AGC is recognized as the Association of choice for over 13,000 specialty contractor firms.  The AGC of America Specialty Contractors Council (SCC) requests input from AGC's specialty contractor members on an important survey, available here, regarding how the Council can best serve and engage specialty contractors.  Feedback from the survey will be instrumental in shaping the direction of the Council in the years to come.  

The survey will close on Friday, August 14^th.  For more information about the AGC of America Specialty Contractors Council, visit www.agc.org/SCC. 

Please contact Cassia Griffin at griffinc@agc.org with any questions.    

August 13, 2009, 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM ET
Construction HR professionals have been burdened with the responsibility of properly handling reductions-in-force (RIFs), lay-offs and furloughs - sometimes at a moment's notice. These situations can be difficult to handle legally, practically and emotionally.

Labor and employment law attorney Bert Brannen of Fisher & Phillips, LLP, and construction-industry HR expert and consultant Doug Mure will take a tag-team approach to explaining these aspects that HR professionals in the construction industry are faced with and how to avoid the pitfalls when forced to release employees.

Register and receive "When You Have to Release an Employee" DVD FREE (Retail: $150).
This DVD describes the legal challenges associated with handling involuntary terminations caused by misconduct and poor performance. It explains the good habits that can help a company avoid losses, provides a six-point checklist and gives specific answers to several of the most commonly asked questions. (Please allow 4-6 weeks after the webinar for delivery.)

For more information, contact Tamika Carter at (703) 837-5382 or cartert@agc.org.

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), responsible for ensuring that contractors doing business with the federal government do not discriminate and take affirmative action, will soon begin conducting compliance reviews of construction contractors who receive funding and grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). 

According to OFCCP's Recovery Act Plan, the majority of ARRA funding and grants will provide direct funding or federal assistance to construction projects and "consequently, OFCCP will place a special emphasis on the construction industry."  Beginning in July 2009, OFCCP will begin to review a minimum of 360 construction contractors and 90 supply and service contractors, including at least 10 percent of first-time federal contractors.  These reviews will be followed by quarterly compliance evaluations through September 30, 2010.   

To help contractors maintain compliance with the agency's guidelines, OFCCP plans to host a series of compliance events to be held periodically through the September 30 date, including nine national events and six webinars specifically for federal construction contractors, new federal contractors and contracting officers.  Additionally, OFCCP plans to host 93 regional compliance events, 11 regional forums, and a national Prevailing Wage Conference, which will address prevailing wage issues as they relate to ARRA over two-and-a-half days.

Additional OFCCP compliance resources for construction contractors include AGC's Davis-Bacon Manual on Labor Standards for Federal and Federally Assisted Construction and Affirmative Action Manual for Construction, which can be found on AGC's Labor and HR Topical Resources Web page.

For more information, contact Tamika Carter at (703) 837-5382 or cartert@agc.org.

On July 14, 2009, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council issued a notice of proposed rulemaking implementing President Obama's Executive Order 13502.  This action created new FAR contract clauses to be included in federal contracts should an agency choose to require a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) on a particular federal construction project.  Comments are due on August 13, 2009.

In short, the proposed rule (FAR Case 2009-005) would:

• Provide a new FAR Subpart 22.5, Use of Project Labor Agreements for Federal Construction Projects;
• Add a new provision at 52.222-XX, Notice of Requirement for Project Labor Agreement, to be included in solicitations where the agency has exercised its discretion to require a project labor agreement as prescribed at FAR 22.505(a); and
• Add a new clause 52.222-YY, Project Labor Agreement, to be included in contracts in accordance with FAR 22.505(b).

The proposed rule seems to implement the executive order carefully, without expansion, by encouraging (not requiring) agencies to consider (not necessarily adopt) a PLA requirement on large-scale construction projects (defined as projects with a total cost to the federal government of $25 million or more) on a project-by-project basis where certain criteria are met.  It expressly leaves to the contracting agency discretion to decide whether or not to require a PLA.  AGC is encouraging agencies to exercise this discretion prudently, leaving the decision of whether to perform the work under a collective bargaining agreement up to the contractor-employers and their employees, as provided under federal labor law.  AGC believes that it is inappropriate for public agencies to use their contracting authority to interfere with labor relations among private employers and employees, and explained that position to White House and other officials at a recent meeting about PLAs.

AGC has repeatedly made it clear to administration officials that the proper parties to negotiate any PLA are the employers and employees performing work on the covered project, or their respective collective bargaining agents.  The proposed rule seems to recognize this by including a provision stating that the government will not participate in the negotiations of any PLA.  AGC would argue that the term "government" as used in that provision must include a construction manager that is acting as an agent of the owner-agency and that will not employ any workers covered by the PLA, but it is unclear whether the Councils intended such coverage.  This will be addressed in AGC comments submitted to the Councils.

For more details, click here.

For more information, please contact Marco Giamberardino at (703) 837-5325 or giamberm@agc.org or Denise Gold at (703) 837-5326 or goldd@agc.org.

In recent weeks, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has begun fulfilling its promise of investigating employers who hire illegal workers by initiating two major steps: conducting audits of employers' I-9 forms and preparing for increased monitoring of the E-Verify System.

