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Changes to this site will be made frequently. Be sure to return here often. New June 2, 2010 2010 Wisconsin Fall Elections for Assembly and Senate November 2, 2010 marks the next general partisan election in Wisconsin. Among others, citizens will be voting for Governor, all 99 members of the Wisconsin State Assembly and one-half of the Wisconsin State Senate. Those elected in November will tak office in January of 2010. This election is your opportunity to make a difference in your business outlook. Read more here. New May 27, 2010 ABC of Wisconsin Board of Director Cheryl Sment of Interstate Sealant & Concrete, Inc. has been selected as the Wisconsin Small Business Administration Person of the Year for 2010. Cheryl was given her award in Washington D.C. and met both President Obama and Cheryl will be presented with the state award the first week of June. A video crew came to the Interstate office and shot video for about two hours. This is the final product from their visit. Video All of us wish to congratulate Cheryl on this achievement. It is well deserved! Update on EFCA, NLRB, and Other Labor Relations Changes Seminar in March, 2010 Click here for more information ABC and other construction related associations question Senators about Health Care Bill changes. Read more...
Contract Discriminates Against Majority of New Hampshire’s Construction Workforce
October 6, 2009 Washington, D.C. – Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) member company North Branch Construction, a Concord, N.H.-based general contractor, Oct. 5 filed a bid protest with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) against the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The complaint accuses the DOL of violating federal law by mandating the use of a project labor agreement (PLA) – a controversial contract that strongly favors union-signatory contractors, increases the cost of construction up to 18 percent, and restricts competition from nonunion contractors and their qualified workforce – in its bid specifications for the construction of a federal DOL Job Corps center in Manchester, N.H. The complaint states that the DOL’s inclusion of the PLA, “unduly restricts competition, is wholly unsupported and violates the Competition in Contracting Act, Executive Order 13502, the Small Business Act, and numerous procurement regulations,” and requests that the GAO order the DOL to remove any PLA requirement from the solicitation. “PLAs are special interest handouts that deny taxpayers the accountability they deserve from government contracts,” said Ken Holmes, president of North Branch Construction. “This DOL PLA discriminates against New Hampshire’s qualified and experienced nonunion employees and businesses, such as North Branch Construction, who all deserve a fair opportunity to provide the public with the best construction product at the best price.” A PLA is a contract that discourages competition from nonunion contractors and their nonunion employees by requiring a construction project to be awarded only to contractors and subcontractors that agree to recognize unions as the representatives of their employees on that job; use the union hall to obtain workers; obey the union’s restrictive apprenticeship and work rules; and contribute to union pension plans and other funds in which their employees will never benefit unless they join a union. “More than 91 percent of New Hampshire’s construction workforce does not belong to a labor union, and since August 2008, New Hampshire’s construction workforce has suffered an 18.6 percent increase in unemployment,” said Holmes. “A PLA on this project is bad economic policy, especially because a PLA will unnecessarily increase the cost of construction of this taxpayer-funded project, and it will prevent nonunion workers from competing – possibly increasing unemployment in our state.” The legal challenge is expected to heighten tensions over the federal government’s recent shift in federal procurement policy concerning the use of discriminatory and costly PLAs. On Feb. 6, President Obama signed Executive Order 13502, which repealed a 2001-2008 prohibition on federal PLAs and encourages agencies to require PLAs on federal construction projects whose total costs exceed $25 million. The Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council is in the process of reviewing public comments on its controversial July 14 proposed rule that would implement Executive Order 13502 into federal procurement code. The DOL PLA is believed to be the first government-mandated PLA on a federal construction project since Executive Order 13502 was issued, despite the fact that a final rule has not been implemented by the FAR Council. North Branch Construction’s bid protest is supported by ABC’s Construction Legal Rights Foundation and the ABC New Hampshire/Vermont Chapter. Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national association with 79 chapters representing 25,000 merit shop construction and construction-related firms with two million employees. Visit us at www.abc.org for more PLA-related information or to view the complaint, visit www.TheTruthAboutPLAs.com or www.abc.org/pla. New September 22, 2009 Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) today reports that the nation’s Construction Backlog Indicator (CBI) for July rose 8.9 percent to 6.1 months from 5.6 months in June The CBI is a gauge on the amount of construction work to becompleted, measured in time, currently under contract. “While the magnitude of the monthly increase was significant and impressive, June was the lowest point for the CBI since ABC began collecting national data in November 2008. At that time, the CBI stood at 7.1 months, or 14 percent above its current level of 6.1 months,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “The July data strongly reflect the effects of the stimulus package signed into law in February on the commercial, institutional, industrial and infrastructure construction segments,” said Basu. “In the months ahead, we expect higher levels of actual construction spending, a welcome sign for the industry and the economy at large, and an indication that the downturn may be over for the nonresidential construction industry, though not all segments.” Read full story New on 4/29 Please consider taking part in a survey of merit shop contractor wages. This is the type of information that ABC needs to accumulate. Click here to access the survey materials.
New on 4/21 Do you have 50 or more employees? Attorney Jim Pease has information that you need to know here. This is something that every member needs to read if they have more than 50 employees. Not just contractors but suppliers and associates alike. Read more... New! Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) announced the results of a new study, conducted by
Contractor Registration affects all contractors. Please read more about it here.
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The Hot Topics section of the ABC web site includes information highlighting the accomplishments and recognition of ABC's monthly newsletter, various chapter awards programs, Community Service Projects, and media highlights.
Governor Doyle. Cheryl took the opportunity to bring up business while sitting next to the Governor on the plane ride home. As you can see, Cheryl never stops working.
