Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, Associated Builders & Contractors, Washington, D.C.; CP staff
To ensure federal contractors better comply with laws that protect their workers’ safety, wages and civil rights, the Labor Department and Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council have issued final regulations and guidance implementing the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order, a contentious measure top construction officials dub the “blacklisting rule.”
Read MoreSources: U.S. Department of Labor; CP staff
Abiding the 2015 Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Improvements Act, through which Congress aims to advance violation fines’ effectiveness, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and sister agencies are directed to adjust penalty scales annually using what Labor Department officials describe as a much more straightforward method than previously available.
Read MoreU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures show the percentage of U.S. construction workers belonging to unions dropped from 13.9 in 2014 to 13.2 last year. The figures are based on rank-and-file totals of 968,000 and 940,000 against 2014 and 2015 workforces, respectively, of 6.97 million and 7.1 million. The total percentage of construction workers represented by unions—local or association members plus workers whose jobs are covered by a union contract—was 14.7 and 14.0 for 2014 and 2015.
Read MoreSource: Associated General Contractors of America, Washington, D.C.
Construction firms added jobs in 40 states and the District of Columbia between May 2014 and May 2015 and in 28 states and D.C. between April and May this year, according to an AGC analysis of Labor Department data.
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