Senate GOP ousts MN labor commissioner, plays politics with worker health, safety

August 13, 2020 by

In a surprise move yesterday that troubled Minnesota’s union leaders and outraged the DFL minority, Senate Republicans voted to oust the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry’s acting commissioner, Nancy Leppink.

Her removal threatens to undermine ongoing efforts, led by Leppink in collaboration with labor and industry leaders, to keep workers safe and healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic, union leaders warned.

Minnesota AFL-CIO President Bill McCarthy, the state’s highest-ranking union officer, called the party-line vote a “slap in the face to working Minnesotans.” Joel Smith, president of LIUNA Minnesota and North Dakota, said the firing “will make workers less safe.”

Gov. Tim Walz appointed Leppink to serve as labor commissioner after taking office in January 2019, but she, like several members of Walz’s cabinet, had not been confirmed via floor vote in the Republican-controlled Senate.

Majority Leader Paul Gazelka (R-Nisswa) stunned DFLers by putting Leppink’s confirmation on the Senate agenda yesterday, as lawmakers held a special session required to extend Walz’s state of emergency during the pandemic.

Minority Leader Susan Kent (D-Woodbury) said both she and the governor’s office learned of Republicans’ plan to vote not to confirm Leppink in a text message Gazelka sent just minutes before bringing her appointment to the floor. The ambush effectively prevented Leppink’s supporters preparing arguments in her defense.

“None of us in the minority had any expectation that this was going to be an issue in today’s session,” Sen. Dick Cohen (D-St. Paul) said, adding that the surprise confirmation vote was “in contrast to how we’ve handled things” since he joined the Senate in 1987.

Others from Cohen’s caucus were less diplomatic.

Sen. Jason Isaacson (D-Shoreview) called the move “bush league.” He questioned whether Senate Republicans, who have voted repeatedly to curb Walz’s emergency powers during the pandemic, were exacting political revenge.

“You look at the pedigree (Leppink) brings to the table – the professionalism, the experience,” Isaacson said. “And then you look at the ridiculously long list, bipartisan list … who unanimously endorse Commissioner Leppink…

“It leads me to wonder, why would you do this? Is it because we didn’t get our way, and now we’re mad? Is it because the governor hurt our feelings?”

After accepting a position in Walz’s cabinet, Leppink relocated from Geneva, Switzerland, where she worked as branch chief for the International Labour Organization, overseeing efforts to improve worker protections in 187 member states.

But St. Paul is where Leppink began her career as a watchdog for workers’ rights 34 years ago, advancing from the state Attorney General’s Office to a position as chief general counsel in the labor department. She served under both Republican and DFL governors. Later, she went to work in the Obama administration as a leader in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

In less than two years as commissioner, Leppink has drawn praise from unions and industry groups for her department’s approach to workforce development, particularly when it comes to expanding registered apprenticeship opportunities statewide.

Additionally, Leppink has sought to modernize the department’s enforcement of wage-and-hour standards, including Minnesota’s historic wage theft law, which Leppink championed last year. The department recently secured nearly $315,000 in total back-wages owed to 70 construction workers on a project in Thief River Falls, where a subcontractor violated prevailing-wage, overtime and other wage rules.

But during debate on the Senate floor yesterday, Gazelka and other Republican senators said Leppink had not been accommodating enough to the state’s business owners.

“The Department of Labor and Industry is expected to be responsive and not a hindrance to state’s businesses,” Gazelka said, claiming his caucus has heard “case after case of harassment” from constituents interacting with the department. “She’s in the wrong role.”

Every Republican who spoke in support of removing Leppink was quick to offer assurances that the decision was not being made lightly – even if it was being made without warning.

“I take this very seriously,” Sen. Carrie Ruud (R-Breezy Point) said.

“This is a serious issue we take up,” added Sen. Jason Rarick (R-Pine City).

“We do take this very seriously,” Assistant Majority Leader Karin Housley, of Stillwater, insisted. When the Senate Jobs Committee issued no recommendation on Leppink’s confirmation during a meeting six months ago, Housley added, “that was the notification right there” that yesterday’s floor vote was coming.

DFLers remained unconvinced. Sen. Scott Dibble (D-Minneapolis) pleaded with Republicans not to throw the agency in charge of protecting workers’ health and safety into chaos during a public health emergency, just “to get a shot off at a chief executive with which you are unhappy.”

Whatever victory Republicans achieved with yesterday’s vote, Minnesota Building and Construction Trades President Harry Melander said, came at the expense of working people.

