It's true that the building trades have heightened influence in Congress and the administration these days, AFL-CIO's Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD) President Mark Ayers (left) acknowledged to a standing-room-only audience at a forum presented by AGC's Union Contractors Committee during the Annual Convention, and they're using that influence to encourage the enactment of policies that address one central goal:  "to provide a significant jump-start to the U.S. construction economy."  While these policies have been "mischaracterized as "special interest giveaways," Ayers stated, the true objective is "getting our members and our signatory contractors back to work." 

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590) and shortly thereafter the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872), which changes health care as we know it.  In the coming years there are many adjustments that construction companies need to be aware of in order to comply with the new law.

AGC general and specialty contractor members can now subscribe to a new interactive Web-based compensation reporting product from FMI called Compensation Interactive.  The new offering provides AGC member companies the ability to create real-time, customized reports for key professional positions in 21 separate job categories including business development, contract administration, project administration, project management, project superintendent, safety engineer and estimating engineer.

Collective bargaining negotiations completed during 2009 in the nonresidential construction industry resulted in the lowest average first-year increase in wages and fringe benefits since 1996, according to the year-end settlements report issued by the Construction Labor Research Council (CLRC).  CLRC reports that the average first-year increase negotiated last year was $1.23 or 2.8 percent, as compared to $1.95 or 4.6 percent in 2008 - the highest percentage increase since 1999.  The average second-year increase negotiated for multi-year agreements was $1.55 or 3.2 percent in 2009, and $2.25 or 4.7 percent in 2008.

The shift in party power in Washington means that organized labor has more political clout today than it's had in years.  Whether you're a union contractor or not, you should care about what organized labor is up to.  Find out by attending a special session during AGC's Annual Convention in Orlando, FL, where Mark Ayers, president of the AFL-CIO's Building and Construction Trades Department, will talk about the building trades' current activities and agenda.  The session, "State of the Union:  a Forum with the Building Trades," will take place on March 17, at 9:30 a.m.  All convention registrants are invited to attend.For more information about the Convention or to register, go to http://convention.agc.org/.

A subcontractor that assigned roofing work on a project covered by a project labor agreement (PLA) to workers represented by a union that was not signatory to the PLA is liable for breach of contract under state common law, despite a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision upholding the assignment under Section 10(k) of the National Labor Relations Act, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey has held.

Planning is under way for two of AGC's most sought-after annual conferences, the HR Professionals Conference and the Training & Development Conference.  For 2010, the conferences will be co-located in Scottsdale, Arizona, October 18-20, with separate tracks for each conference. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the agency responsible for protecting consumers from fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices, has for the first time since 1980 published new guidelines about the use of endorsements and testimonials.  While the issue may seem broad, the mention of 'social media' and 'blogging' and the perception that employees may be considered by consumers as 'paid endorsers' is a reminder for employers who haven't already created effective social media policies to do so.

According to the Bureau of National Affairs (BNA), the U.S. Department of Labor's (DOL) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), which is responsible for ensuring that those doing business with the federal government don't discriminate and take affirmative action, this year, plans to hire more staff, conduct more onsite reviews, and place a greater emphasis on affirmative action compliance.  Specifically, OFCCP has announced plans to develop proposed rules to strengthen recruitment and hiring goals for military veterans and persons with disabilities, and to propose new affirmative action standards for the construction industry.

Beginning in February, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will begin to randomly audit an estimated 6,000 U.S. companies.  As one of the agency's largest campaigns since 1984, the results of the audits are expected to generate revenues for the agency as well as provide statistical data on employer tax compliance.