Associated Builders & Contractors – Page 5

Contractor-led coalition sues Labor Department over union-biased ‘persuader rule’

April 4, 2016 Concrete News

Sources: Associated Builders & Contractors (ABC), Washington, D.C.; CP staff

A lawsuit ABC and other national or state groups have filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas challenges the U.S. Department of Labor’s final “persuader rule,” issued late last month. Officially titled Interpretation of the “Advice” Exemption, it revises the definition of what activities constitute “advice” and expands circumstances under which public reporting is required under the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959.

Expanded joint employer definition clouds contractor, subcontractor ties

September 1, 2015 Concrete News

Sources: Associated Builders & Contractors, National Association of Home Builders, Washington, D.C.; National Labor Relations Board; CP staff

Against precedent dating to 1984, a 3-2 NLRB majority redefines “joint employer” in a decision favoring an International Brotherhood of Teamsters local aiming to extend representation from a recycling station bargaining unit—equipment operators and companion staff employed by the facility’s owner—to a subcontractor whose employees perform waste sorting and related services.

Agencies issue proposed rule, guidance on contractor ‘Blacklisting’ EO

July 28, 2015 Linda Jackson

The federal agencies charged with implementing President Obama’s July 2014 Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order have released their much-anticipated proposed rule on this directive. The Department of Labor (DOL) issued a 106-page proposed guidance document, and the Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), issued a 131-page proposed rule, governing the terms of the so-called “Blacklisting” Executive Order (EO).

Report links BIM adoption to increased jobsite safety, crew member focus

May 4, 2015 Concrete News

Sources: Associated Builders & Contractors, Washington, D.C.; McGraw Hill Construction, New York

Thanks to increased use of Building Information Modeling technology, contractors are finding ways reduce overall schedules and onsite injuries, according to “Safety Management in the Construction Industry.” When incorporated in a project, the new McGraw Hill Construction SmartMarket Report finds, BIM helps increase crew members’ safety awareness by:

Federal contractor ‘blacklisting’ rule winds through White House, agencies

March 16, 2015 Concrete News

Sources: Littler Mendelson P.C., San Francisco; Associated Builders & Contractors, Washington, D.C.; CP staff

The Department of Labor has submitted to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a proposed rule supporting President Obama’s July 2014 Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (E.O.), provisions in which can bar participation in federal projects if contractors or their subcontractors have violated labor laws in the past three years.

Merit shop contractors, business interests stare down ‘ambush’ election catalysts

December 17, 2014 Concrete News

Sources: Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, Associated Builders & Contractors, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Washington, D.C.; CP staff

The Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, representing a wide range of business groups—National Precast Concrete Association, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Portland Cement Association and American Concrete Pressure Pipe Association among them—will challenge the NLRB Representation-Case Procedures rule in federal courts, arguing the agency’s action “paves the way for unfair and illegal ‘ambush’ elections.”

Associated Builders office carries early Green Globes certification

July 30, 2014 Concrete News

Associated Builders & Contractors’ 19,300-sq.-ft. national headquarters in Washington, D.C., is one of the first buildings to be certified under Green Globes for Sustainable Interiors, a program available to owners or individual commercial space tenants from the Green Building Initiative (GBI), Portland, Ore.

OSHA Outlines Ambitious Agenda Through Year’s End

July 28, 2014 Concrete News

From the Associated Builders & Contractors … In its latest semiannual regulatory agenda, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration lists a host of Obama administration priorities plus rulemakings agency officials will address this year or in early 2015.

Associated Builders office attains early Green Globes certification

June 9, 2014 Concrete News

Sources: Associated Builders & Contractors, Washington, D.C.; CP staff

ABC’s 19,300-sq.-ft. national headquarters is one of the first buildings to be certified under Green Globes for Sustainable Interiors, a program available to owners or individual commercial space tenants from the Green Building Initiative (GBI), Portland, Ore.

Economist links construction materials’ upward pricing to harsh winter

May 28, 2014 Concrete News

Source: Associated Builders & Contractors, Washington, D.C.

Through April, concrete products and iron & steel prices were up 3.4 percent and 3.2 percent year over year, while overall construction materials prices rose 1.5 percent against the first four months of 2013, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s mid-May Producer Price Index.