“In these uncertain times, difference of opinion is healthy, but this kind of unproductive posturing in government serves no one and creates anxiety for our members,” Melander said. “Minnesota workers should be put first, but today’s action by the Senate put workers last.”

Filed Under: Labor Voices, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

As GOP plays politics with infrastructure bill, tradespeople warn their jobs hang in balance

July 21, 2020 by

Fred Livingston, a member of LIUNA Local 563, speaks at a Capitol press conference on the bonding bill.

If Minnesota lawmakers treated their jobs as seriously as the state’s union tradespeople treat theirs, Gov. Tim Walz would be signing a bonding bill this week.

That’s the message Minnesota’s Building and Construction Trades unions brought to the Capitol in St. Paul today, hours after legislators adjourned a second special session without investing in infrastructure and local jobs.

“Construction workers put in long, hard, exhausting hours, and we get the job done well,” said Fred Livingston, a former Marine who joined Laborers Local 563 after reentering civilian life. “We take our jobs very seriously.

“My brothers and sisters and their families hope lawmakers come back to the table, sit down, roll their sleeves up and do whatever is required to get this bonding bill passed … so we don’t have to tell our families we lost our jobs.”

Infrastructure bonding bills authorize the state to borrow money for investments in local water-and-sewer systems, roads, bridges and public buildings. It is traditionally a priority for lawmakers during even-numbered years like 2020, when they are not working on the biennial state budget.

Bonding, however, requires support from two-thirds of the House and Senate, and this year Republican lawmakers have used the measure as a bargaining chip in efforts to force Walz to call off the state of emergency he’s declared to respond quickly to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Led by Minority Leader Kurt Daudt, House Republicans held firm to that stance early this morning. They voted in lockstep to block a package of more than $1 billion in local projects that would have created an estimated 12,000 jobs and generated $3 billion in economic impact, according to an analysis by the Building Trades.

Jason George, business manager of Operating Engineers Local 49, said Daudt and his caucus “chose to fight with the governor instead of creating good jobs in Minnesota. That’s just something I don’t understand.”

The political standoff comes at a delicate time for both the construction industry and the state’s economy, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause uncertainty.

Employment in Minnesota’s construction industry has remained steady so far during the pandemic, union leaders at the Capitol said, but there are signs of trouble ahead.

Minnesota Pipe Trades President David Ybarra said several significant projects have been delayed or canceled since the economic downturn, while design and engineering firms warn of a slowdown in demand for their services.

“It goes without saying that if architects and engineers are not seeing projects, our members will be without work eventually,” Ybarra said.

State lawmakers may get yet another crack at the infrastructure bill in August, when Walz would need to call the Legislature back into session to extend his emergency powers.

That gives union tradespeople a glimmer of hope their representatives may finally do the job right – even if it’s not done on time.

Keoudon Yang, an apprentice with the Electrical Workers union, said it’s “unfortunate that state leadership, in these challenging times, will not do their part.”

“This has been one of the most uncertain years and our future feels unpredictable at best,” Carpenters Local 930 apprentice Benjamin Statz added. “We need the Legislature to do their part and chart a strong path forward for young trades workers.”

Filed Under: Labor Voices, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Pandemic likely to alter unions’ political push, but how? 

May 7, 2020 by

By Bill Moore, Special to The Union Advocate 

COVID-19 is disrupting life as we know it and may do so for a while yet. But Minnesota labor leaders are determined that it will not stop efforts to inform and mobilize union voters for the 2020 election.  

The Minnesota Labor 2020 campaign is alive and well – and ready to adapt to challenges and changing circumstances. 

“Our work this election year is incredibly important,” St. Paul Regional Labor Federation President Kera Peterson said. “We have to engage as many union members as possible as voters and volunteers, not only to elect a president who respects and stands up for working families, but to assure worker-friendly majorities in both the Minnesota Senate and the U.S. Senate.”

Work to assure a complete count for the U.S. census is also important, Peterson added: “We need to be doing that now, and also working to make sure union members and retirees are registered to vote.” 

Minnesota AFL-CIO Secretary- Treasurer Brad Lehto reported that officers, leaders and political organizers from affiliated unions and labor councils around the state already have formulated a Labor 2020 plan. Now, they are working on contingency plans.  

“If things get better,” Lehto said, “we’ll keep moving ahead with the current plan. If things get worse we’ll have options.”  

Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council Executive Director Jessica Looman shares Lehto’s determination.  

