False.

Project Labor Agreements, or PLAs, are discriminatory, limit competition, create a monopoly, and cost taxpayers money. In fact, PLAs are a lose-lose for a lot of people and only seem to be win-win for pay-to-play politics.

PLAs are pre-hire contracts that require projects be awarded only to contractors and subcontractors that agree to the following conditions, which effective limits the pool of qualified bidders to only union contractors:

• Recognize unions as the representatives of their employees on a project. 
• Use the union hiring hall exclusively to obtain workers.
• Obtain apprentices exclusively from union apprenticeship programs.    
• Force merit shop employers to pay into underfunded union benefit plans without the opportunity for their employees to receive benefits from these plans unless they join a union and become vested.  
• Follow costly, restrictive and inefficient union work rules. 
• Force workers to pay union dues and fees. 

We adamantly oppose the Mayor’s new executive order. Our country’s economic system is based on free enterprise, defined as the freedom of individuals and businesses to operate and compete with a minimum of government interference or regulation. By encouraging PLAs, not only is Mayor Nutter interfering with open shop contractors’ rights to conduct business, he’s placing an unnecessary financial burden on taxpayers. That’s a lose-lose.

Please read our press release for more information.

Tomorrow’s Promise is a boot camp-style training which places young adults who want a construction career in real construction situations and demands all that is expected every day on a regular job site. The students improve the community since the projects are all real construction projects. In the past year the program has built a pavilion for an urban garden at a facility for single mothers and their children, made repairs to locker rooms at an urban sports facility in north Philadelphia, rehabbed run down homes in north Philadelphia, and most recently, built a storage facility for the urban farm at Carousel House in Fairmount Park, which serves individuals with physical and mental challenges.

ABC Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter was key in establishing Tomorrow’s Promise. Vince McCaffery, the executive director and program administrator, is a former ABC carpentry instructor and he has taught schools such as the Youthbuild Charter School and Mercy Vocational High School. ABC Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter along with ABC National secured a grant to run Tomorrow’s Promise as a pilot last year. The project was so successful that Tomorrow’s Promise immediately received attention and funding from several community development organizations in Philadelphia, primarily The Federation of Neighborhood Centers.  Tomorrow’s Promise is a 501c3 (thanks to assistance from Wally Flamm) and can accept donations. For more information on the graduates or Tomorrow’s Promise contact John Judge.

“ABC members have been on the forefront of the green building movement since its inception, but ABC also believes in stretching green achievements beyond the construction process and into the workplace,” said J. Douglas Hunter, chairman of the ABC National Green Building Committee and president of The Hunter Group, Inc., in Concord, Mass.

The Green Contractor Certification process involves a list of 12 prerequisites ranging from distributing documents electronically to establishing an aggressive recycling program. Companies are required to fulfill 12 of 36 elective items that include conducting a professional energy audit, water conservation efforts and providing incentives for carpooling or using public transportation. In addition, each company must achieve four education and training benchmarks, such as instructing employees on sustainability issues and requiring at least 25 percent of their managers to receive green building awareness education.

“It was a very entilightening experience to get up close and personal with our elected officials,” said Mike Funari of Worth and Company. “It’s important to voice our concerns about PLAs and other legislation that unnecessarily over-regulates corporate America. I hope to take advantage of all three days at the 2012 LegCon.”

“It was inspiring to hear so many freshman Representatives and Senators positively support ABC issues,” said Bob Capps of American Infrastructure. “I left D.C. hopeful that the change we need – like eliminating federal project PLAs and establishing a highway funding bill – is on the horizon.”

According to a press release issued by DOC, the project will be redesigned to reduce costs and better accomplish its goals. By unnecessarily limiting bidders and following outdated and inefficient union work rules, PLAs consistently and unnecessarily drive up costs on projects. Numerous academic studies indicate PLAs increase the cost of construction between 10 percent and 20 percent when compared to similar projects not subject to union-only PLAs.

ABC Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter applauds this decision – it is a victory for free enterprise and Merit Construction. It demonstrates the Corbett Administration’s commitment to establishing a balanced budget and open competition.

