The Building Trades and Oil & Gas: A Pipeline to High-Paying Jobs

For the past few years the East Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council has been a strong supporter of the Stark Carroll Oil & Gas Partnership -- and with good reason. Although the oil and gas industry has been experiencing a downturn over the past 12 to 18 months, it remains a source of high-paying jobs for construction workers.

In a recent article on its website, North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU) published an article stating that the building of America's energy infrastructure could support 1.15 million new jobs and add an average of $120 billion per year to the nation's GDP.

"The 14 national and international unions that comprise North America’s Building Trades Unions estimate that 50% of our collective membership of over 3 million skilled craft professionals in the United States and Canada are employed in energy-related industries," the article said.

In a statement before the U.S. Senate earlier this year, NABTU President Scott McGarvey emphasized the importance of those numbers, saying it meant workers "are able to provide for their families while receiving union-provided healthcare and pension benefits."

The estimate of 50 percent is a significant jump over just two years ago, when less than 10 percent of oil and gas workers were represented by unions. But, according to a report in USA Today, a shift from out-of-state to local labor led to a rise in union involvement.

The article said anti-fracking groups were dismayed that unions were supportive of drilling activity. "The increasing use of union construction labor has given energy companies a powerful ally as drilling is debated in communities nationwide," the article pointed out. "Many Republicans have been pro-drilling, but now some unions traditionally associated with Democrats are using their political clout to urge politicians to reject bans on pipelines or drilling."

Last year McGarvey reiterated, in a Huffington Post editorial, that the energy boom was responsible for creating new jobs, calling it "a leading contributor to American workers' vaulting out of the unemployment line and into the middle class."

The Building Trades continue to benefit from the ongoing work of the oil and gas industry. It's been a hotbed of opportunity in East Central Ohio, and is expected to rebound and again be a source of job growth between now and 2017.

Visit the East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

Apprenticeship: The Path to a Rewarding, High-Paying Career

A recent op-ed piece in the Seattle Times highlighted the positive impact on earnings that an apprenticeship program can have. Titled "A job in the trades can bring personal, financial success," it was written by Mike Sotelo, president and CEO of the Consolidar Network, a Seattle-based organization that connects employers with the growing Latino workforce.

"A four-year apprenticeship program can equal or exceed the earning potential of a postsecondary degree," he wrote. "But the message we're getting is that if we don't earn a college degree, then we become second tier in the social food chain."

Nothing could be further from the truth, and more voices are needed to highlight the long-term value of apprenticeship programs.

The East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council put the spotlight squarely on that value in an information and recruitment publication we produced in 2013. You can view the publication on our website. Some highlights:

We produced this information/recruitment piece in 2013

• Funded and operated by America's construction unions, the apprenticeship training we offer is of the highest caliber and is specific our industries, providing exactly what is needed to succeed and qualify for advancement.

• Learning on the job enables trainees to avoid the college debt trap and graduate to journeyman status with immediate job prospects.

• As a lifelong process, training ensures a lifetime of employment opportunities anywhere in the country.

• Apprenticeship training ranges from two to five years, depending on the craft.

Mike Sotelo was exactly right; the path to apprenticeship is the path to a fulfilling, rewarding, and high-paying career. We're always available to answer questions and provide complete details. Contact the East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council at (330) 454-3664, or online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

For a report from North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU) on construction apprenticeships, click on the link below:

Construction Apprenticeship: The "Other Four-Year Degree"

Visit the East Central Ohio Building Trades online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

Your Labor News Roundup

Here's a roundup of labor news of recent note:

Automotive News ran an article, "Tesla case puts plant labor in spotlight," in which it was reported that labor researchers say that weaker union representation in auto plants, projects and expansions raised the likelihood of labor standards going unchecked.

Citylab, published by The Atlantic magazine, ran a story titled, "America's Road to Economic Opportunity Is Paved with Infrastructure Jobs."  It cited a report from the Brookings Institution that revealed how, as poverty and income inequality continue to rise, there's an opportunity in infrastructure, with 3 million jobs opening up in the U.S. in the next decade.

Business Journal Daily, in a story headlined "AFL-CIO Posts Top CEO Pay for Public Companies," reported the union's findings that "the average pay for a CEO in an S&P 500 company was $12.4 million in 2015--335 times more than the average rank-and-file worker was paid."

In "A Win for Project Labor Agreements," ACT Ohio reported on the Ohio Senate's rejection of a proposed ban on PLS, legislation that would have banned state and local governments from requiring use of project labor agreements on state-funded construction projects.

Dissent Magazine ran a powerful piece titled "Right to Work (For Less): By the Numbers." The article provides ample evidence of the significant disadvantages for workers in RTW states, from lower unionization rates to lesser bargaining power to lower wages.

The Boston Globe carried an excellent article, "Moms are making their way into the construction industry," which highlighted the increasing opportunities for women in the construction field. Eight tradeswomen, all of them mothers, shared their stories. An insightful article!

Be sure to like our Facebook page and stay up to date on labor-related news headlines as they're posted!