“During this time of uncertainty, the AFL-CIO is working to adapt their voter education and mobilization plans to address many different contingencies,” she said. “The Minnesota Building Trades will also work to ensure that our members’ voices are heard in 2020.” 

Texting could be key 

As an example of adjustments that may need to be made, Lehto pointed to worksite conversations. They won’t be possible if worksites are shuttered.  

“Our whole worksite program would have to change,” he said. “One option we’re exploring is peer-to-peer texting, where worksite leaders could communicate via text messages with co-workers who are working from home or laid off.”  

The Service Employees (SEIU) developed and implemented this in the last election cycle and it worked well, Lehto added, joking, “We’re all going to become experts in tech.” 

Jamie Gulley, President of SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and the SEIU Minnesota State Council said, “This pandemic has made clear how important it is to have elected officials who care about working people.  

“We know there may be challenges in our usual election plans that focus on person-to-person conversations with possible social distancing still in effect. Luckily, we have experience with texting, online ads, phone calling and relational organizing tools that will help make sure we do everything possible to elect candidates who support working people. 

“No matter what tools we end up using, we are going to have tens of thousands of conversations about electing candidates who see this pandemic not as a chance to divide us and give more to the rich, but as a sign we need to pass laws that put Minnesotans’ health before corporate profits, and to support our Unions for All agenda to make sure every Minnesotan – no matter our job, race, zip code or gender – can live a safe and healthy life.” 

Getting social – at a distance 

Another route Minnesota Labor 2020 planners are exploring to reach union members with relevant information in pandemic times is digital communications and paid media.  

Already in the works are some 15-, 30- and 60-second videos of union members from various unions saying why unions matter to them personally, and how working people need each other and won’t buy attempts to divide us by race, ethnicity or other differences. 

Door-knocking, too, is a traditional election year tactic that wouldn’t work if COVID-19 exposure testing and contact tracing don’t reach necessary levels and stay-at-home policies persist into the fall. Volunteers likely will be reluctant to risk exposure to the virus, and people won’t want to open their door to a stranger.  

Phoning is an option, but has proved less effective in recent years, and traditional phone banks often involve bringing volunteers together in close quarters.   

“If phoners are unable to social-distance, virtual phone banking is a way around that,” Lehto said. “Volunteers can access a list on their home computer or, if they find that difficult, they can get a paper list to phone from home.” 

Regardless of how it gets done, the Labor 2020’s work is critical, Minnesota AFL-CIO President Bill McCarthy said. 

“While this pandemic may change the methods used to communicate with union members about the election, it underscores why the 2020 election is so important,” he said. “We need to elect leaders who will join with us to make sure no worker is left behind, and we emerge from this crisis stronger than before.” 

Retirees get early start 

Members of at least one Minnesota labor organization are on the phones already. The Minnesota State Retiree Council has launched an effort to make sure retired union members are registered to vote. “Comparing union lists with state voting records finds 6,000 Minnesota union retirees not registered to vote,” State Retiree President Ken McInnis reported.  

Retiree Council Election Work Coordinator Carol Freeman and other volunteers have asked for clearance from Minnesota AFL-CIO affiliated unions to call their retired members who aren’t registered to vote.  

Meanwhile, they’re calling everyone on retiree council mailing and email lists to learn how retirees are staying informed. If they’re not already subscribed to the Retiree Bulletin, Election Work Co-Coordinator Martha Johnson signs them up and also points them to the Retiree Council website, http://www.mnretired.org, and Facebook page, facebook.com/mnaflcioretired. 

Another retiree initiative is advocating for Vote-by-Mail legislation.  

The State Retiree Council passed a resolution urging the State of Minnesota to send a voter registration form, together with an application for an absentee ballot, to every unregistered Minnesotan who is eligible to vote, including pre-paid postage for return. The Minnesota AFL-CIO Executive Board adopted the resolution.  

“Given the current majority in the Minnesota Senate, I can’t imagine the measure will pass the Legislature,” McInnis admitted. “But if legislators really believe that voting is what democracy looks like, they’ll support it.” 

Filed Under: Organizing, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Unions move quickly to keep tradespeople safe on jobsites

April 28, 2020 by

St. Paul Pipefitters Local 455 delivered gang boxes filled with cleaning supplies and protective gear – and, yes, toilet paper – to its larger job sites last month. Smaller sites received supplies as well. “We want these job sites to stay open,” Business Manager Tony Poole said. “The best way to have our members continue to work is to keep them safe.”

