On Sept. 15, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division announced the minimum wage for federal contractors will increase from $10.95 per hour to $11.25 per hour beginning Jan. 1, 2022.
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In light of changing guidance regarding vaccine policies, ABC has updated resources on the COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit as part of the Coronavirus Update webpage to help inform and educate members about the latest available resources and information on the COVID-19 vaccine.
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Wednesday, September 15, 2021 2:38 PM |
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GA - Federal Procurement,
GA - Private-Public Partnerships,
GA-PLAs-Federal,
GA-PLAs-State & Local,
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On Sept. 15, House Democrats released additional details on planned tax increases to pay for their $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package. The House Ways and Means Committee continues to mark up its portion of the budget reconciliation package, and some of the top-line tax provisions already revealed may affect ABC members.
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On Sept. 9, President Biden unveiled a six-pronged national strategy to combat the spread of COVID-19, which will impact large private employers and federal contractors.
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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers recently announced they have halted implementation of the Navigable Waters Protection Rule nationwide and are reverting back to a definition of waters of the United States, or WOTUS, established in the 1980s. This announcement comes after a federal district court judge struck down the Trump administration’s final rule defining waters of the United States that are federally regulated under the Clean Water Act.
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On Sept. 8, Rep. Rick Allen, R-Ga., a member of the House Education and Labor Committee, introduced the ABC-supported Truth in Employment Act, H.R. 5178. This legislation would amend the National Labor Relations Act to protect small businesses and their employees from the coercive tactic used by big unions known as “salting,” which makes small businesses targets of harassment campaigns designed to increase forced unionization.
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Wednesday, September 8, 2021 12:41 PM |
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GA - Federal Procurement,
GA - Private-Public Partnerships,
GA-PLAs-Federal,
GA-PLAs-State & Local,
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On Sept. 7, ABC issued an action alert opposing the U.S. House of Representative’s efforts to move forward with the partisan budget reconciliation process that could result in tax hikes and far-reaching labor requirements for ABC members. Please urge your representatives to oppose this package this week as House committees continue to mark up their sections of the package.
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The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has issued the latest Corporate Scheduling Announcement List for construction contractors for fiscal year 2021, which includes 400 federal contractors, federally assisted contractors and subcontractors.
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Of the nation's top 20 construction companies, 14 are ABC members, according to Building Design + Construction’s recently published list of Top 140 Contractors. These successful contractors were ranked based on 2020 revenue. Congratulations to these #ABCMeritShopProud members!
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On Aug. 30, a U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona judge struck down the Trump administration’s final rule revising the definition of “waters of the United States” that are federally regulated under the Clean Water Act. As a member of the Waters Advocacy Coalition, ABC applauded the 2020 rule, known as the Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which provided four clear categories of waters under the CWA that businesses and landowners could easily understand.
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On Aug. 27, ABC submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking to increase the minimum wage for federal contractors.
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On Aug. 28, David M. Prouty was sworn in as a new Democratic member of the National Labor Relations Board for a term expiring on Aug. 27, 2026. Prouty replaces Republican member William Emanuel, whose term expired in August. Democrats now have a 3-2 majority, with Marvin Kaplan and John Ring serving as the two Republican members.
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On Aug. 20, the Construction Industry Safety Coalition, of which ABC is a steering committee member, submitted comments in response to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Occupational Exposure to COVID-19; Emergency Temporary Standard interim final rule.
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Wednesday, August 25, 2021 2:09 PM |
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GA - Union Organizing,
GA - Federal Procurement,
GA - Private-Public Partnerships,
GA-PLAs-Federal,
GA-PLAs-State & Local,
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On Aug. 24, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to advance a $3.5 trillion budget resolution, which was embedded in a House rule that tied its advancement to both the Senate’s bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure package—the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—and H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. The rule was approved by the House by a vote of 220-212, with all House Democrats supporting the rule and all Republicans voting in opposition.
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Due to the continuing impact of COVID-19 on business operations, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced on Aug. 18 that the 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection filing deadline has been extended to Monday, Oct. 25, 2021. The deadline was previously extended from July 19 to Aug. 23.
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On Aug. 12, the National Labor Relations Board’s new general counsel, Jennifer A. Abruzzo, issued Memorandum GC 21-04 to all NLRB regional offices, which outlines the priorities of the Office of the General Counsel.