As mentioned in a previous AGC article, DHS to Focus on Prosecuting Employers Who Hire Illegal Workers, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Division of DHS (ICE) has notified several hundred companies of the intent to audit their I-9 forms.  Employers chosen for the administrative audit received a Notice of Inspection (NOI) with instructions to present all original I-9 forms and supporting documents within three days, along with the company's hiring records.  According to a July 1 press release, ICE issued these notices to 652 businesses nationwide, compared to 503 notices issued in all of 2008.  In the press release, ICE identified the 652 employers as those resulting from "leads and information obtained through other investigative means."  Review AGC's Seven Critical Steps for Surviving an I-9 Audit for guidance once an NOI is received.

For details on E-Verify, click here.

As immigration enforcement and monitoring becomes a more pressing concern for companies across the country, it is important for employers to become aggressive in developing and executing Best Practices for staying compliant with current immigration laws.

Some information in this article is provided by Greenberg Traurig, LLP. For more information, contact Tamika Carter at (703) 837-5382 or cartert@agc.org.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on July 8 announced the Administration's intent to "push ahead with full implementation" of a rule requiring federal contractors to use the E-Verify system to verify employees' authorization to work in the U.S.  The E-Verify rule will apply to federal solicitations and contract awards government-wide beginning September 8.  At the same time, DHS announced its intent to issue a new regulation rescinding a rule establishing procedures for employers to follow upon receipt of a "no-match letter" from the Social Security Administration (SSA) or DHS.

For details on E-Verify and No-Match, click here. AGC will monitor all related litigation and legislation and will report on significant developments.

Meanwhile, further guidance on immigration compliance is available in an MP3 download of an educational session held at AGC's Annual HR Professionals Conference in June 2008.  An immigration law update will also be provided at AGC's next HR Professionals Conference, which will take place October 27-29, in Atlanta, Ga.  Click here for conference details and registration.  For additional resources and for information on immigration reform efforts, click here.

For more information, contact Denise Gold at (703) 837-5326 or goldd@agc.org.

Left: Congressman Earl Blumenauer (left), Ways and Means Committee member, talks with Don Weaver (right) after the hearing.

AGC Highway and Transportation Division Chairman Don Weaver, Weaver Bailey Contractors (El Paso, Ark.), testified before the House Ways and Means Committee asking for action to ensure that the Highway Trust Fund has sufficient revenue to reimburse states for on-going construction contracts through the end of fiscal year 2009 and into 2010. Weaver also pointed out the need to enact a six year transportation reauthorization measure and to provide sufficient revenue to address the nation's growing transportation infrastructure deficit.

Weaver's testimony recommended that the federal highway user fee be increased by 18 cents to return the purchasing power that has been lost due to inflation in construction materials since the fee last increased in 1993. AGC's testimony also called for creation of a federal commission to set and raise highway user fee rates in the future and called for increased use of tolling, private funding and other revenue sources to supplement user fees. "Our highways are crowded and crumbling while our country is growing and demanding," he said. "Increased investment is necessary."

For more information, contact Brian Deery at (703) 837-5319 or deeryb@agc.org.

AGC's chief economist Ken Simonson was quoted today in the LA Times and Christian Science Monitor on issues related to the stimulus.  Topics included the challenges the Administration has experienced in making the stimulus work, as well as whether stimulus-funded projects will have any impact on road traffic this summer.

Read the LA Times article here, and the Christian Science Monitor article here.

For more information, contact Brian Turmail at (703) 837-5310 or turmailb@agc.org.

CEO Update, which tracks people in association and non-profit executive careers, listed AGC's CEO Steve Sandherr as a top CEO. AGC was the only construction association represented on the list of 42 CEOs.

The publication asked CEOs in the association world to nominate their peers on the basis of legislative success, leadership ability, skill in raising a group's profile or managing a crisis, history of building coalitions and reaching consensus and membership excellence in areas such as meetings, education and certification.

For more information, contact Brian Turmail at (703) 837-5310 or turmailb@agc.org.

AGC Vice President Kris Young testified before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water and Natural Resources.

AGC Vice President Kris Young, President and CEO of Miller the Driller in Des Moines, Iowa, testified before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water and Natural Resources  regarding the GAO report titled "Opportunities and Challenges in the Creation of a Clean Water Trust Fund."

Young voiced AGC of America's support of a "trust fund" for water infrastructure, and shared a contractor's perspective on the funding challenges that local communities face in replacing and rehabilitating drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. In her testimony, Young stated that often a contractor is not called until disaster strikes, citing frequent infrastructure failures in her local community. Young also pointed out the high unemployment in the construction industry and referenced AGC research on how infrastructure investment spurs economic growth and provides employment for construction workers and numerous other industries.

Young also cited the precedent for using trust funds to tackle national infrastructure priorities and that financing water infrastructure through a trust fund would have several advantages over general fund financing. This is because the funding stream would not be subject to the vagaries of the annual appropriations process, thereby providing the certainty that state and local officials need to commit to long-term infrastructure projects. Additionally, Young stated that the revenue sources for a trust fund must be defensible and supported by the public.

Young also discussed the importance of educating the public about our water infrastructure needs and highlighted AGC's efforts to do so with the Liquid Assets documentary. Several other witnesses including the National Association of Clean Water Agencies, Maryland Department of the Environment, and the American Society of Civil Engineers testified in support of the trust fund concept.

For a summary of the hearing content, witness testimonies and video of the hearing, click here.

For more information, contact Perry L. Fowler at (703)837-5321 or fowlerp@agc.org.