 

Minnesota’s construction industry has not shut down during the pandemic, but it’s not business as usual on the job site either, as local Building Trades unions and their contractors make adjustments to prevent the virus’ spread and keep tradespeople healthy.

“Any time you work construction, there’s high risk involved. These are risky jobs,” Pipefitters Local 455 Business Manager Tony Poole said. “But this virus, it definitely changes the game.”

The outbreak prompted Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to declare a state of emergency in March, closing most public gathering places and ordering businesses to allow their employees to work from home if possible.

For tradespeople, of course, it’s not.

Construction unions worked with the governor to get their industry on the “essential services” list, allowing work to continue. Now, unions are working to give their members the tools they need to stay safe as they continue building the state’s critical infrastructure.

That starts with education.

The Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council has created a page on its website with an evolving list of resources on the virus and best practices for preventing its spread on the job site. Most craft unions also maintain COVID-19 resources on their local websites.

“We’re sending out communications through our website constantly, just about every day, with CDC recommendations and information about COVID,” Poole said. “And we’re sending mass texts to all members when something is particularly important.”

Unions also are working with their contractors to incorporate best practices into the workflow, LIUNA Local 563 Business Manager Joe Fowler said.

“We’ve been really working with the contractors on social distancing,” Fowler said. “Providing more sanitization stations. Requiring workers to break separately. Forgoing toolbox talks every morning, or doing them weekly instead of daily.”

In some cases, unions are supplying needed equipment to their members directly. Local 455 delivered gang boxes stocked with hand sanitizer, soap, disinfectant cleaner, paper towels, toilet paper, gloves, N-95 masks and more to several large jobsites across the east metro, after hearing from workers concerned about sanitation.

“If you’re working around somebody who’s not wearing a glove, and you’ve got to work on that same piece of equipment?” Poole said. “We want our members to be able to disinfect what they feel they need to disinfect. Rather than wait, the local took it upon itself to supply some of these sites with what our people need.”

Union leaders are taking COVID-19 – and their members’ concerns about the pandemic – seriously, Fowler added.

“We want to keep people working, but we don’t want any of our members working in an environment that they feel is unsafe,” he said. “If they feel that way, they need to reach out. We’re still open for business.”

Filed Under: Community, Politics, Union Events Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Unions push pandemic response leaving no worker behind

March 19, 2020 by

(CDC image)

State and local officials are taking unprecedented steps to prevent the novel coronavirus from spreading in Minnesota. While the effectiveness of those measures remains to be seen, it’s already clear the COVID-19 pandemic is not just a public health crisis, but an economic one as well. 

The state’s highest-ranking labor leaders today sent Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders a to-do list of policy changes necessary, they say, to protect working people on the front lines of the pandemic response and those likely to suffer most from its impact on Minnesota’s economy. 

In the letter, the Minnesota AFL-CIO’s executive officers, President Bill McCarthy and Secretary-Treasurer Brad Lehto, back higher standards to ensure hospitals and fire departments provide adequate personal-protective equipment to nurses and first responders. They urge an extension of unemployment-insurance benefits and paid time off. And they call on lawmakers to pass bills guaranteeing school districts’ hourly employees get paid during closures and putting tradespeople to work. 

The letter also includes a warning: “Emergencies shouldn’t be an excuse to relax labor standards. Do not allow rollback of any labor rights or protections.” 

The dizzying number of demands included in the letter reflects the all-encompassing nature of the pandemic and efforts to combat it. Unions from all industries, from the public and private sectors, were bracing for the fallout – and scrambling to address members’ economic and health concerns. 

Kelly Gibbons, president of Service Employees International Union Local 284, called the last week “quite the nightmare.” 

Local 284 represents about 10,000 workers in 140 school districts statewide. Although Walz has ordered all schools to close through March 27, some Local 284 members are still reporting to work, helping provide care for elementary-age children of health care workers and first responders. Other members are furloughed with pay – for the time being. 

“There’s been a lot of confusion, but we’ll get through this,” Gibbons said. “We know this will pass.” 

In the days after he declared a statewide emergency last week, Walz ordered schools, restaurants, museums and other public spaces to close, hoping to limit community spread of the virus and prevent a surge of hospital visits due to COVID-19. But the governor also moved to ease the financial strain on working people impacted by those measures. 

In an executive order Monday, Walz made the state’s unemployment insurance program more robust, waiving certain restrictions and waiting periods so that anyone whose paycheck takes a hit from the pandemic – from layoffs, furloughs or schedule cuts – has swift access to relief. 

