Construction Labor Report Index-Summary

RACIAL DISCRIMINATION

– Assignments, promotions, and harassment, Ga. home builder pays damages, change practices, EEOC accord (N.D. Ga.), 573
– Bidding process, marine contractor claims that Mich. County Road Comm'n rejection of minority contractor (Mich. Ct. App.), 284
– Disadvantaged business enterprises

See DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISES (DBEs)

– Hostile environment, elevator helper called names by supervisor, demotion after failing mechanic test, criminal record, layoff (M.D. Tenn.), 1450
– Layoffs, Hispanic carpenter fired after working on hospital contractor not rehired, no evidence of animus (10th Cir.), 1153
– Retaliation, SMWIA referral process had disparate impact on African Americans (W.D. Mo.), 87
– Roofing contractors, EEOC settlement (W.D.N.Y.), 733
– Union employee wins retaliation suit tied to assistance of other employee's bias claim (W.D. Wis.), 821
– Working conditions and pay, Hispanic workers charge drywall contractor, accord (D. Minn.), 439

RACIAL HARASSMENT

– Damages, Houston contractor to pay for harassment based on national origin, Islamic faith, and race, EEOC accord (S.D. Tex.), 274
– Offensive jokes and slurs, N.J. town will pay damages to road worker for supervisor comment, DOJ accord (D.N.J.), 545
– Racially charged comments and noose at work site, owners' brothers, EEOC accord (E.D. Mo.), 463
– Retaliation, joint employers, machine operator subjected to racist incidents at lessee work site (4th Cir.), 699
– Slurs and nooses, black laborers on gas pipeline maintenance and construction project (E.D. Ohio), 503

RACKETEER INFLUENCED AND CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS (RICO) ACT

– Bribery, former UBC official guilty plea, let contractors skirt payment of wages and benefits (S.D.N.Y.), 687; last remaining defendant on trial, 1037; jury convicts contractor association official for perjury in RICO scheme, 1085; sentenced, 1167
– Conspiracy, IUOE Local 17 official pleads guilty to criminal enterprise to force owners to hire union members (W.D.N.Y.), 208
– Corruption, UBC Local 608 former business agent pleads guilty, 783
– Crime family, extortion and LMRA violations, charges against member serving time in another case dropped, others to be sentenced (D.N.J.), 529
– Defrauding UBC benefit funds, trustee and contractor representative, common plan or scheme (S.D.N.Y.), 140; review officer appointed, 457; union business agent guilty plea, 606; Local 608 official guilty plea, 640
– Extortion and racketeering, members of crime family plead guilty (S.D.N.Y.), 1369
– Fraudulent classification to evade taxes, painting and refinishing workers, mail and wire fraud (E.D. Mich.), 471
– Gambling, extortion, fraud, and bribery, crime family member sentenced, restitution due to IUOE Local 825 pension fund (D.N.J.), 1087
– Kickbacks, wire fraud, bypassing LIUNA hiring list, embezzlement of union assets, crime family associate sentenced (D.N.J.), 1022; business manager and others sentenced, 1513
– Organized crime family, boss and members charged, extorted NYC unions, contractors, developers, and suppliers (S.D.N.Y.), 234
– Prevailing wages, mailing payroll records to unionized public works contractor for certification (D. Mass.), 1582
– Ties to organized crime, LIUNA and ILA locals, 127 defendants charged with crimes in N.Y.C. area sweep, 1436
– Using shell nonunion firms to evade IBT pact contributions, N.Y. organized crime family members charged (E.D.N.Y.), 44

RAILROADS

– Ass'n of Am. Railroads, suit challenging OSHA cranes and derricks rule (3d Cir.), 1086
– Cal., high-speed rail system, labor market assessment bill, 742
– Cross-Border Transportation, U.S. and Mexican officials to meet in Tex. to push forward projects, 677
– Freight, capital investment would create jobs, should be considered green, report, 341
– Nev., Interstate 15 corridor, magnetic rail project, FRA mandated to use funds earmarked for environmental impact study to deploy, 273

REAL ESTATE

– Illegal immigrants, Neb. court declines to address city authority to bar undocumented workers from renting dwellings (Neb.), 1126
– Lead, EPA authority to regulate renovation, repair, and painting of renovation, repair, and painting in commercial and public buildings questioned, coalition, 612
– Residential leases, EPA rules requiring lessors to disclose presence of lead paint reasonable, within Lead Hazard Act scope (11th Cir.), 703
– Ryan Cos., OSHA strategic partnership with Wis., trade group, and firm, make work environment safer, 664

REBATES

– Building Star Energy Efficiency Act

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 5476

RECOGNITION OF UNIONS

– Employee Free Choice Act proposal

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 1409, S 560

– ULPs

– – Dywall contractor's unlawful recognition of UBC, OP&CMIA pact (NLRB), 69; 3-member panel affirms earlier ruling (NLRB), 820
– – Withholding recognition after pact expiration, unilaterally changing terms and conditions of employment (NLRB), 1371; injunction request granted (N.D. Ind.), 1480

