Nov
2012 26
2012 26
With Propositions Z and S, California Has Written the Blueprint for Defending PLAs and Funding Quality School Construction
Of the $11 billion in construction bonds approved in California this November, the largest portion by far came from the $2.8 billion property tax measure (Proposition Z) to finance current and future facility needs for the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD). It is also one of the largest projects in the region to include ...
Nov
2012 19
2012 19
What’s In the New SD Convention Center Agreement? “Good construction careers for local workers, veterans, and long-term unemployed.”
San Diego’s $520 million Convention Center expansion will hire local workers and veterans. This is a significant step forward for local construction workers that have been impacted by the downturn, with shovels in the ground expected sometime next year. This is even more interesting, because it comes on the heels of an anti-union ballot in ...
May
2012 22
2012 22
San Diego’s Attempt to Ban PLAs Could Lead to “Financial Disaster,” State Controller Says
A proposed ban on Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) by the city of San Diego, California, on the June ballot is taking an interesting turn with the city sounding the alarm to Wall Street about the financial risks of such a ban. The city is at risk of losing hundreds of millions of dollars for critical ...
Jan
2012 27
2012 27
“Increasingly, construction workers, both union and non-union, are being represented by unions at the bargaining table.”
Union membership data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics today shows that in the private sector, union membership increased by about 110,000, with union density holding steady at 6.9 percent. Union density remained unchanged between 2010 and 2011 because union employment increased at the same pace in 2011 as overall employment in the...
Sep
2011 15
2011 15
“Despite the increased productivity, the male workforce has seen wages stagnate for the past three decades.”
New data released yesterday by the US Census Bureau shows that median household income fell by 2.3% in 2010, to $49,445 which is at the lowest level since 1996. More Americans fell into poverty, with the highest number in poverty on record. As a result, the share of income going to the middle-class has gradually ...
Sep
2011 10
2011 10
California’s SB922, Which Ensures Taxpayer Protections and Leaves the Door Open to Union Construction, Reaches Governor’s Desk
The approval of SB922 by the California Senate and Assembly ensures that Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) on public construction projects include taxpayer protection provisions and will empower the governing boards of local entities to decide whether or not to use PLAs that include such provisions on their local projects. The bill was sponsored by...
Sep
2011 2
2011 2
“Today’s construction spending data makes it even more imperative for a federal jobs policy that infuses construction dollars into the economy.”
Construction spending fell by 1.3% between June and July this year to an annual rate of $789.5 billion, according to the U.S Census Bureau news release. This is 32% less than July 2007 when the annual rate of construction was $1.2 trillion. The largest percentage fall in construction spending came from public construction, including educational, ...
Aug
2011 31
2011 31
Contractors Try to Take Credit for Construction Death Decrease When It’s Just a Function of Less Work
Late last week, after new BLS workplace death figures were released, the Las Vegas Review-Journal ran a story quoting Associated General Contractors Association (AGCA) leaders who said their increased safety efforts had contributed to a decline in construction deaths. The AGCA is not exactly a bastion of worker safety concerns and the decrease in...
Aug
2011 25
2011 25
2010 Workplace Death Total Holds Steady at 2009 Level, Police Deaths Leap 40%
4,547 workers died on the job due to workplace injuries in 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics count. This figure remained unchanged since 2009 due to a stagnant economy. Of these, 751 workers died on construction jobs, a decline of 10 percent since 2009, due to falling work hours. Yet, construction remains an ...
Aug
2011 18
2011 18
Brick Flies Through San Diego Labor Leader’s Window After Right-Wing Blogger Publishes Her Home Details
Lorena Gonzalez has been a visible face of the San Diego labor movement’s resistance against anti-worker initiatives. In a city that is seeing its demographics change due to Latino immigration, labor foes are grasping at the straws of an anti-union establishment that ran the city as if the middle-class never mattered. One sign of desperation...
Jul
2011 22
2011 22
Anti-Union Study Misleads On the Cost of Labor Agreements In Construction
An association of anti-union contractors is set to release a report this morning that attempts to discredit Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) but instead confirms previous research documenting that PLAs do not create additional cost for school construction. The authors, funded by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), do not accurately...
Jul
2011 2
2011 2
“The good news is that public spending on power construction increased by 13.1%. Private spending on commercial and healthcare construction also increased by 22.9% and 15.1% respectively.”
The U.S Census Bureau announced that construction spending across the nation fell last month, and has been lower than last year for all of 2011. The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce’s numbers suggest that construction spending during May 2011 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $753.5 billion, 0.6 percent ...