Walz also called on businesses that remain open during the pandemic to do their part to prevent its spread by making it easier for employees to work from home and, critically, stay home with pay when feeling sick. Leading by example, Walz granted emergency paid leave to any state employee impacted by the pandemic, and he suspended the waiting period typically required of new hires before they can enroll in health insurance coverage. 

That’s good news for many members of AFSCME Council 5, which counts state employees among its 43,000 members statewide. But Executive Director Julie Bleyhl said all Minnesota employees deserve the same guarantees. 

“AFSCME Council 5 is demanding that all employers in the state of Minnesota pay their workers in full during this time of crisis,” she said. “We must all be united and work together to ensure that no worker has to choose between their lives and a paycheck.” 

The Minnesota AFL-CIO, in its letter to Walz and legislative leaders, called on the state to mandate that employers provide 15 days of emergency paid time off to all employees, and that school districts continue to pay furloughed employees, who are not eligible for unemployment insurance, for all scheduled days.  

“To avoid impacting small businesses for 15 days off, we are calling on the state to implement a separate tax on the largest businesses in the state including Amazon, U.S. Bank, Wells Fargo, Target, Ecolab and others, and small to medium sized businesses can apply for a tax credit equal to 100% of the paid sick leave benefit they have paid out,” the letter reads. 

Other union demands – like a robust infrastructure jobs bill and extending unemployment benefits to a full year – look to soften the blow to Minnesota’s economy in the long term.  

A statement issued by the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council argues a strong bonding bill, with investments in roads, bridges, transit and public buildings, would “be the economic stimulus needed to jump start the economy, and especially the construction industry, after the worst of the coronavirus impacts have passed.”  

Filed Under: Organizing, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Trafficker’s plea deal reveals construction industry ‘in distress,’ advocates say

November 20, 2019 by

When a notorious wage broker pleaded guilty to two felony charges in Hennepin County this week, it was welcome news for unions and community groups working to rid Minnesota’s construction industry of labor abuses.

“We are grateful that the legal system is holding those who commit wage theft and illegal trafficking of construction workers seriously,” said Jessica Looman, the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council’s executive director, after Ricardo Batres pleaded guilty to labor trafficking and insurance fraud Monday.

The plea deal confirms that Batres recruited immigrant workers to fill jobs on Twin Cities construction sites, and he denied some their legally guaranteed rights on the job by exploiting their undocumented status.

Sentencing is not until January, but prosecutors will recommend Batres serve up to nine months in the county workhouse and five years of probation. He could also be barred from inclusion in future state or federal construction contracts.

The Building Trades Council, which represents the state’s unionized construction workforce, called Batres’ case the first big test of Minnesota’s labor trafficking and wage theft laws.

It’s unlikely to be the last.

In July, 14 Minnesota construction unions launched “Not On My Watch/Ya No Mas,” a campaign to heighten awareness of wage theft and labor trafficking and to assist exploited construction workers.

Dan McConnell, manager of the Minneapolis Building and Construction Trades Council, said Batres’ plea is an indication of the new initiative’s potential.

“The case against Ricardo Batres shows the strength of the construction community when we stand together against wage theft and labor trafficking,” he said. “It’s imperative that we protect the health of the construction community by continuing to call out bad actors who exploit our workers for their own gain.”

Unions are teaming up with community groups like Advocates for Human Rights and the local worker center CTUL to educate workers and identify abuses. CTUL organizers say they are currently investigating three other cases of labor trafficking and over a dozen cases of wage theft in the Twin Cities construction industry.

CTUL Co-Director Veronica Mendez Moore said the Batres case reflects “an industry in distress,” and added that the problem goes beyond labor brokers.

“Real estate developers and their financial backers are directly profiting from this kind of labor exploitation,” she said. “While some sectors of the construction industry are unionized and abide by human rights standards, there is a dark underbelly that does not.”

Minnesota’s new wage-theft law, among the toughest in the nation, will make it easier for officials to patrol that dark underbelly. Passed earlier this year, the law creates additional protections for workers and stiffens penalties for employers that commit wage theft.

Labor traffickers like Batres don’t just show up on construction projects, of course.

“This is a big problem in the industry,” said Burt Johnson, a spokesperson for the North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters. “Construction contractors and developers can no longer hide behind hiring a low-bid contractor when those bids are based on a criminally low price.”

