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FAQ |
»PLA
Fact or Fiction
Project Labor Agreement Fact or Fiction
FICTION: A PLA will not enhance the value of the
project.
FACT: Lenders look more favorably on projects being
conducted under a PLA
because they know the probability of a project being
completed on time and on budget is greatly increased.
FICTION: PLAs are only good for billion dollar
projects.
FACT: PLAs are being used successfully by
governmental agencies and private owners to build small
projects to the largest and most expensive projects in
Nevada. The complexity of the project, length of
construction and the desire for smooth project coordination,
drives the need for a PLA.
FICTION: PLAs can only be used on new construction.
FACT: PLAs are used for all types of construction
work including expansion,
modernization, maintenance and repair.
FICTION: PLAs are only good for the actual
construction period.
FACT: No. Modern PLAs are frequently designed to
cover several years of
operation and maintenance work after the project is
completed.
FICTION: PLAs don’t really save the owners money.
FACT: PLAs were devised to eliminate costly
labor-caused delays in large
construction projects and increased finance charges due to
extended loan periods.
FICTION: PLAs don’t really eliminate construction
delays.
FACT: The central part of every PLA is the
“no-strike” pledge given by the
workers. Each PLA designs its own system of mediation and
arbitration to resolve labor disputes. PLAs exist
independently of local union agreements and are therefore
not affected by local union disputes or organizing efforts.
FICTION: PLAs don’t bring value to the community
beyond the efficient building of the project.
FACT: Project owners can design their PLA to address
a wide range of local needs. PLAs can make sure that the
project is built by the community’s workers and contractors
through specific local hiring agreements. Many recent PLAs
are the cause for initiating community outreach efforts,
enrolling minorities and women in pre-apprenticeship
programs. These programs are a first step in the creation of
a lifetime career in the construction industry and help
establish a base of highly skilled workers in the community.
These types of programs are also very attractive to
residents and local elected officials due to economic impact
of the projects. These provisions are often used to help
overcome community objections to a large project.
FICTION: PLAs are unconstitutional.
FACT: PLAs are perfectly legal. Project Labor
Agreements have been upheld in Nevada, as well as Alaska,
California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri,
New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania and the Sixth Circuit
Court of Appeals. The United States Supreme Court affirmed
the legal status of PLAs in Building and Construction Trades
Council v. Associated Builders and Contractors of
Massachusetts/Road Island’s, 507 U.S. 218 (1993). In this
case, commonly known as “Boston Harbor”, the Court
unanimously ruled that where state or local governments have
a proprietary interest in a specific construction project,
they can use a PLA. This matter has also been challenged and
upheld in many lower courts cases.
FICTION: PLAs exclude bidders and limit competition.
Non-union contractors will not be able to bid for work, so
PLAs exclude bidders and limit competition.
FACT: This is untrue because PLAs should not restrict
bidding to union contractors. PLAs encourage true
competition by creating a level playing field for
contractors. With a PLA in place, businesses compete on the
basis of actual efficiencies and procedures. In the Southern
Nevada Water Project, over 37.5% of the contract went to
non-union contractors. A PLA is available to any contractor
who will accept its terms. It’s the contractor’s decision
whether or not to bid. On most public works projects, the
lowest responsible bidder wins the contract. It is not
unusual for a PLA project to involve a mix of union and
non-union contractors.
FICTION: PLAs require employment of union apprentices
only, and exclude apprentices from non-union programs.
FACT: State law requires that apprentices employed on
public works projects be certified apprentices from proven
Nevada State Apprenticeship programs, whether in union or
non-union programs, such a those offered by Associated
Builders and Contractors.
FICTION: PLAs discriminate against minorities and
local contractors.
FACT: This contention is nonsense. Any PLA requiring
minority participation or local contractor provisions would
apply equally to union and non-union contractors. Minority
and women owned Union Signatory Contractors are available in
all sizes and specialties. Many of these contractors have
taken advantage of union programs to train and develop those
interested in starting their own businesses.
FICTION: PLAs cost taxpayers extra money.
FACT: There are no facts to support this contention.
Under a PLA, contractors submit exact bids to perform the
work and use the materials stipulated in the construction
documents. The Bureau of National Affairs (BNA),
Construction Labor Report, Vol. 48, Oct. 13, 1999, reports
that there is “little data available” to support the
contention that PLAs cost the taxpayers extra money. On the
other hand, BNA reports that with 97% of the work completed,
the Boston Harbor Project (one of the largest public works
PLA projects ever and encompassing over 25 million man-hours
of craft labor) has not been even one day lost as a result
of labor disagreements and that the work is on time and
under budget.
FICTION: Only union members can work on a PLA
project.
FACT: Any contention that employees working under a
PLA are required to join unions is a blatant misstatement of
the facts, and is inconsistent with the law. Public sector
PLAs cannot exclude non-union labor. PLAs often permit
“core” employees of the primary and sub-contractor to work
alongside union employees under the PLA. As a matter of both
law and practice, both union and non-union labor work on
public sector PLAs. As stated by the Court in ABC v. S.F.
Airport Commission, “Federal law…requires union hiring halls
to refer both union members and nonmembers to available
jobs.”
FICTION: PLAs make projects more costly, wasting
taxpayer money.
FACT: PLAs can save project owners’ and taxpayers’
money by ensuring that a trained workforce will be
available, and by addressing project coordination and labor
issues that could lead to work stoppages or reduced
productivity. A PLA can reduce litigation opportunities,
ensure better preconstruction planning, cut long term
project administrative costs, and in many cases, lower
insurance rates. PLAs “level the playing field” so that
contracts are awarded to contractors who can do the job on
time and on budget.
FICTION: PLAs unfairly disadvantage non–union
contractors who will be required to provide union benefits
for their employees.
FACT: This is simply not true as non-union employees
are not eligible and do not qualify for union sponsored
benefit plans such as medical insurance or retirement. Many
of the non–union contractors actually provide no or
substandard benefits, often transferring these costs to
public welfare agencies when their employees are in need. Of
those employers providing retirement benefits, many simply
provide 401(k) plans with no employer contribution at all.
There are some non–union contractors which provide health
coverage, but union plans are generally far more
comprehensive in nature. Often non-union contractors do not
offer immediate coverage, or the short tenure of the work
prevents their employees from participating in benefits
programs. If a contractor requires a 90 day waiting period
or a lengthy period of continuous employment before a
benefit is available, it often has the impact of “no
benefits”.
FICTION: A PLA will prevent local residents,
minorities and women from having access to jobs.
FACT: PLAs can and often do contain provisions to
encourage the hiring of minority owned and under–represented
businesses and workers. Rather than preventing local
residents, minorities and women from getting jobs, local
PLAs often have specific provisions that encourage them to
get jobs. |