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The Protecting the Right to Organize Act would produce significant economic costs for the nation’s 27 right-to-work states in an effort to increase union power at the expense of worker freedom and small businesses, according to a report issued by the American Action Forum on Aug. 13.
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From Aug. 9-16, ABC celebrated Safe + Sound Week to recognize the successes of workplace health and safety programs and offer information and ideas on how to keep America’s workers safe.
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Wednesday, August 11, 2021 3:21 PM |
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GA - Employment,
GA - Federal Procurement,
GA - Private-Public Partnerships,
GA-PLAs-Federal,
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On Aug. 11, The U.S. Senate passed a Budget Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2022 before leaving for its August recess in a 50-49 vote that will set the stage for a proposed $3.5 trillion partisan spending bill through the budget reconciliation process. Prior to the final vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also released reconciliation instructions for Senate committees so they can begin to draft relevant sections of the final spending bill as it relates to their policy areas, which they hope to finish by Sept. 15.
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Wednesday, August 11, 2021 2:30 PM |
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GA - Union Organizing,
GA - Employment,
GA - Federal Procurement,
GA - Private-Public Partnerships,
GA-PLAs-Federal,
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On Aug. 10, the U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act with bipartisan support in a 69-30 vote, with 19 Republicans joining all 50 senators in the Democratic caucus to approve the legislation.
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On Aug. 2, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Alliance program issued an updated guide containing COVID-19 guidance and resources for employers from a variety of agencies including the DOL, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Additionally, the guide includes input from industry groups on best practices for COVID-19 safety in the workplace.
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Beginning Aug. 4, the U.S. Small Business Administration is launching a portal that will allow borrowers of certain Paycheck Protection Program loans to streamline the process of loan forgiveness by applying for forgiveness directly through the SBA.
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On July 29, President Biden announced during a press conference that every federal government employee and on-site contractor will be asked to attest to their vaccination status. According to a White House fact sheet, anyone who does not attest to being fully vaccinated will be required to wear a mask on the job no matter their geographic location, physically distance from all other employees and visitors, comply with a weekly or twice weekly screening testing requirement and be subject to restrictions on official travel.
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Wednesday, July 28, 2021 3:23 PM |
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GA - Employment,
GA - Federal Procurement,
GA - Private-Public Partnerships,
GA-PLAs-Federal,
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Ga-PLAs-Federal-Legislation
On July 28, U.S. senators voted to advance a bipartisan infrastructure bill, which will set up a final vote on the measure in the coming days. The procedural motion was approved 67-32, with 17 Republicans joining all Democrats to begin legislative action.
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On July 21, the National Labor Relations Board issued a decision in Lippert Components Inc. 371 NLRB No. 8 (2021), finding that a union did not violate the National Labor Relations Act through its use of inflatables and banners intended to target employers.
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On July 22, the National Labor Relations Board swore in Jennifer Abruzzo to serve as general counsel for a four-year term. This occurred after the U.S. Senate confirmed Abruzzo on July 21 by a vote of 51-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the tie-breaking vote. Prior to her appointment, Abruzzo most recently served as Special Counsel for Strategic Initiatives for Communications Workers of America and as and a former acting general counsel for the NLRB in 2017.
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On July 21, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a proposed rule that would require federal contractors to pay a $15 minimum wage to workers on or in connection with a federal government contract. The public has until Aug. 23 to comment on the proposal.
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On July 15, ABC submitted comments in response to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s interim final rule encouraging project labor agreements and other anti-competitive and costly labor policies on certain state and local projects funded by the American Recovery Plan Act of 2021.
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On July 15, Occupational Safety and Health Administration released additional materials to educate the workforce on heat illness prevention.
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From June 21-25, ABC’s Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter held its fifth “Let’s Build Construction Camp for Girls” at Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School to introduce girls ages 12-18 to the construction trades, architecture, engineering and construction product manufacturing through hands-on experiences and field trips.
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On July 12, the Institute for the American Worker released a new report highlighting the impact of the so-called Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO Act, on millions of America’s workers.
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On July 12, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Alliance program released an updated guide containing COVID-19 guidance and resources for employers from a variety of agencies including the DOL, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Additionally, the guide includes input from industry groups on best practices for COVID-19 safety in the workplace.
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On July 9, President Biden issued a far-reaching, unprecedented Executive Order on Promoting Competition in America. The executive order covers a wide variety of issues, including lowering prescription drug prices, allowing hearing aids to be sold over the counter at drug stores, banning excessive early termination fees regarding internet service and making it easier for individuals to get airline refunds.