Visit the East Central Ohio Building Trades online at their website, www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

Project Labor Agreements: Good for Communities, Good for Developers

The East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council is proud to have been a part of negotiating a Project Labor Agreement with the developers of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village in Canton.

As reported last year in the CantonRepository, “Those involved with Hall of Fame Village have committed to using as much local labor as possible on a development venture expected to draw nearly 3,000 construction jobs to Stark County within four years.”

Construction underway at Benson Stadium. (CantonRep.com photo)

That was good news for local unions. At that time (June 2015), complete details weren’t ironed out, but in the weeks that followed a PLA was signed, sealed and delivered. Former Canton Mayor William Healy was a big proponent of our local labor unions and supported our desire to sign a Project Labor Agreement. Developers on the project include Industrial Realty Group of Los Angeles, with an office in Akron; Welty Building Co. of Akron; Fred Olivieri Construction of Canton; and Motter & Meadows Architects, also of Canton.

As the Repository would later report, Canton City Councilman Frank Morris said that the PLA not only ensures that workers are paid prevailing wages, it protects the local tax base, which is an important revenue stream for the city.

“We will bring this project in on time and under budget, because that’s what we do,” Dave Kirven, president of the East Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council and business agent of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 94, told the Repository.

Our colleagues at the Ohio State Building & Construction Trades Council posted on their website that Project Labor Agreements “differ from standard collective bargaining agreements by including all of the parties working on a specific project, not just a single union and contractor.”

Indeed, they are a proven way to effectively manage and maintain time schedules and budgets on a project by including all the union parties working on a specific contract. By standardizing labor conditions, PLAs encourage fair competition among contractors.

Not only that, but PLAs provide a pathway to better paying jobs for low-income communities, minorities and veterans. That was the finding of the Industrial Labor Relations School at Cornell University in 2011.

At the time, the late Mark Ayers, former Building & Construction Trades Department president of the AFL-CIO, said, “Not only are PLAs an effective project management tool that delivers ‘on time, on budget’ results…but they are extremely effective at providing job and career training opportunities for historically disadvantaged communities. The bottom line, as exemplified by this report, is that PLAs work.”

If you haven’t been by the Pro Football Hall of Fame lately, take a drive down I-77 through Canton and you’ll see the flurry of activity that is taking place there. The first phase of construction on Tom Benson Stadium will be complete in time for the Hall of Fame enshrinement activities this summer. Construction on the entire village project will continue over the next several years, and labor unions in the East Central Ohio region will play an important part in that construction.

Visit the East Central Ohio Building Trades online at http://eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com/

Union Members Collaborate to Help Build Canton's Future

More than 300 attended the Draft Day Experience

Thursday, April 28, will go down as another milestone date for the building trades unions in East Central Ohio. The inaugural Draft Day Experience took place in Downtown Canton and exceeded all expectations, with more than 300 football fans and Canton enthusiasts packing the ballroom at the McKinley Grand Hotel to watch the first round of the NFL Draft and support the plans for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village.

The event was the brainchild of the East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council and particularly our president, Dave Kirven, who also serves as Business Manager for Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 94 in Canton. Dave and his colleagues with the Stark Carroll Oil & Gas Partnership -- including Brodie Haer, Doug Lane, Mike Boyd, Mike Furcolow and Tom Delamater -- began working on the idea in January and put the event together in three months' time. Deb Oberlin of the Holiday Inn in Canton was instrumental in bringing NFL alumni to the event and helped with other planning and logistics. It was truly a team effort.

Dave Kirven (L) visits with
Anthony Griggs, who played for
the Browns and Eagles

Just as important was the involvement and support of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Senior VP Dave Motts met with our committee in early February to offer the Hall's support and discuss how they could be involved. Pete Fierle, Jim Macris, Brian Proud and many others helped open doors and provide memorabilia, publicity and displays to top off the evening and give it the prestige that only the Hall of Fame can offer.

The goal of the event was two-fold: One, to raise funds in support of the Legends Landing, an assisted living residence planned as part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village; and two, to position Canton to host the actual NFL Draft in the future. 

Support for the Legends Landing and the Village project is important, said Kirven, because the Hall of Fame and the project developers have signed a project labor agreement that will guarantee union participation in the construction of the facility.

Fans bid on NFL memorabilia and other
items during our silent and live auctions

A true testament to the collaborative nature of the draft event came from an editorial in the Canton Repository on April 27. Titled "NFL Draft dream still alive," the editorial praised the groups for their work, not only on the Draft Day Experience, but also on the goal of bringing the Draft to Canton.

"These are the types of community partnerships that must be built now if Canton is going to win over the NFL's site selection committee," the editorial stated, before adding: "There's no better way for the NFL to celebrate its 100th season (2019) or its centennial (2020) than by holding its draft in the birthplace of the league and the home of the game's immortals."

We agree, and are grateful to our event sponsors, plus the more than 300 guests -- including a strong showing of union members -- who attended the first of what will be an annual event to celebrate the NFL Draft and our member unions' involvement in the future growth of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Visit the East Central Ohio Building Trades online at http://eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com/