Filed Under: Organizing, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Elevator Constructors, Sportsmen’s Alliance team up to get kids hooked on ice fishing

January 19, 2019 by

Five-year-old Waylon Lee (R) and his brother Kelar, 8, try ice fishing for the first time during IUEC Local 9’s youth event on Coon Lake in Columbus.

COLUMBUS – Josh and Jen Atkinson moved their family from Oakland, Calif., to Albertville four years ago, but it wasn’t until today that they got their first taste of a uniquely Minnesotan tradition: ice fishing.

“I’ve always wanted to do this,” Jen said from inside a heated pop-up ice shelter on Coon Lake in Columbus, where she and Josh dropped lines with their sons, 8-year-old Sheamus and 3-year-old Shawn. “This is so cool.”

“Best of all, it’s free,” Josh added. “And everyone is just so darn nice.”

Sheamus and Shawn were among 100 kids introduced to ice fishing today at a community event co-hosted by Local 9 of the International Union of Elevator Constructors and the nonprofit Union Sportsmen’s Alliance, with support from other local Building Trades unions and sponsors.

Participants in the first ever “Take Kids Ice Fishing Day” received free rods and reels, lunch, access to heated shelters and the instruction and assistance of volunteer union members, including a dozen members of Local 9.

Dustin Grzesik of Pine Springs and his daughter Anna, 2, didn’t catch any fish at the event – “we just caught good times,” he said.
Volunteers (L to R) include Mike Rodger, Clam Outdoors and Cement Masons Local 633; Dave Youngblom, IUEC Local 9; Jarrod Asleson, Local 633; Jon Edwards, Trained Monkey Truckin’; Adam Morin and Joe Nelson.
Volunteers from IUEC Local 9 (L to R) included Randy Bast, Dave Morin and Aimee Paquette.

All families had to do to participate was register in advance, as the event reached its capacity of 100 anglers more than two weeks ago, according to Dave Morin, Local 9’s president.

“The goal was to get kids out who have never done this before, and get them excited about ice fishing,” Morin said. “It seems like it’s kind of a dying thing right now, where there aren’t a lot of kids going outdoors and fishing or doing that kind of thing anymore.”

Mike Rodger, a member of Cement Masons Local 633, said “Take Kids Ice Fishing Day” was among the most successful youth ice fishing events he’s seen, despite sub-zero temperatures and a wind chill of -17. And Rodger has seen a lot in his work with Clam Outdoors, a company that sponsors youth events across the region as part of the nonprofit Ice Team, dedicated to increasing participation in the sport.

Clam provided the ice shelters and heaters for the event. Pure Fishing provided rods and reels. Plano Synergy gave each participant two free game calls. Vados Bait and Tackle provided bait. And Thorne Bros. Custom Rod and Tackle donated pads and tackle.

Local 9 and Union Sportsmen’s Alliance chipped in to purchase raffle prizes, all of which, Morin said, were selected to encourage kids to return to Minnesota’s lakes and fish some more.

“I’ve been ice fishing all my life,” he said. “I want kids to get that spark, to be excited about it like I am – even if it’s cold.”

Headquartered in Little Canada, Elevator Constructors Local 9 is a union of over 550 members who work in Minnesota, North Dakota and western Wisconsin.

The Union Sportsmen’s Alliance is a nationwide nonprofit that brings together union members through conservation and preservation of North America’s outdoor heritage. The ice fishing event was part of USA’s Work Boots on the Ground initiative, which encourages union members to volunteer their time and expertise to conservation projects and mentoring youth in the outdoors.

Filed Under: Community Tagged With: , , , , ,

On right to work and prevailing wage, it’s Walz … or Wisconsin

October 24, 2018 by

Tim Walz, the labor-endorsed candidate for governor, is pictured speaking at a union rally in 2016.

When Tim Walz addressed delegates to the Minnesota Building Trades’ annual convention in Duluth over the summer, the labor-endorsed candidate for governor did not mince words, giving the labor leaders and union stewards a message to take back to their union halls.

“People will tell you, ‘I’m not into politics,’” Walz said. “You tell them too damn bad because politics is into you.

“The choice is Walz or Wisconsin when it comes to organized labor. It’s that simple.”

Walz was referencing the string of attacks Wisconsin union members saw on their wages, benefits and freedom to join together after Republicans, led by Gov. Scott Walker, seized total control of the state’s government eight years ago.

It began with Act 10, which gutted the collective bargaining power of teachers and other public-sector workers in 2011. Four years later Walker signed a right-to-work bill, weakening the bargaining power of all unions.

