There’s a major shift in the way the federal government is enforcing labor laws. The United States Department of Labor isn’t just making sure general contractors follow the law, but those companies have now been put on notice that they’ll be held accountable for the actions of the subcontractors as well.The Labor Department has announced a settlement with Lettire Construction Corporation and its President and Chief Executive Officer, New York contractor Nicholas Lettire, who are going to have to pay out about $960,000 in back wages and benefits for workers employed by subcontractors. A lengthy investigation showed that many of those workers were not being paid prevailing wages, overtime they should have received, or benefits.In a press release from the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, deputy administrator Nancy J. Leppink said:“The settlement makes absolutely clear that responsibility for complying with the federal prevailing wage laws rests with Lettire Construction and Nicholas Lettire,
Reshaping the Construction Industry
Both sides of the opening line of Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities can easily be applied to the construction industry of today.It is the worst of times: With unemployment in the country still over 8% and in construction over 13%, it can easily be tagged as the worst of times. Not so bad as a few years ago when the unemployment in the industry was close to 20%, but still tough. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will release the new employment numbers this Friday, and we at Construction Citizen predict that the numbers will remain anemic even in what should be the height of the construction season of 2012.Now the other view.It is the best of times: With employment in the country close to 92% and in construction close to 87%,
August 02, 2012
There is a myth in our culture that all high school graduates must attend college. This is a topic that gets introduced to them in middle school and then pounded into them once they reach high school. This is a problem that needs to be addressed. Schools are not talking to students about the other options that are out there, and this leaves them in the dark over other respectable vocational or employment opportunities. As a society, it is our responsibility along with the schools’ educators to recognize our children's strong and weak points and steer them in the direction that best suits their abilities.Our world would not be a better place if all of us were to become white collar professionals.
August 01, 2012
An update of the 2010 report on wage theft in the 50 states was released by the Progressive States Network is entitled Where Theft is Legal: Mapping Wage Theft Laws in the 50 States. It was written by Tim Judson and Cristina Francisco-McGuire under the Progressive States Network with funding from the Ford Foundation and the Public Welfare Foundation.Building on a series of previous studies that highlighted the current state of wage theft and misclassification throughout the United States, the report asserts that those studies show “states’ wage theft laws are grossly inadequate, contributing to a rising trend in workplace violations that affects millions of people throughout the country.”The report points out that the enforcement mechanisms, even in states where there are laws, are also inadequate to the scope of the problem and that layoffs in response to economic pressures have crippled the needed enforcement.
July 31, 2012
A specialty contractor has come to the rescue of a homeowner in McAllen, Texas who had been cheated by the first contractor she had hired to repair her damaged shingle roof. Yvonne Vacca had originally hired Ponce General Contractors to repair damage caused by hail last March. The company cashed her check but did not return to complete the repairs to her home.Hannah Linn of Action 4 News / KGBT Television serving the Rio Grande Valley reported this story yesterday about one of the “good guys” – a contracting company who heard about Mrs. Vacca’s plight and decided to repair her roof for free.
July 26, 2012
The decline of the way Americans value skilled labor, which we've chronicled extensively on Construction Citizen, can be seen in different ways all around us.Louis Uchitelle makes the point brilliantly in a New York Times article in which he describes how hardware stores are having to find ways to cater to people who don't know how to “do it themselves”, so to speak. Even signs adorning the walls and aisles at a Home Depot serve as instructions for simple things like how to fix a faucet or replace light bulbs.A question often asked by citizens and politicians alike: “Why don't we make anything in America anymore?”Uchitelle argues that the decline in American craftsmanship runs parallel to that of our manufacturing sector. He points out that in the 1950s, manufacturing accounted for 28 percent of GDP (gross domestic product). That has now fallen to 12 percent.
July 25, 2012
My audiences have heard me say many times that they are in for an interesting life. I have told them that they will likely live to be 120 or older and that their work lives will be really interesting – not ending anywhere near the current 65 years of age. The experts have said that my son who is in his 20s will have 5-7 careers and that will be the norm. I have had 5 careers, so I might be a pioneer on this trail. No question about me living to 120 at this point, but there are changes on the horizon that might possibly extend even my life.According to Dick Pelletier at the Positive Futurist.com in his recent entry, Nanorobots: radical science in clinical trials by the 2020s; expert says, the nanorobots, (also called nanobots), are already designed and created and will likely be in clinical trials at the major healthcare institutions in the early 20s.
July 23, 2012
We attended a graduation dinner last week that was unique in its attendees and outstanding for the folks who participated or coached in a year-long workforce development program. The program is focused on creating the next generation of workforce for the company and for the industry.One of our sponsors, Marek Brothers Systems, a specialty subcontractor headquartered in Houston, hosted the dinner to recognize the graduates of the Workforce Development Program (WFD) and their spouses. Marek invited several owners, contractors, specialty subs and AGC Houston to witness the progress that these craftspeople of tomorrow have made
July 19, 2012
I am an SOB, that is a son of a baker. When I was a kid, the workforce in our family bakery consisted of a deaf mute, an alcoholic, my grandfather, my uncle and my dad. Together they produced about 200 loaves of bread for the Amarillo market.In the 1990s, I was talking with Arthur Baird, one of the family members of Mrs Baird’s bread and he showed me his bakery that was producing 8,000 loaves of bread an hour for the Houston region. He told me that he could not hire anyone who was not computer proficient on his bakery staff since all of the production line is now run by computers.This was an enormous change in the workforce which has rippled throughout the manufacturing sector in this country, and it is beginning to happen in the construction industry. As we face an increased demand and the building materials become more sophisticated and “greener”, the skilled workforce to build those buildings will be more in demand and, if NCCER, AGC, ABC and the unions are correct, there will be a big shortage in the mid-level skilled workforce
July 18, 2012
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agency has released two new self-assessment guides for E-Verify Direct Access Users and for E-Verify Web Services Users. As stated in the documents, the purpose is to provide a checklist and guide for voluntary users of the system toDetect E-verify activities inconsistent with the E-verify ProgramDetect non-compliant activitiesResolve internally detected non-compliant activities quickly and efficientlyPromote proper E-verify use by their users
July 17, 2012