NGA and ASA Announce Alliance Partnership
The National Glass Association (NGA) and the American Subcontractors Association (ASA) are pleased to announce they have entered into a mutual agreement for NGA to be an ASA Alliance Partner. The agreement will help support ASA initiatives and provide NGA member companies with access to select ASA benefits and resources.
Later this month, NGA members will have access to ASA resources such as legislative representation on payment and contract issues, popular ASA publications Contract Negotiating Tips and Bid Proposal Addendum, and ASA articles and webinars. Moreover, the combination of association resources, content and knowledge will strengthen the collective voice of the installer and subcontractor industries. Click here to download the full press release.
SLDF Victory in Tennessee!
The Tennessee Court of Appeals has issued an opinion significant for subcontractors’ rights with respect to retainage withheld on construction projects in the state. In Snake Steel, Inc. v. Holladay Construction Group, LLC, the Court clarifies the time limit within which a subcontractor must file suit to assert its claim for recovery of the $300 per day penalty payment. Snake Steel saw victory on two key issues – the application of the discovery rule to when the cause accrues and the right to recovery of $300/day for a minimum year prior to filing the complaint per the Prompt Payment law. Read the details here.[insert link]
SUPPORT THE ONGOING WORK OF THE SUBCONTRACTOR LEGAL DEFENSE FUND TODAY!
ASA Central and Western Pennsylvania Oppose S. 207
On Monday, February 3, 2020, ASA Central and Western PA Chapters sent a letter to the leadership of the PA Senate Local Government Committee expressing their strong opposition to Sen. DiSanto’s Senate Bill 207 that would amend the Public Works Contractors’ Bond Law of 1967 (P.L.869, No.385) by increasing the performance bond threshold on a public works construction projects from $10,000.00 to $500,000.00. By increasing the bond threshold amount, you are burdening the Commonwealth and local jurisdictions with financial risk and incomplete construction projects; thereby, we support the existing performance bond threshold.
Both chapter executive directors wrote that “they witness firsthand the importance of performance bonds on a construction project assuring that the successful carrier is qualified to perform the obligations in the award, including full performance of the construction contract. The bond serves as a financial resource in the event the carrier fails to protect the Commonwealth and local public agencies, along with my subcontractor members, who are small businesses within these communities.”
The letter continued “increasing bond thresholds may allow small and emerging contractors to bid on public construction projects, but your committee must consider the inherent risks they place on the construction industry, along with state and local jurisdictions bearing the burden of rebidding work and paying excess completion costs. Additionally, this could be problematic on projects with tight budgets or schedules. A contractor’s ability to obtain bonding reflects his or her capability to perform a contract. Higher bond thresholds potentially allow more contractors who are incapable of obtaining bonding and who have not been through the surety’s comprehensive vetting process to bid on and be awarded large public contracts for which no payment and performance bond would be required. This exposes public entities to greater risk, gambles with taxpayers’ money, and burdens subcontractors with the possibility of nonpayment.
As for advancing small and emerging contractors, increasing bond thresholds does not necessarily mean that these contractors would obtain more public construction business. Instead, it could result in financially unstable contractors who could not obtain bonding and who were not pre-qualified by a surety bidding on and winning public construction jobs. Those small and emerging contractors acting as subcontractors on those projects would not have the protection of a payment bond should something go wrong with the general contractor. Finally, over time, raising bond thresholds harms small and emerging contractors and suppliers by substantially increasing their risk of nonpayment if they are operating as subcontractors and by raising the difficulty of qualifying for their first bonds.
As you may know, all 50 states and the District of Columbia require performance bonds on state and local public works projects. These state bond thresholds vary, but only a few states have thresholds exceeding $100,000, which if this legislation passed, Pennsylvania would be included in this selective group.”
