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Just because the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed a delay to mandatory operator certification, doesn’t mean it’s sure to happen. Employers and operators should take notice of recent activity in Washington, D.C.We learned last week about a different regulation that was in a similar situation to 1926.1400 Cranes and Derricks in Construction. On August 7, OSHA withdrew a proposed rule to amend the On-Site Consultation Program.Although this has nothing to do with cranes and derricks, the parallels between the two rules and the actions taken by the Federal Agency are worth noting.
Reshaping the Construction Industry
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Part of our mission at Construction Citizen is to offer construction executives up-to-date information about best practices and how to be in compliance with the laws and regulations that are constantly being updated. That's why we're excited to announce that Employment Law Attorney Vianei Lopez Braun will be joining us to offer monthly updates on what's happening with employment law. In addition to her status as a partner at Buck Keenan, LLP in Houston, Braun is also a regular speaker at Texas Business Conferences around the state.
August 15, 2013
Low-wage workers, grassroots community organizations, and responsible businesses are together writing a historic chapter in the City of Houston’s development. Beginning in late 2011, the Fe y Justicia Worker Center began building a coalition of organizations and responsible businesses – now 34 members strong – across the City of Houston to address the problem of wage theft and craft a sensible public policy solution.On July 23rd, workers, grassroots organizations, people of faith, and community leaders joined forces at the City Council’s Public Safety Committee Hearing held in the Houston City Council Chambers to make the case that an anti-wage theft ordinance is sound public policy
August 14, 2013
Hi there. The Chamberlin Man here.I'm a bit of a traditionalist. You might call me a man of a past era (and not just because of my dapper fedora hat). That's why I am proud to say hard work, perseverance and customer service are values alive and well at Chamberlin. I relish seeing these sometimes considered “old school” values serving our clients. Our entire team follows these golden rules, but there are standouts in the crowd.Jason Gibson is one of those - so much so that he's made a reputation in the industry as a real MVP.
August 13, 2013
The worker center in Austin that we've been collaborating with for years at Construction Citizen got some well-deserved recognition in the pages of the New York Times Sunday edition this weekend. Reporter Steven Greenhouse traveled to the capital city of Texas to profile the group that's taken on some of the problems in the construction industry and, at times, has landed some big victories.Greenhouse writes:The Workers Defense Project, founded in 2002, has emerged as one of the nation’s most creative organizations for immigrant workers. Its focus is the Texas construction industry, which employs more than 600,000 workers, about half of whom, several studies suggest, are unauthorized immigrants.
August 12, 2013
Wow! A friend forwarded the following pictures of the new World Trade Center to me. The view is spectacular to say the least, but this is really hard work. Volunteers?
August 09, 2013
A new law in Tennessee gives the state’s Department of Labor (DOL) sharper teeth with which to take a bigger bite out of workers’ compensation fraud in the construction industry. As of July 1, 2013, the Tennessee DOL not only has the ability to fine a contractor for not having a workers’ compensation policy, but now can assess administrative penalties for the fraud as well as refer cases where the fraud is discovered to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation or to the local district attorney for further prosecution. The Society for Human Resource Management published an article written by Susan R. Heylman (subscription required) explaining the new authority this law gives the Tennessee DOL:“If the department finds that a construction company improperly classified workers as independent contractors rather than as employees, it may impose on the company fines of up to $1,000 or 1.5 times the average yearly workers’ compensation premium that the company should have paid for the workers.”
August 08, 2013
Key players in the Construction Career Collaborative (C3) met this past week to talk about the next steps for the group, as word about C3 spreads around the state and the nation. Among the biggest developments during the conference was the unveiling of the online database that will contain the safety and craft training information for workers. It’s a system that will ultimately be used to ensure that a perfectly tailored workforce is on each and every C3 jobsite. Under the system, workers will be assigned a C3 identification number that will allow for an instant search of each employee’s level of craft and safety training. “What follows the employee is that information, not who their employer is,” said C3 Executive Director Katrina Kersch. She said the employee’s compensation level would also not be available through that system. It is solely focused on the workers’ qualifications.Some have expressed concerns that the database could put personal information at risk. That’s because when the workers are entered into the system, their Social Security number is used as part of
August 07, 2013
Construction employment and spending grow in past year but slip in latest monthEditor’s note: Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Click here to view June metro employment tables.Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000, seasonally adjusted, in July and 2,276,000 (1.7%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday.
August 06, 2013
Last week Houston City Council’s Public Safety Committee held a hearing to discuss a proposed city ordinance to eradicate wage theft in the Houston area. The hearing included a presentation by Houston City Attorney David Feldman who explained the details of the proposal, and statements from members of the public who support it. Following the hearing, Scott Braddock interviewed Ed Gonzalez, Mayor Pro Tem of Houston and chairman of the Public Safety Committee. Read the following transcript of that interview, or watch the 4-minute video below. Scott Braddock: Talk a little about how this came about. This has been something the people have been asking for – pleading for – for years. Why now?Ed Gonzalez: We heard those concerns here at Council. The mayor and myself had assured that we were listening. We know the bureaucratic process can be slow at times, but we promise that we were listening and considering the feedback.
August 01, 2013
