Related Links: EEOC: Pre-Employment Inquiries and Arrest & Conviction AGC of America HR Professionals and Training Education Conference-Oct. 15-18 in San Antonio Appellate Court Ruling: Douglas El v. SEPTA It might be time for your organization to review its hiring policy, especially if it excludes job candidates with criminal convictions in their pasts. Newly-expanded U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance, released in April, lists that as an example of possible discrimination.The guidance elaborates that, for certain jobs, any conviction record will disqualify a candidate by law. At about 40 pages, the expanded enforcement guidance contains more detail on these issues
Related Links: Bureau of Labor Statistics release, with data tables AGC statement ABC Chief Economist's statement Building and Construction Trades Dept. President's statement Construction’s unemployment rate continued to head downward in August, dipping to 11.3% from July’s 12.3%, but the industry posted a gain of just 1,000 jobs last month.The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest monthly employment status report, released on Sept. 7, also showed that construction’s jobless rate last month was better than the 13.5% level for August 2011.But industry officials said one factor behind the construction unemployment rate’s decline is that many workers have left the construction industry.Stephen
Although the federal government’s role in suing construction companies over sexual harassment has fallen steadily over the last decade, federal and local complaints linked to similar harassment of male employees have remained consistent and higher than that for all industries.
Related Links: Hard Times Draw the Line For Bargaining Op/Ed: The Truth About Cat and Jobs Nearly 800 machinists at a Caterpillar plant in Illinois narrowly reached a deal to extend their labor agreement after a three-and-a-half month strike that weighed heavily on the workers, many of whom crossed the picket line to continue receiving their paychecks.The six-year contract, which comes with a $3,100 signing bonus, places a freeze on cost-of-living increases and pensions while migrating workers to a 401(k)-style retirement plan with a 6% corporate match. The deal also forces workers to pay a portion of their health-care premiums,
Photo by Augusto Diniz Owner's rep Dijkstra blames fiery strike in April on a "turf battle" between construction unions. Related Links: Ms. President Goes for the Gold Two Years to World Cup Kickoff for Brazilian Stadiums Rio Spending on Bus Lane, Metro To Break Gridlock Brazilian Contractor Builds Training Center, Trade School Brazil Places Its Bets on Hydroelectric Dams, Despite Protests Billionaire Dredges Up Support for His Superport After Massive Nov. 10 Blackout, Brazil Is Still in the Dark Over Its True Cause In the past, labor camps of Brazilian mega-projects at remote sites were rough-and-tumble affairs, marked by drunkenness,
Photo by Augusto Diniz Photo by Augusto Diniz Related Links: Ms. President Goes for the Gold Two Years to World Cup Kickoff for Brazilian Stadiums Rio Spending on Bus Lane, Metro To Break Gridlock Brazil Places Its Bets on Hydroelectric Dams, Despite Protests After April Uprising, Jirau Dam Back on Track Billionaire Dredges Up Support for His Superport New Industry Survey Says to Get Ready for Work Force Shortages Georgia's 'Go Build' Program Aims To Boost Skilled Trades At peak construction, the San Antonio and Jirau dams require a combined workforce of more than 30,000. As the jobs began to
A Louisiana federal appeals court on July 27 reversed a March 2011 ruling that awarded $301,000 to a former Boh Bros. Construction Co. employee who claimed that his superintendent sexually harassed him. The harassment allegedly occurred in 2010 during work on the I-10 Twin Span project crossing Lake Pontchartrain near New Orleans.The appeal ruling states that the superintendent’s behavior was not indicative of sexual harassment, “nor is it the business of the federal courts generally to clean up the language and conduct of construction sites.” The original ruling found Boh Bros. liable for the stress experienced by ironworker Kerry Woods
Related Links: http://enr.construction.com/business_management/workforce/2011/1024-usingsocialmediatocutthetimeanduncertaintyinjobhuntingandrecruiting.asp Social Media Reshape Job Hunting http://analyticsstore.construction.com/index.php/catalog/product/view/id/39570/s/smartmarket-report-construction-industry-workforce-shortages-2012/category/1488/ SmartMarket Report: Construction Workforce Shortages For many firms, future work force strategies may not be top-of-mind. After all, construction unemployment in May dragged along at 14.2%—almost double the national average—according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, a recent survey on work force issues shows that more than 70% of general contractors expect work force shortages in design and construction by 2014. Nearly half (45%) expect shortages in the trades, with the top three being carpentry/millwork, electrical and concrete finishers/cement masons.A firm's location and number of employees influence its executives'
Related Links: BLS press release w/data tables AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's analysis ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu's analysis The construction industry’s June unemployment rate declined to 12.8% from May’s 14.2%, as the industry gained 2,000 jobs, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported.The latest BLS monthly statistics, released on July 6, also showed that construction’s jobless rate last month was down significantly from the June 2011 level of 15.6%. The rates are not adjusted for seasonal variations.Ken Simonson, Associated General Contractors chief economist, says that even counting the jobs gained last month, total construction employment “has essentially been stagnant
Related Links: Fact Sheet on Drugs in the Workplace by National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence A new industry coalition is hoping to create awareness about alcohol and drug use in the workplace and ultimately reduce injuries and fatalities caused by jobsite substance abuse.Member organizations of the Construction Coalition for a Drug- and Alcohol-Free Workplace, formally launched last month, contend that substance abuse is still a problem on construction worksites. They cite statistics from the New York City-based National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence that show the construction industry as having one of the highest rates of workplace
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