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On July 1, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3684, the INVEST in America Act, by a vote of 221-201. H.R. 3684. This $715 billion surface transportation reauthorization and water infrastructure bill represents House Democrats’ attempt to reauthorize the expiring 2015 FAST Act and implement partisan, anti-merit shop priorities in infrastructure spending.
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According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, more than 40% of heat-related worker deaths occur in the construction industry. As with all incidents, heat illness is entirely preventable, provided you develop and implement simple preventive measures.
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ABC can confirm recent media reports that President Joe Biden is circulating a draft executive order to federal agencies that will modify and expand President Obama’s Executive Order 13502, which encourages federal agencies to require project labor agreements on a case-by-case basis on federal construction projects exceeding $25 million in total value and permits states and localities to mandate PLAs on federally assisted projects.
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Seven out of 10 voters are concerned about repealing state right-to-work protections for workers and forcing them to pay union dues or risk losing their job, according to a national survey released on June 30 by the ABC-led Coalition for a Democratic Workplace.
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On June 28, eight members of the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services sent an ABC-supported letter to Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen expressing concerns about the department’s guidance on $350 billion worth of federal funding for state and local fiscal recovery allocated in the American Rescue Plan and the encouragement of project labor agreements on federally assisted water, sewer and broadband projects.
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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently added a frequently asked question related to best practices for protecting workers regardless of vaccination status to its non-ETS FAQs.
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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that the 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection filing deadline has been extended from July 19 to Monday, Aug. 23, 2021. However, the EEOC encourages eligible employers to file the required EEO-1 Component 1 report(s) as soon as possible.
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The elevated price of softwood lumber, a major talking point during much of the pandemic, appears to have peaked in early May at more than $1,700 per thousand board feet. As of June 23, the price has fallen below $900 per board feet, down about 49% in less than two months.
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On June 22, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer forced a vote on the ABC-opposed For the People Act. ABC key-voted against this procedural show vote arguing that the bill is a misguided attempt to reform our elections and campaign finance law that would discourage Americans from exercising their First Amendment right to free speech, politicize the agencies tasked with protecting our elections and expose hardworking taxpayers to harassment, intimidation and retribution even when they do not participate in campaign and political activities.
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On June 22, ABC joined more than 100 trade associations to support the Main Street Tax Certainty Act (H.R. 1381/S. 480) and to oppose potential legislation from Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) that would weaken the Section 199A pass-through deduction. The Main Street Tax Certainty Act would make permanent the current 20% deduction for small and family-owned businesses, provided through Section 199A of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
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On June 14, the ABC Keystone Chapter welcomed 12 girls from surrounding school districts to its facility to learn about blueprints, the construction process and safety at a week-long summer program called the All ‘Bout Construction (ABC) Girls Camp. The first of its kind at the chapter, the camp allowed girls to meet women who work in the industry and visit a series of jobsites. They even got a chance to build and take home their own multi-trade, steampunk-themed lighted charging station using their own set of tools from Klein and ABC strategic partner Milwaukee Tool.
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On June 10, Annie Mecias-Murphy, co-owner and president of Associated Builders and Contractors member JA&M Developing Corp., headquartered in Pembroke Pines, Florida, testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Small Business Committee Subcommittee on Contracting and Infrastructure on the negative impacts that the Biden administration’s infrastructure plan would have on small business contractors.
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On June 9, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of the Army announced their intent to revise the definition of “waters of the United States” that are federally regulated under the Clean Water Act and replace the definition under the Trump administration’s 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which provided four clear categories of waters under the CWA that businesses and landowners could easily understand.
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The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced the long-awaited COVID-19 Healthcare Emergency Temporary Standard on June 10. The Construction Industry Safety Coalition, which ABC is a steering committee member, said that it is pleased that the Biden administration and OSHA listened to the concerns and recommendations of the construction industry in formulating the ETS.
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On June 11, the Biden administration released its Spring 2021 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. The agenda lists upcoming rulemakings and other regulatory actions from each agency that the administration expects to publish through the end of the year and into 2022. ABC has prepared a summary of the actions of interest to ABC members by agency.
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On June 10, the Biden-Harris administration announced key findings from the reviews directed under Executive Order 14017 “America’s Supply Chains,” as well as immediate actions the administration will take to strengthen American supply chains to promote economic security, national security and “good-paying, union jobs here at home.”
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