Construction Jobs and Southern Megaprojects
Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the construction jobless rate increased to 5.4% in January 2020 from 5% in December 2019, but the level was a marked improvement from 6.4% a year earlier. The sector added 44,000 jobs, with specialty contractors and heavy and civil engineering firms leading the way. Additionally, thirty-five megaprojects, each valued at $1 billion or more, made up 15% of the value of nonresidential construction starts last year. Three-fifths of megaprojects were in the South, with Texas accounting for 62% of the region’s total.
Registration Open for the ASA Legislative Fly In
| Back by popular demand! Are you an ASA member interested in walking the halls of Capitol Hill to advocate for public policy that strengthens the rights and interests of subcontractors in the construction industry? The ASA is holding a Congressional Fly-In on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC to allow members to engage their lawmakers on key policy issues impacting the construction industry. ASA members are encouraged to join the conversation on Capitol Hill by participating in a one-day Fly-In to take our message directly to members of Congress and their staff. Fly-In program Includes: * Meeting on The Hill with your Members of Congress or their staff * A briefing session on ASA’s legislative priorities in Congress and training on lobbying and influencing your elected officials * Networking with your ASA peers from across the country Registration: $199 per person Registration is now open! Fees include briefing sessions, breakfast, group reception and dinner. Spouses and friends participating in the evening reception and dinner will need to register as guests through the registration portal. Lodging: ASA has reserved a room block at the Capitol Hill Hotel for the week of the fly in. Nightly rates for this busy time of year are $379. For your convenience, this block of rooms will be held until Friday, May 8, 2020, so make your reservations today! CAPITOL HILL HOTEL RESERVATIONS |
OSHA Revises Silica NEP
On Wednesday, February 5, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced its revisions to the National Emphasis Program (NEP) to identify and reduce or eliminate worker exposures to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) in general industry, maritime, and construction.
The NEP targets specific industries expected to have the highest numbers of workers exposed to silica, and focuses on enforcement of the new silica standards, one for general industry and maritime (29 CFR § 1910.1053) and one for construction (29 CFR § 1926.1153). These standards became effective in June 2016, and construction employers were required to begin complying with their standard as of September 23, 2017, and general industry and maritime employers were required to begin complying with their standard as of June 23, 2018. The NEP intends to revise the application to the lower permissible exposure limit for respirable crystalline silica to 50 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3) as an 8-hour time-weighted average in general industry and construction.
Respirable crystalline silica consists of small silica particles that are generated by cutting, sawing, grinding, drilling, and crushing materials such as stone, rock, concrete, brick, block, and mortar. Inhaling the dust created during these operations can cause silicosis, an incurable lung disease, lung cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
PRO Act
Members of the House passed the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act on February 6, 2020, which is designed to amend some of the country’s long-lasting labor laws. The bill passed in a 224 to 194 vote and the bill will now go to the Senate for consideration.
The PRO Act would do the following:
- removal of a secret ballot for union elections;
- elimination of Right-to-Work provisions across the country, including in states that have passed Right-to-Work laws;
- increases reporting requirements for employers and their legal counsel retained for labor and workforce issues; and
- adds language codifying the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) joint employment standard that strips workers of their right to private voting and secret ballots in union elections. This standard maintains that any two (or more) companies are joint employers if the primary employer has “indirect or potential control” of contract employees.
The bill is unlikely to be taken up by the GOP-controlled Senate, as business groups have argued forcefully against it, saying it would hurt employers, violate privacy rights and be a major boon for national unions.
Are You Working To Engage Young People in the Trades? Tell ASA About It!
We want to hear from you! Tell us how you are working to engage young people and new employees in the trades. Are you working with programs like Helmets to Hardhats? Does your company have a partnership with a local community college, university or apprenticeship program?? How do you connect with your local community?
The American Subcontractors Association is currently working to gather all of your amazing ideas to be able to share with other ASA chapters around the country. Let us know how you reach out to young, new talent, as well as your best practices in each initiative.
Have something exciting to share? Email us your ideas at communications@asa-hq.com. We can’t wait to hear from you!
