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In a letter to U.S. House Representatives, ABC urged members to support an amendment to the House appropriations bill (H.R. 8294) that would prevent the use of federal funds to support flawed, inflationary Davis-Bacon prevailing wage requirements. The amendment failed by a vote of 165-264.

“While some in Congress seek to expand Davis-Bacon prevailing wage requirements, it has been shown that the Davis-Bacon Act, as currently administered by the U.S. Department of Labor, unnecessarily hinders economic growth and stifles contractor productivity by mandating wage rates on federal construction projects that fail to reflect true, market-based rates,” said ABC in a statement.

“The main culprit for these frequent discrepancies is the flawed, unscientific wage survey process that the DOL uses to calculate these so-called ‘prevailing’ wages. The Government Accountability Office has found widespread errors in the Davis-Bacon wage determination process and noted that it suffers from a serious lack of transparency,” added ABC.

ABC will continue to educate members of Congress about the burdens these flawed wage requirements place on the construction industry, push back against the Biden Administration’s ill-advised rule, and advocate for commonsense reforms to Davis-Bacon regulations that will provide clarity for contractors and create accurate and timely prevailing wages.

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On July 18, ABC submitted comments on the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s temporary rule on H-2B visas, authorizing 35,000 supplemental temporary work visas for hiring through Sept. 30.

The rule added a new requirement for employers utilizing H-2B visas to contact AFL-CIO if the occupation is traditionally or customarily unionized, including construction. ABC’s comments, while supportive of the overall H-2B visa program and its usage in filling critical gaps in the construction workforce, opposed this requirement.

The temporary rule’s new requirement adds unnecessary redundancy to the H-2B visa process, potentially slowing down the hiring process at a time when the construction industry needs to hire 650,000 additional workers on top of the normal pace of hiring in 2022 to meet its labor demands. Additionally, ABC’s comments contest the DOL’s labeling of construction as a “traditionally or customarily unionized occupation or industry” when 87% of construction workers have chosen not to join a union.

Employers can petition for these additional H-2B visas until Sept. 15.

ABC will continue to monitor this issue and provide updates through Newsline.

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According to a recent press release from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 22 workers have died in the first half of 2022 as a result of the hazards present in trenching and excavation work, prompting OSHA to launch enhanced enforcement initiatives to protect workers. In keeping with its National Emphasis Program for excavations, OSHA compliance officers will perform more than 1,000 trench inspections nationwide where they may visit and inspect any excavation site during their daily duties.

In light of the startling statistics that OSHA has presented regarding trench-related fatalities, ABC is encouraged that OSHA has announced enhanced initiatives to address trench safety. “Safety is the No. 1 priority for ABC and our 21,000 member companies, and ABC is constantly educating our members and their employees on concerning safety trends,” said Greg Sizemore, ABC vice president of HSE and workforce development, in a statement. “Clearly, trench safety needs additional focus and education. It is imperative that field team members work with safety professionals to ensure zero harm for all construction workers.”

“The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is calling on all employers engaged in trenching and excavation activities to act immediately to ensure that required protections are fully in place every single time their employees step down into or work near a trench,” said Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker. “In a matter of seconds, workers can be crushed and buried under thousands of pounds of soil and rocks in an unsafe trench. The alarming increase in the number of workers needlessly dying and suffering serious injuries in trenching incidents must be stopped.”

OSHA’s trenching and excavation webpage provides additional information on trenching hazards and solutions, including a safety video.

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On July 12, the ABC-led Coalition for a Democratic Workplace issued a new report criticizing unions’ newest efforts to implement electronic voting in union representation elections.

The report, “Online Voting in Union Representation Elections: The Latest Attempt to Eliminate Workers’ Right to Secret Ballots,” analyzes the history of unions’ efforts to pursue electronic voting and card check and provides a look at the failed efforts by various entities and governments to implement online voting.

The report also highlights that implementing online voting would break with decades of National Labor Relations Board precedent, increase the risk of coercion and fraud in elections, present cybersecurity concerns and be a waste of the NLRB’s limited resources.

The report emphasizes the advantages of in-person voting, including higher voter turnout, protections for voter privacy and against fraud and the safeguards inherent in NLRB-supervised elections.

CDW’s statement on the report can be read here.

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The U.S. Department of Labor announced on July 12 the selection of the initial cohort of 207 officials and organizations chosen to serve as Apprenticeship Ambassadors to share their experiences and collaborate with the department to champion apprenticeship opportunities. ABC’s Virginia, New Mexico and Pacific Northwest chapters were among those selected.

In November 2021, Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh announced the Apprenticeship Ambassador Initiative to bring together industry, labor, education, equity and workforce leaders with the department’s Office of Apprenticeship to promote registered apprenticeships to and to develop and expand opportunities for historically underserved people.

The inaugural group of Apprenticeship Ambassadors consists of diverse partners from multiple industries who have shown a willingness to use their registered apprenticeship experience and expertise to promote and expand these programs. The cohort is made up of community-based organizations, educators, employers, industry associations like ABC and more.

The initial cohort has committed to thousands of outreach and recruitment activities, and hundreds of training sessions and promotional meetings. They have also pledged to develop hundreds of new registered apprenticeship programs and resources in their first year as ambassadors. The Apprenticeship Ambassadors will promote registered apprenticeship as part of the department’s commemoration of the 85th anniversary of the National Apprenticeship Act on Aug. 16, 2022. The commemoration will continue through the remainder of the year, and include National Apprenticeship Week, Nov. 14-20, 2022.

