Even though
the vast majority of
American construction workers do not belong to a labor union, federal
government policy discriminates against these workers when awarding government construction
projects. An attempt to put a stop to
this took place on Feb. 19 in the U.S. House of Representatives, but the
attempt failed on a tie vote of 210-210. Two Michigan Republicans were amongst
the 26 GOP “no” voters who could have broken the tie and won the vote for the
“yes” side. All of the 210 “yes” votes
were Republicans. The amendment had no Democrat support.
The two
Republicans from Michigan that voted “no” were Candice Miller, R-Harrison Twp.,
and Thad McCotter, R-Livonia.
Frank Guinta,
R-NH, introduced the
amendment at issue as part of the federal budget showdown over the “Continuing
Appropriations Act.” Guinta’s amendment proposed to put a halt to government
construction contracts that require a “project labor agreement.” A PLA
artificially restricts the number of contractors who may bid on a public
construction job so that only firms with unionized workers may apply. A study commissioned
by the federal government has shown that PLAs can increase costs to
taxpayers by almost 10 percent, while other recent
research has shown that the added cost may be well above 10 percent.
“Project
labor agreements are basically just a mechanism to cut off non-union
competition,” said Paul Kersey, director of labor policy at the Mackinac
Center. “They do nothing to improve quality of workmanship or labor peace
on the job site.”
The effect of
the federal PLA requirement is to exclude 86 percent of the construction
workforce from bidding on government contracts. The U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics reports that less than 14 percent of U.S. construction workers
belong to a union.
“This vote
was an attempt to level the playing field and give all workers equal
treatment,” said F. Vincent Vernuccio,
labor policy counsel for the Competitive Enterprise Institute. “It was to
prohibit the federal government from expending funds favoring unions over the
vast majority of other workers.”
CEI has created a “Labor
Scorecard” for the U.S. House of Representatives. The purpose of it is to
track votes on “pro-worker legislation,” according to Vernuccio. So far for the
112th Congress, there are three votes being scored on the site, with
U.S. Reps. McCotter and Miller voting against all three of the pro-worker positions
identified by CEI.
The pair were “reacting to a special interest within their congressional
district,” namely labor unions, says Vernuccio when asked how Michigan ended up
with two of the 26 Republicans to vote with the Democrats. He believes PLA
votes will come up again in the near future with other budget bills and other
votes on labor reform.
McCotter and Miller are the only GOP representatives from Michigan to
earn an “F” on the CEI labor scorecard to this point. All of the Michigan
Democrats are currently scored as an “F.”
Three Michigan Republicans are currently scored as an “A+,” having voted
CEI’s pro-worker position on all three votes. They are Justin Amash, R-Grand
Rapids; Dan Benishek, R-Crystal Falls; and Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland.
“It
is disappointing that any member of congress would cast a vote to tolerate
wasteful spending and discrimination on the basis of whether businesses and
workers affiliate with a labor organization,” said Chris
Fisher, president of the Associated Builders
and Contractors of Michigan, when asked about the votes of Miller and
McCotter. ABC is a national construction industry trade group
that represents “merit-shop” or non-union building contractors. They are a
strong proponent of abolishing PLAs.
“Instead of
government picking winners and losers, all citizens deserve equal opportunity
to work on projects funded by their tax dollars,” said Fisher. “Unfortunately, special
interest handouts for union-only PLAs were put ahead of workers, businesses and
taxpayers."
Leon Drolet, chairman of
the Michigan Taxpayers Alliance, was
particularly blunt regarding the pair of Republicans and what he believes was
their attitude toward taxpayers with this vote.
“I hope they got their 30
pieces of silver,” he said.
The offices of Miller and
McCotter each received two email requests for comment but did not respond.
Joe Casey, president of the New Hampshire Building Trades Council,
a labor union in the home state of Congressman Guinta, opposed the amendment.
“It is a business model that offers increased job site
efficiencies through a steady, local supply of the safest, most highly trained
and productive skilled craft work force known to mankind — a work force
developed through almost a billion dollars a year in private investments in
apprenticeship training programs nationwide that, in turn, develops a work
force that commands pay and benefits that are reflective of their skill and
productivity levels (which numerous and rigorous academic studies have shown
actually reduces costs for public agencies),” he wrote of PLAs in a recent
newspaper column criticizing Guinta. “And, let's not forget, those higher
pay rates contribute to a more sound local tax base — not to mention the health
of local small businesses like car dealerships, restaurants and retail stores.”
~~~~~
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Big
Labor Fights Against Lansing Entrepreneurs … and Virg Bernero?
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Big Labor Fights Against Lansing Entrepreneurs... and Virg Bernero?
VIDEO:
Big Labor Versus Lansing Entrepreneur