And last year, Wisconsin Republicans unleashed a pair of attacks on union tradespeople and their quality of life. One law banned local governments from entering into project labor agreements, which establish fair wage and benefit standards on construction projects. Another repealed the state’s prevailing-wage law, which builds fair wages into the public construction bidding process.

But it hasn’t just happened in Wisconsin.

“We’ve got to keep Minnesota from going the way of Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Alabama, Kentucky, New Mexico – all states that since 2012 have gone right to work, have banned project labor agreements and have eliminated prevailing wage,” said Tony McGarvey, government affairs liaison for District 82 of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades.

Already, the effects of Wisconsin’s anti-worker agenda are noticeable even here in Minnesota.

In Rochester, where construction of a Destination Medical Center has helped create a booming job market for tradespeople, Painters Local 681 rep Scott Parker said he sees an “influx of union workers coming over from Wisconsin,” where they would earn less for doing the same work.

“If we go right to work, where do we go? North Dakota? South Dakota? Wisconsin? Iowa?” Parker said. “We are an island surrounded by right to work. Where will I go to make the money I’m making now?”

Prevailing wage: A case study

No issue better represents what’s at stake for construction workers in this election than prevailing wage.

Minnesota’s prevailing wage laws establish wage floors in regions across the state that contractors must agree to meet in order to win bids on publicly funded construction projects. The principle behind the law is that workers should be able to afford to live in the area where they find work.

Opponents argue that repealing the law would save taxpayers money, and as a former state legislator, it’s an argument Carly Melin, now executive director of the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council, has heard plenty of times.

“We know repealing prevailing wage doesn’t save the public any money,” Melin said. “The contractor still makes the money, it’s just the workers who see less of it in their paychecks.”

The vast majority of peer-reviewed academic studies on prevailing wage support Melin’s claim, according to a report issued earlier this year by researchers at the nonpartisan Midwest Economic Policy Institute and Colorado State University-Pueblo.

The report concludes that if Minnesota joins its neighbors in repealing prevailing wage, tradespeople stand to lose their wage advantage and more. “Minnesota’s prevailing wage law supports self-sufficient construction workers,” the report’s authors, Frank Manzo and Dr. Kevin Duncan, concluded.

By comparing data from seven Upper Midwest states, the report found Minnesota tradespeople are doing better than their counterparts in Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin – states without strong (or any) prevailing wage laws. Because Minnesota still has prevailing wage on the books, construction workers here see 5.2 percent higher incomes, are more likely to have health and pension benefits, and are less likely to rely on food stamps.

Threat to apprenticeship

In fact, rather than driving up public construction costs, the researchers found Minnesota’s prevailing wage law actually delivers significant value to the state in terms of workforce development.

By setting a higher wage floor, the law guarantees local union contractors a fair shake at publicly bid construction projects. And when Building Trades union members are working, a portion of their wages are deducted to help fund their unions’ apprenticeship training programs, which provide world-class training opportunities to thousands of Minnesotans without any government funding.

Without prevailing wage, the authors conclude, Minnesota contractors who participate in apprenticeship training programs would lose more bids to “fly-by-night contractors from neighboring states with low wages, resulting in fewer training opportunities (not to mention shoddier infrastructure).

That’s the reality Building Trades union members are now facing in states like Wisconsin and Michigan – labor strongholds where “we never would have thought they would repeal prevailing wage,” Melin said. And it’s a threat Minnesota’s Building Trades unions are hoping to keep at bay by electing Tim Walz governor Nov. 6.

“If it can happen in Wisconsin and it can happen in Michigan, then it can happen in Minnesota,” Melin said. “We have a lot at stake.”

Filed Under: Organizing, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Construction unions recruit veterans to trade helmets for hardhats

July 26, 2018 by
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Jared Anderson, an apprentice with Sheet Metal Workers Local 10, talks about making the transition from the Air Force into a construction career with help from Helmets to Hardhats.

DULUTH — Minnesota’s construction unions kicked off their annual convention today by highlighting the career opportunities their apprenticeship programs create for military veterans like Jared Anderson.

Now a second-year apprentice with Sheet Metal Workers Local 10, Anderson entered the union in 2016 after leaving the U.S. Air Force, where he served as a staff sergeant. Helmets to Hardhats, a nationwide initiative that connects veterans with union construction jobs, referred Anderson to Local 10’s apprenticeship program.

Since then, in addition to his hands-on training, Anderson has worked on construction projects at Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport, Stillwater High School, New Prague Middle School and elsewhere.

