AGC has protested the signing of an executive order mandating the use of Project Labor Agreement’s on state-funded projects over $35 million. This will impact WSDOT and DES projects. You can see the executive order here.
Hearing that Governor Ferguson was contemplating this action, AGC leaders and staff met with the Governor’s policy advisors and expressed strongly AGC’s long-held opposition to government-mandated or government-negotiated PLAs, including our concern about the exclusion of much of the construction industry; cost impacts; negative impacts on DBE firms and more.
Nevertheless, on Sept. 9 the Governor issued the executive order. AGC contacted the House and Senate Transportation, Capital Budget and Labor Committees. “AGC of Washington and Inland Northwest AGC are disappointed by this situation as it is counter to AGC’s long-held values of fair and open competition and opposition to government mandated PLAs,” AGC Chief Lobbyist Jerry VanderWood said in a letter to the legislators. “We encourage the Legislature to consider the ramifications of this Executive Order on capital project budgets…While we respect the right of workers to organize and collectively bargain, mandating union-only agreements adds costs, reduces competition, and shuts out small minority and emerging contractors who are vital to Washington’s economy.”
The executive order applies to projects over $35 million for which the owner is a cabinet-level state agency, primarily WSDOT and DES. WSDOT has used PLAs before on the SR-520 Montlake project and the SR-520 pontoon project. The executive order will expand WSDOT’s use of PLAs.
The executive order includes a provision that seems to allow contractors to negotiate the PLA: Require that prime contractors shall be responsible for negotiating PLAs with appropriate labor organizations, except that the state agency may determine, after consultation with the Office of the Governor, that the state agency will negotiate such PLAs if doing so is in the best interests of the State. How effectively this plays out in actual practice remains to be seen.
The executive order does not cover local governments, schools, universities and other such agencies. That said, many entities in the state already have their own PLA/CWA policies (some with dollar thresholds as low as $5 million), including Sound Transit, City of Seattle, Port of Seattle, King County, and, implemented very recently, City of Spokane.
The executive order is effective immediately, and it appears the next phase of the North Spokane Corridor project which is to be bid later this year will be the first project to which it may apply.
AGC is reviewing all available options to address the issue. Click here to see a page on the AGC of Washington website which will be updated as the issue unfolds.
Contact AGC Chief Lobbyist Jerry VanderWood with questions.