On September 23, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced a significant expansion of its Mega Construction Project (MCP) Program. The expanded program will use new, standardized processes, expanded resources, experienced new staff, and agency oversight, including the addition of a national coordinator.

Executive Order 13658 was signed by President Obama in 2014, and its corresponding regulations implemented an hourly minimum wage for workers performing work on covered federal contracts of $10.10 per hour beginning on January 1, 2015. The order mandated that the Secretary of Labor determine a new minimum wage annually, based on the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for urban wage and clerical workers. Notice is required to the public at least 90 days before the new wage goes into effect each year.

In conjunction with FMI, AGC's Surety Bonding and Risk Management Forum recently completed a survey of the risks that today’s construction contractors have high on their radar screens -- and the various ways that contractors are dealing with those risks. The 83 responses that AGC and FMI received from 83 best-in-class companies collectively approaching $50 billion in annual volume suggest the following:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) has relaxed the standard for determining the appropriateness of bargaining units in the context of labor staffing firms – again. In its July 11 Miller & Anderson decision, the Board held that a union may seek to represent a unit of workers that combines employees who are jointly employed by the “supplier” employer (the staffing company) and the “user” employer with employees who are solely employed by the user employer, provided that the workers share a “community of interest.” The ruling removes a condition that the joint employers consent to such a combined unit that has been in place since 2004. By removing the condition, the Board has reinstated a prior standard in place between 2000 and 2004. It has also made union organizing of supplied workers easier, particularly as the decision comes in the wake of last year’s Browning-Ferris Industries case, which relaxed the standard for determining joint employer status. AGC, through its membership in the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, filed an amicus brief asking the Board to retain the employer consent condition.

Complimentary AGC WebED Sept. 7

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) approved a union’s petition for a single representation election covering all of the contractors in a multiemployer group because the contractors indicated their “unequivocal intent” to be bound by group bargaining. The case, Building Contractors Association, involves interesting issues about conversion from 8(f) to 9(a) relationships in the construction industry.[1]

Labor Shortages are Prompting Firms to Increase Pay and Become More Efficient but Threaten to Slow Economic Growth over the Long-Term Officials Warn as they Call for New Workforce Measures

Each October, construction industry professionals in HR, training and workforce development gear up for the industry’s premier learning and networking event, AGC’s Construction HR & Training Professionals Conference, and this year is no different. The 2016 event will be held Oct. 5-7 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago in Chicago, Illinois. For more information or to register visit www.agc.org/HR_TED.

With little notice, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) revised two federal employment law posters – the Federal Minimum Wage poster and the Employee Polygraph Protection Act poster. As a result, employers must immediately ensure that the new posters are properly displayed.

On August 29, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation and Related Issues. The guidance addresses retaliation under each statute enforced by the EEOC, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Title V of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Equal Pay Act (EPA) and Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). It also specifically addresses the "interference" provision under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits coercion, threats, or other acts that interfere with the exercise of ADA rights.