January 7, 2011
Project labour agreement (PLA) has been removed from U.S. bidding process after Associated Builders and Contractors protest
WASHINGTON, D.C.
A government-mandated project labour agreement (PLA) has been removed from the bidding process for the construction of a $50 million U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Research Office Building in Pittsburgh.
The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) applauded the removal of the PLA as result of a bid protest filed Oct. 18, 2010, with the United States Government Accountability Office.
“PLAs are special interest schemes that force all bidders for construction projects to sign a labour agreement with construction unions as a condition of performing work,” said ABC president and CEO Kirk Pickerel. “This is the fourth successful bid protest that ABC has supported on behalf of one of its members against unlawful PLA schemes on federal construction projects. This case gives us the clearest indication yet that PLAs violate federal competitive bidding laws.”
ABC member company Bridges Construction of Pittsburgh, supported and assisted by ABC, filed a bid protest with the GAO. The protest challenged the VA’s PLA mandate that appeared in a September bid solicitation for the Research Office Building. The PLA requirement discriminated against qualified open shop contractors and their employees by imposing union dues requirements and inefficient and costly union work rules as a condition of performing work on the project. During the course of the GAO protest, the VA revealed that its own PLA impact study found imposing a PLA on the project would increase costs by millions of dollars, would reduce the number of bidders and subcontractors, and would decrease the pool of skilled labour.
Numerous studies show that PLAs discourage open shop contractors and subcontractors from competing for federal contracts, according to ABC.
DCN NEW SERVICES
| MOST POPULAR STORIES |
| TODAY’S TOP CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS |
These projects have been selected from 515 projects with a total value of $3,642,725,048 that Reed Construction Data Building Reports reported on Friday.
$47,000,000 Metro Toronto Reg ON Tenders
$40,000,000 Ottawa ON Negotiated
$34,000,000 East Gwillimbury ON Prebid
| CURRENT STORIES |
- Ex-Canadian military bases can be transformed
- Shop and Sleep
- Martin remembered for infectious laugh and mentorship
- Staffing levels and safety drive Ontario elevator worker strike
- Proposed wood-frame use meets opposition
- Provincial MPP supporters of prompt payment legislation excited at prospects
- Concrete airplane in South Dakota takes flight
- Opposition tackle Harper government on lack of youth employment
- Construction Site Arson
- VIDEO: Journal of Commerce Update for the week of May 27th, 2013
- Commercial Construction
- Ruling vindicates company that hired Chinese workers
- Acetylene torch explosion causes significant damage
- Investigation continues in deliberate Vancouver duplex fire
- Ancient First Nations site damaged during BC Hydro work
- On Target
- Global engineering guidelines taking shape
- Fit to Work program being developed
- Dire prediction
- Canada and Ireland sign recognition agreement
| ALEX’S ECONOMICS BLOG |
Reed Construction Data Canada’s Chief Economist Alex Carrick discusses current developments in the North American economic environment with emphasis on the construction industry.
- An Overview of Prices and Sales in the Diverging U.S. and Canadian Housing Markets (April 25, 2013)
- Canada’s Precarious Dependence on the Commodity Price Super-Cycle (April 22, 2013)
- Twenty major upcoming residential and transportation terminal construction projects - April 2013 (April 15, 2013)
- More