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ABC recently launched the updated ABC Action app, an advanced advocacy tool that enables members to become a vital part of ABC’s grassroots advocacy efforts and allows you to make your voice heard.

Through the app, members can send messages to their congressional delegation, stay up to date on legislation moving through Congress and in the state legislatures and view key votes of every member of Congress.

The ABC Action app is available for iOS and Android. Download the app today!

Please reach out to Shreya Kanal, [email protected], with any questions.

https://www.abc.org/Politics-Policy/ABC-Action-App

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ABC sent an action alert on to members July 11 urging them to oppose to Democrats’ proposal to impose a new tax hike on small businesses in their partisan reconciliation bill.

ABC urges all ABC members to contact their U.S. senators and representatives to oppose this proposal to raise taxes on income for small business owners who make more than $400,000 annually by imposing a 3.8% net investment income tax hike.

“As countless, if not all, businesses are facing rising costs, supply chain delays and high gas prices, adding a reported nearly 4% tax increase that would take $200 billion out of the pockets of small contractors and other critical American businesses would make it even more difficult for the backbone of America’s economy to maintain operations,” said ABC Vice President of Legislative & Political Affairs Kristen Swearingen in a statement on July 13.

ABC, through a coalition of 190 organizations, also sent a letter to congressional leaders on July 11, opposing passage of the eleventh-hour, partisan tax and spend bill.

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ABC chapters across the country recently hosted events to educate members on the value of construction technology both on and off the jobsite. ABC’s Tech Alliance and Tech Marketplace members were featured speakers at these events.

“Construction technology is advancing quickly and holds great promise for all construction companies,” said Matt Abeles, ABC’s vice president of construction technology and innovation. “It’s important for our members to attend these events so they can physically see and feel how tech can help them develop people, win work and deliver that work safely, ethically and profitably.”

On June 23, the ABC Chesapeake Shores, Greater Baltimore, Metro Washington and Virginia chapters came together for a Joint Tech Summit in the Baltimore area. More than 200 attendees had the opportunity to meet, collaborate and learn how technology is revolutionizing the construction industry and how it can improve their businesses. Keynote speaker Nick Espinosa of Security Fanatics spoke on cybersecurity, and ABC strategic partner Milwaukee Tool and ABC Tech Alliance members Tenna, Autodesk Construction Cloud and Safesite were just some of the many exhibitors.

ABC Southern California hosted a similar event for members at its first-ever Construction Tech Conference on June 9. More than 75 attendees listened to keynote speaker Bridget Proulx of Autodesk discuss modular construction and heard local experts’ insights on construction safety technology, tech planning and preconstruction.

On May 25, ABC’s Keystone Chapter hosted Technology Day featuring sessions from ABC Tech Alliance members KPA and BuildOps and a keynote speech from ABC Tech Alliance member SMARTBUILD on construction culture and use of technology. There was also a hands-on demonstration of construction robotics for the more than 50 attendees.

ABC members at the events learned:

• How to implement and adopt technology to increase profitability;

• How safety technology can make jobsites and people safer; and

• The importance of modular construction.

Later this year, ABC’s Central Florida Chapter will be hosting its own construction technology event, and the ABC East Florida, Northern California and TEXO chapters are planning construction technology events in early 2023.

If you have any questions about attending one of the upcoming events, please contact Matt Abeles or Josef Burkart.

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On June 30, ABC submitted comments on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s proposed amendments to its occupational injury and illness recordkeeping regulation and urged the agency to withdraw the harmful rule.

“ABC is disappointed that the Biden administration is moving forward with a new rule to undo the ABC-supported provisions of the 2019 final rule under the Trump administration and reprise the 2016 Obama-era rule,” ABC wrote to OSHA.

“Similar to the 2016 final rule, which ABC objected to, the Biden administration proposed rule does nothing to achieve OSHA’s stated goal of reducing injuries and illnesses. Instead, the proposal will force employers to disclose sensitive information to the public that can easily be manipulated, mischaracterized and misused for reasons wholly unrelated to safety, as well as subject employers to illegitimate attacks and employees to violations of their privacy,” ABC said.

In addition, ABC submitted comments to OSHA as a steering committee member of the Coalition for Workplace Safety. In the comments, ABC and 61 organizations expressed deep concerns with the agency’s attempt to require electronic submission of employer summary data and individual employee injury and illness data. 

The proposed rule would require establishments with 100 or more employees in certain designated industries to electronically submit information from their OSHA Forms 300, 301 and 300A to OSHA once a year. Establishments with 20 or more employees in certain industries would continue to be required to electronically submit information from their OSHA Form 300A annual summary to OSHA once a year.

OSHA intends to post the data from the proposed annual electronic submission requirement on a public website. The DOL indicates it will remove injury and illness information that reasonably identifies individuals directly, such as individuals’ names and contact information, and share the information on a public website. However, ABC has serious concerns because of the confidential business details included in the form and the high risk of disclosure.

OSHA’s electronic injury reporting rule was first issued during the Obama era, and ABC filed a lawsuit against it. In 2019, the Trump-era DOL issued the Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses Final Rule, which amended the Obama-era final rule and eliminated the requirement for establishments with 250 or more employees to electronically submit information from OSHA Form 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses) and OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report) to OSHA annually. Under the 2019 final rule, covered establishments are only required to electronically submit information from OSHA Form 300A (Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses) to OSHA.

Learn more about OSHA’s Injury and Illness Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements.

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