U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA) recently joined U.S. Secretary of Labor, Thomas E. Perez, and the director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, Celia Munoz, to discuss the benefits of Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) and how they helped the Navy save $267 million on a recent construction project at the Kitsap-Bangor base.  Joining…

  The members of the unions that make up the San Francisco Building and Construction Trades Council will see steady work for years to come thanks to a series of Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) with developer Forest City and the Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART).  The BCTC is also close to finalizing a PLA [&hellip…;

  A Project Labor Agreement (PLA) between the University of Massachusetts-Boston and the local Building Trades is exceeding diversity hiring goals and providing opportunities to local workers.  The college entered into the PLA during the planning stages of its campus revitalization project.  Built into the agreement were diversity standards…

  A proposed bill in the Delaware legislature would require the hiring of local workers and veterans on state construction projects.  The Veteran, Skilled Workers, and Community Workforce Act would set two new requirements on public works projects: that 30 percent of the workforce must come from the district in which the project is located;…

  Last week, the Brentwood City Council voted in support of a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) for its upcoming $12.2 million library construction project.  City staff can now negotiate the contract with local trades unions.  The city used a PLA in 2009 on its Civic Center project, which was completed on time and under budget.  [&hellip…;

  In response to a long-running string of mismanaged Veterans Affairs (VA) construction projects across the country, the House of Representatives has passed a bill which would require the Army Corps of Engineers or another federal agency to manage any VA project with a price tag over $100 million.   In the past, we have [&hellip…;

  Construction truck drivers at the Port of Oakland will be protected from employee misclassification thanks to a landmark deal which labor advocates hope will set a precedent for the industry at large.  Last Thursday, the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners voted unanimously to pass an enhanced Project Labor Agreement (PLA) to ensure…

  The relationship between Suffolk University and the conservative-leaning Beacon Hill Institute has ended following decades of questionable research from the Institute, which is an arm of the university’s economics department but must sustain itself financially through donations.  In recent years, many of the donations came from the Koch…

  U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez toured the $345 million wharf project at Naval Base Kitsap this week, which is being built primarily with local labor thanks to a Project Labor Agreement (PLA). Some lawmakers now want to see such agreements become the standard for similar Department of Defense projects.   After touring the [&hellip…;

  Two towns on different sides of the country had their city council chambers packed with union members last week in support of Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) that are now closer to becoming realities.  While the scenarios are different, the overall sense of responsibility to ensure local investment on major projects is the same. In…

  The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) is recruiting women to enter the building trades as the region experiences a construction boom.  Along with the Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building & Construction Trades Council and Los Angeles Trade Technical College, Metro will be holding a female-focused job fair…

  The Sweetwater Union High School District is turning to Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) to change the status quo of construction quality in the region, which has been shoddy and delayed of late.  On a 4-0 vote, the five-member panel voted in favor of using PLAs for all projects funded by Proposition O.  The board’s [&hellip…;