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Politics & Policy
ABC’s September Regulatory Roundup—Learn About the Latest Developments Affecting the Construction Industry
ABC Disappointed in NLRB’s Cemex Decision
NLRB Revives Controversial 2014 ‘Ambush’ Election Rule; ABC Opposes Again
Safety
Build Health and Safety Engagement Through Leadership Commitment and Metrics Tied to Leading Indicators
Is Your PPE and Mobile Equipment as Safe as You Think It Is?
President Biden Announces Heat Safety Actions, Including DOL Hazard Alert
Events/Products/Programs
Nearly 350 ABC Leaders Gather in Washington for Annual Legislative Conference
ABC Members Rank Among ENR’s Top 400 Contractors
Trades Day: Industry Outreach Opportunity With Meaning
State/Local News
Ed Capodanno Honored by Delaware State Legislature
Election Update: ABC Staff and Members Elected in 2022
California Targets Workplace Cannabis Testing
Awards
Graham Roofing Earns the AQC Credential in September
ABC's Construction Executive Magazine Wins Silver in Publishing Competition
Legislation
ABC-Supported Legislation To Overturn the Northern Long-Eared Bat’s Endangered Species Listing Heads to President Biden’s Desk
ABC Advocates for Solutions to Workforce Shortage at U.S. House Committee Roundtable
Smucker Introduces the ABC-Supported Main Street Tax Certainty Act
Regulations
OSHA Announces Silica-Focused Inspection Initiative in the Engineered Stone Fabrication and Installation Industries
Take the Survey: Input Needed by Oct. 2 on President Biden’s IRA Mandates
Take the Survey: ABC Needs Your Input on President Biden’s IRA Mandates by Oct. 2
Workforce Development
Register Now for ABC’s Construction Inclusion Week Webinar Series
DOL High Road Workforce Development Program Map Snubs Nonunion Programs
LISTEN: How to Design an Effective Technology Adoption Strategy
On March 24, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law S.B. 34 and H.B. 4007, which respectively repeal the state’s right-to-work protections and reinstate prevailing wage requirements for public construction projects. The actions reward labor unions’ substantial financial and political contributions to Michigan Democrats’ unified state governmental control and garnered significant opposition from ABC of Michigan, the wider business community and Republican lawmakers.
Michigan enacted right-to-work laws in 2013, and state Democrats have long sought restoration of organized labor’s power to compel dues payments from nonunion workers despite Michigan voters’ overwhelming opposition to a constitutional amendment advanced for that purpose by the United Auto Workers beginning in 2012.
As of March 24, 26 states have active right-to-work laws guaranteeing freedom from coerced financial obligation to labor unions as a condition of employment. Academic investigators have made compelling arguments associating right-to-work laws with higher employment, improved socioeconomic mobility, population growth and lower childhood poverty.
H.B. 4007 codifies Whitmer’s 2021 executive action to require prevailing wage for state contracting. The state’s original prevailing wage law was repealed via a statute initiated in 2018, the result of a large-scale signature-gathering effort led by ABC of Michigan that forced the legislature to consider and vote on repeal. Over 252,000 Michiganders signed the petition in support of that effort. Prevailing wage requirements are intended to undermine nonunion contractors’ competitiveness for public procurements by standardizing the payment of union wage rates via methodologically defective surveys.
A 2017 study by Michigan’s Mackinac Center for Public Policy found state prevailing wage requirements would transfer about $230 million annually from Michigan taxpayers to unionized workers and confirmed extensive existing findings that such requirements increase construction costs by 15%. Union officials applauded Democrats’ fast action to artificially bolster work availability via public coffers for the 14% of Michigan’s workforce that is unionized. H.B. 4007 includes a variety of devices to enhance nonunion contractors’ exposure to compliance burdens and associated liability, including a $5,000 penalty per violation.
Michigan constitutional provisions prohibit veto referenda on spending legislation. In signing each bill, Whitmer breached a campaign promise to veto policy measures that include nominal appropriations intended to insulate legislation from voter review. S.B. 37 and H.B. 4007 respectively include $1 million and $75,000 referendum-proofing spending items intended to preempt Michigan voters’ revision of the legislation.