“I love it. It was such an easy transition for me,” he said. “Every day you have a mission. We’ve got to get the building up, and here’s what you’ve got to do. Now do it.”

Anderson spoke at a morning press conference staged by the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades to mark “Hire a Veteran Month” in Minnesota. Justin Rost, state director of Helmets to Hardhats, said 20,000 military veterans have entered construction jobs since the organization launched nationwide in 2003.

People with a military background, Rost said, are a natural fit for work in the trades. They are accountable, disciplined and accustomed to taking and giving directions.

“They’re good employees right out of the gate even without any training,” Rost said.

Anderson said he was on the job site, earning a paycheck, “within a couple of days” of reaching out to Helmets to Hardhats. The organization also advised him to tap into housing benefits available to people in job training programs, a provision of the new GI Bill.

U.S. Rep. Tim Walz, the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, joined the press conference. He pointed to government research showing that veterans who find work within 90 days of finishing their military service are much less likely to access mental-health services from the Veterans Administration.

Minnesota lawmakers recognized the value of Helmets to Hardhats a year ago with designated funding to support its mission. The next step, Walz said, is to fund construction projects for the union contractors that hire veterans.

“Our job is to make you so busy that they have to hire every single one of these heroes coming out of the military,” Walz said.

For military veterans looking to start a new career, the first step is to create a profile on the Helmets to Hardhats website.

The Building Trades Council’s 72nd convention began this afternoon and runs through tomorrow morning.

Filed Under: Union Events Tagged With: , , ,

Trades-backed alliance ramps up recruitment as MN’s construction industry booms

May 16, 2018 by

A union-backed initiative to recruit more women and people of color into construction careers is hoping a new website will amplify its marketing push and help ease the industry’s stubborn labor shortage.

The Construction Careers Pathways Alliance, which brings together Building Trades unions, contractors, apprenticeship programs and other groups, revamped its website, constructioncareers.org, last month, adding dynamic photos, videos and graphics that designers hope will stand out on social media platforms popular with millennials.

The aim is to get young people “to really start looking at construction as a very viable career choice, with good wages and good benefits to sustain themselves and their family members,” said Pat Wagner, founding executive director of the Construction Careers Foundation, which oversees the initiative.

The website touts year-round opportunities available to young people looking to explore a career in the trades, including two summer programs on the horizon.

  • The MN Trades Academy is a paid internship available to selected Twin Cities high schoolers, who visit apprenticeship training centers and complete projects related to specific crafts.
  • Kids at Work, a summer program for students in grades 4 through 9, offers a crash course in STEM activities, presented within the context of the construction industry.

These summer programs complement the Career Pathways initiative’s year-round work with school districts across the state to bring construction concepts back into the classroom. Thirteen school districts have partnered with the alliance to add the “multi-craft curriculum,” a Building Trades-endorsed program, to their tech-ed courses.

Construction classes “have been lost from the high school curriculum, whether it’s due to financial constraints or a shift in focus to four-year college degrees,” Wagner said.

Sparking a student’s interest in construction is just the first step, she added. The adults in a student’s life often turn out to be the tougher sell.

Pat Wagner

“You can see the light in their eyes when they get hooked,” Wagner said. “But we need to reach young people early on so the discussions can start at home concerning their future.”

The construction industry in Minnesota, however, is ripe with career opportunities.

In a survey taken last year by the Associated General Contractors, 90 percent of Minnesota contractors who responded said they anticipated hiring craftspeople in the next 12 months. Three-quarters said they expected it to be as hard or harder to find qualified applicants.

Recognizing the need to restock the pipeline of tradespeople, state lawmakers allotted funds two years ago to support Construction Career Pathways’ work to bring people from non-traditional backgrounds into the trades.

Unions, too, have been critical in supporting the initiative. It’s not often labor and management groups wholeheartedly agree on anything, which indicates just how serious the industry is about preparing the next generation of tradespeople for work.

“We’re really looking at a changing workforce, an aging workforce,” Wagner said. “We are in need of educating individuals of color, the immigrant population and young women. That is our future workforce, and we are reaching out to them.”

Change will take time, but the foundation’s work already has had an impact. Since 2017 over 7,000 students from 170 schools statewide attended or participated in a program sponsored by alliance. Female students accounted for 32 percent of those participants; 74 percent came from underrepresented communities.

“We need to provide young people with exposure and hands-on experiences,” Wagner said. “If young people have that experience, they tend to learn that it’s not their hands, it’s their minds and their passion and creativity that they are using.”

Filed Under: Community, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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