Awards of Excellence Banquet – 327

September Member Recognition – 193

Building Industry Symposium – 177

Tailgate Recruitment Reception – 154

Meet the Generals – 130

Check out our 2010 events calendar at www.abcsepa.org

1. Join a Committee – Committees are an effective way to get to know members and their issues. If you are an associate member specializing in business consulting services, join a committee where your expertise can add to the group. An example would be an insurance adjuster joining the safety committee, or a general contractor joining the business development committee. Committees are a great way to have your voice heard as a reputable source within the membership.
2. Attend a Dinner Meeting – Dinner Meetings give new members the opportunity to meet with other members of ABC. It is a who’s-who within the Greater Philadelphia construction industry. Most meetings are designed with your networking agenda in mind with little Chapter business to discuss. Dinner Meetings are where you can promote your business to the membership at large.
3. Sponsor an Event – Sponsorships offer members the opportunity to be highlighted at a meeting or event. We offer a limited amount of sponsorships so each sponsor gets top billing and name recognition at the event.
4. Become an Ambassador – ABC Ambassador’s are members who greet new members. Before each dinner meeting, the Ambassador’s meet for 15 minutes to review the new members and guests who will be in attendance. The Ambassador will seek out this individual during the cocktail hour, greet them, and take the time to introduce them to other members. Finally, after the event, the Ambassador will follow up with a phone call to ask the individual about their experience. This is a great way to meet new members each month.
5. Meet the Generals – Whether you are a general contractor looking for new specialty contractors, or an accountant looking to meet new clients, or a drywall supplier, everyone has a seat at Meet the Generals. This event gives each member the unique opportunity to give your best two minute pitch face-to-face with potential business associates. Bring lots of business cards and don’t miss this event!
6. Join the ABC B2B Discount Program – In 2010, ABC published our first annual discount book. This is a compilation of discount from SEPA Chapter members. If your company can offer a 5 percent discount, or a free consultation, contact the Chapter Office to get your coupon included in this great resource. In addition to the booklet, we also publish this information on our website and in our annual directory.
7. Advertise – What better way to co-brand your company with ABC then to advertise in our annual Membership Directory and Buyer’s Guide. Members who advertise are seen by thousands of construction industry professionals from across the Greater Philadelphia region. ABC members live by our core attributes of quality, value, safety, training and experience. What better way to promote your company!

A sample letter is listed below.

Dear Senator McIllhinney:


I am writing to express my concerns regarding HB 400, a bill that would severely impact my ability to function as a contractor in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. One of the greatest issues confronting our company is figuring exactly who is an independent contractor so that we can comply with the law.  We already spend thousands of dollars on attorney fees to prove legitimate business relationships with independent contractors we use and HB 400 would only make that situation worse.


Under the guise of cracking-down on employee-misclassification, the building trades unions are seeking the enactment of legislation that would impose burdensome and expensive rules that would drive independent contractors like my company out of business. The proposed legislation would also increase the threat of lawsuits against construction companies that use independent contractors. This proposal also singles out the construction industry and would apply to no other industries.

The proposed legislation would:

• Prohibit construction companies from doing business with other independent contractors.
• Require independent contractors to meet 12 burdensome standards to prove their independent contractor status.
• Make it easier for unscrupulous independent contractors to claim employee status with their hiring party if they became injured, needed other benefits, or simply didn’t want to continue to be self-employed.
• Require contractors to possess all of the tools and equipment needed to perform a job, such as scaffolding, dumpsters, etc.
• Require all construction contractors to carry $1 million in liability coverage.
• Impose extensive mandates that would make it too expensive for an individual to operate a construction business on a part-time or limited basis.
• Impose onerous new reporting requirements that would make it more difficult to operate.
• Increase exposure to lawsuits for construction companies, payroll service providers, tax-preparers, insurers, and benefit plan administrators who act as agents of a hiring party.

While the proposed legislation may address some problems, it will do more harm than good to legitimate contractors. Based on the forgoing, I urge you to oppose HB 400.

]]> http://thinkmeritconstruction.wordpress.com/2010/07/02/sample-letter-for-pa-state-independent-contractor-licensing/feed/ 0 thinkmeritconstruction http://thinkmeritconstruction.wordpress.com/2010/05/07/montco-correctional-facility-bids-awarded/ http://thinkmeritconstruction.wordpress.com/2010/05/07/montco-correctional-facility-bids-awarded/#comments Fri, 07 May 2010 17:57:26 +0000 thinkmeritconstruction http://thinkmeritconstruction.wordpress.com/?p=104 Continue reading →]]> Last week, Montgomery County Commissioners unanimously awarded a combined $21.5 million worth of construction contracts for the county’s correctional facility expansion project. Of the five contracts awarded, four went to open shop contractors, all ABC Members. Contracts awarded to Merit contractors include: 

• General construction – Adams-Bickel Associates, Inc.
• Heating, ventilation, air conditioning – FS Mechanical

SE PA and three members sued the county challenging the inclusion of responsible contractor provisions in the bid specifications on the ground that it would exclude many open shop contractors from bidding on the project.