Unionized contractors and carpenters remain far apart in negotiations for a new contract, nearly two months after the old one expired. The latest in a series of extensions buys some more time.
By Daniel Massey
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| Hundreds of Carpenters rally protesting wage givebacks. |
The extension came as carpenters prepared for a Friday afternoon rally in front of their union's lower Manhattan headquarters to protest rumored givebacks.
The carpenters' contracts expired June 30 and deadlines have been extended several times. Agreements with four of the associations were thought to be close, and a rank-and-file blog reported that some tentative deals including wage cuts were in place. But the author of the blog, John Musumeci, said those agreements are no longer on the table.
Mr. Musumeci said union officials pulled back after delegates, who will cast nonbinding ratification votes, objected and after concrete workers reached a deal earlier this week that included an 8% raise over three years. Sources said discussions are furthest apart between the Cement League, which negotiated the concrete deal, and the General Contractors Association of New York, which represents heavy construction contractors.
A spokesman for the District Council said “progress is being made” in talks, but that no final agreements have been reached. “Everybody is at the table and there's positive movement,” he said, adding that union officials are “interested in getting as much input and feedback from members” as possible.
Delegates voted earlier this month to authorize a strike, but it appeared on Friday that any job actions were at least a week away.
Negotiations for the carpenters are being led by Frank Spencer, who was appointed in 2009 by the general president of United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America to oversee the local union after several of its officials were indicted for bribery.
Among the key issues in the negotiations is full mobility, or contractors' insistence on the right to hire 100% of workers they choose. Presently, as per a federal judge's order, they must hire a third of their workers through the union's hiring hall.
Contractors argue that the system is inefficient and results in productivity losses because they end up with workers who may not have the particular skills needed on specific job sites.
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| Denise Richardson |
Ms. Richardson said full mobility is only one item on a list of issues that have yet to be resolved. She said the two sides were “very far away” and that they had not even reached the point in negotiations where wages can be discussed.
“It's in everyone's best interest to figure out what are work rules that make us competitive and preserve safe work environments,” she said. “We're not talking about looking to cut wages. We're looking to find out how, in a rapidly changing cost structure, we keep unionized construction competitive.”
Bryan Winter, executive director of the Cement League, declined to comment.
The negotiations are complicated by a history of corruption that has plagued the District Council of Carpenters. In 1990, the federal government brought a racketeering suit against the union, beginning a two-decade long period in which the organization has been under monitoring by U.S. officials. In 1994, the government entered into a consent decree with the union, and last year, a federal judge appointed a review officer, Dennis Walsh, to oversee the operations of the union and its benefit funds. Any changes to full mobility have to be approved by a federal judge.
July 1, 2011 Response to Restructuring Plan, pg 62-63
ReplyDeleteDouglas J. McCarron, Frank Spencer and John Ballantyne have suspended all NYCDCC Local’s autonomy as a fraudulent means to change the By-Laws, exercise a veto power, and to put forth a Restructuring Plan which incorporates 100% Full Mobility throughout the NYC District Council of Carpenters and one which incorporates the entire State of New York; and which merges and consolidates Local Union rank & file workers/employees. {Restructuring Plan dated 5-26-11 at pg. 131 at 2. and at By-Laws Section 38, pg. 123 of 138, or pg. 28 of bylaws as a separate document}
Under the law(s), this is fraudulent inducement, as the UBC International, with malice & fore-thought has intentionally deceived the US Attorney, the Independent Review Officer and the Court by with-holding these facts from them. Coupled together with the current 67% - 33% Rule, favoring Contractor Association workers and employees, wherein Contractors can increase the 67% ratio with other added rules under the Consent Decree, the Mobility provision fairly said – eats away an additional 30% in the Contractor Association and Contractor favor and effectively grants exclusive control and license to them of the Union Hiring Halls and the Out of Work List (OOWL). Not only does this disenfranchise workers and employees who rely upon the OOWL & Hiring Hall Rules under the Consent Decree, it is openly discriminatory and provides the Contractor Associations a monopoly control over all hiring and violates the terms and conditions of the Consent Decree.
In NLRB Mountain Pacific, page 894, the portions not over-ruled, the Board noted:
"The Respondents do not, nor could they, argue that this contract does not make employment conditional upon union approval, for a more complete and outright surrender of the normal management hiring prerogative to a union could hardly be phrased in contract language. The fact that the Agreement limits the unions exclusive control to a 48-hour period after a request for employees is immaterial, for if unqualified exclusive delegation of hiring to a Union is unlawful, the vice is not cured by a reversion back to the employer of the hiring privilege after the union is unable to enjoy the power conferred upon it."2
“The fact of the matter is just because someone is a skilled carpenter, doesn't mean they're skilled in doing work on a particular project,” said Denise Richardson, managing director of the General Contractors Association of New York. “There are projects we can't bid on because we can't compete when we don't have control of one-third of our workforce.”
ReplyDeleteMs. Richardson said full mobility is only one item on a list of issues that have yet to be resolved. She said the two sides were “very far away” and that they had not even reached the point in negotiations where wages can be discussed.
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The reason the two sides are very far away Ms. Richardson is due to the Illegality of the UBC's proposals to the Federal Court, Reversion of Control to the Employers or their Associations - which constitute and illegal Closed Shop Preferential Hiring Agreement under "settled Board Law"
The second salient point Ms. Richardson is that your line about skilled Carpenters from the Out of Work List (OWL) and the attribution toward "losing bids" is a bold-face fabrication, in short - a flat out lie.
You should be ashamed of yourself for spreading such lies to the media and general Public. The fact that you are a liar is clear as the day is long, as is the fact that you are but another useless spin doctor for the Contractor Associations.
DROP DEAD UNITY TEAM !
ReplyDelete