in April, declining to 17.8% from 20% in March, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on May 6. Last month's figure also was markedly better than the April 2010 level of 21.8%, but it remains the worst among major U.S. industries. BLS says construction gained 5,000 jobs in April, according to preliminary numbers. However, BLS says total industry employment “has shown little net movement since early 2010, after having fallen sharply during the prior three years.” By sector, jobs in heavy and civil construction rose by 12,700 in April, more than offsetting losses in buildings
Construction's jobless rate improved in April, declining to 17.8% from March's 20%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports. Last month's figure also was markedly better than the industry's April 2010 level of 21.8%, but construction's rate remained the worst among major U.S. industries.BLS's latest monthly employment update, released on May 6, shows that construction gained 5,000 jobs in April, according to preliminary numbers. But the bureau also observed that total construction employment "has shown little net movement since early 2010, after having fallen sharply during the prior three years."Looking at construction segments, heavy and civil construction recorded an increase of 12,700