RECORDKEEPING

– False tax returns, evading reporting, and off-the-books cash payroll, N.Y.C. cement contractor sentenced (S.D.N.Y.), 1199; contractor's brother sentenced, 1559
– Federal contractors, URS Energy & Constr., E.O. 11246 violations, accord (DOL ALJ), 1148
– Forms

See FORMS

– Injury and illness

– – Final rule modernizing is highest priority, administrator says, 530; Construction Directorate welcomes, official tells ASSE, 534; business opposes modernization, unions hail, privacy and electronic datakeeping concerns, 616; prevention program highest priority for Natl. Safety Council, supports voluntary protection program funding, 926; developing and instituting program continues to be top priority, Michaels, 989; revised directive, pilot national emphasis program, focus on manufacturing, larger worksites, and firms with higher injury rates, 1023; GOP plans to clamp down on detrimental rules could temper 2011 expectations, Outlook, 1412
– – Pilot national emphasis program, temporary halt, 757; OSHA releases violation data, 873; latest data shows higher noncompliance rate, 1440

– Limitations period, timeliness of citations for regulatory compliance more than 6 months after violations (OSHRC), 1120
– Multiemployer plans, PBGC asking for public comments, OMB approval of current rules extension needed, 1143
– OSHA, pilot national emphasis program, higher noncompliance rates in targeted workplace inspections, Michaels, 1368
– OSHA, rules amending requirements, regulatory agenda, 1289
– Work-related musculoskeletal disorders, OSHA plans final rule, add column on OSHA 300 log, semiannual regulatory agenda, 264; White House regulatory office extends review period, 990

REDUCTIONS IN FORCE (RIFs)

– Whistleblowing, manager lost job, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, restructuring, pretext (N.D. Ohio), 474

REFINERIES

See OIL AND GAS

REGISTRATION

See LICENSES AND LICENSING

REHABILITATION ACT

– Individuals with disabilities, OFCCP to request data on how federal contractors can better monitor recruitment and hiring, semiannual regulatory agenda, 263

REINSTATEMENT

– Just cause, firing for unopened beer in company truck at job site, arbitrator did not exceed authority, violate public policy (D.N.J.), 1393

RELIGIOUS HARASSMENT

– Damages, Houston contractor to pay for harassment of non-white, Islamic and East Indian workers, EEOC accord (S.D. Tex.), 274

REMEDIES

– Back pay

See BACK PAY

– Exhaustion

See EXHAUSTION OF REMEDIES

– Fines

See PENALTIES

– Remedial notices, electronic posting, amicus briefs by interested parties filed with NLRB support, U.S. Chamber of Commerce opposes, 613

REMODELING CONTRACTORS

– Elk Remodeling, sex bias, only female worker, firing after refusing to waive rights under new plan (E.D. Va.), 500

RENOVATION

– Community Restoration and Revitalization Act

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 3716, S 1743

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

– E-Verify, Mayorkas defends transformation to electronic case management, House hearing, 74
– ERISA

See ERISA

– False tax returns, evading reporting, and off-the-books cash payroll, N.Y.C. cement contractor sentenced (S.D.N.Y.), 1199; contractor's brother sentenced, 1559
– Forms

See FORMS

– LMRDA

See LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT (LMRDA)

– Weatherization Assistance Program, final DOE rules to grant recipients, 13

REPORTS

– Ed. Note: For information on publications, reports, studies, and surveys, see specific subject headings.

REPRESENTATION

– Union

See specific unions
– – Fair representation duty

See FAIR REPRESENTATION DUTY

REPRESENTATION ELECTIONS

– Construction unions, NLRB election statistics, BNA report, 2009, 363; first half, 2010, 1086
– Employee Free Choice Act proposal

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 1409, S 560

– IUPAT representation dispute sent to NLRB (9th Cir.), 738
– NLRB supervised, BLS report, 1997-2009, 620
– Ontario, contractor improperly influenced worker vote, but no automatic certification (O.L.R.B.), 1589
– Secret ballots, ballot initiatives in Ariz., S.C., S.D., and Utah pass, effort to preclude EFCA, 1127; NLRB says NLRA preempts, 1439; Secret Ballot Protection Act, see LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, S 217; state lawyers inform NLRB of intent to defend state laws, 1475
– Timeliness, NLRB member urges shortening time between filing petition and election, 1053

REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS (RFPs)

– Mass., state competitive bidding law, long-term lease with developer to build and maintain Univ. of Mass. student housing (Mass.), 442
– Pa., using RFPs instead of sealed bids, university building renovation project, standards for lesser practice (Pa. Commw. Ct.), 438

RES JUDICATA

– Pact breach, highway contractor suit after damages award for failure to get permits for night work (Fla. Dist. Ct.), 410

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

– California

– – San Diego, ordinance establishing local jobs policy being drafted, 29; city attorney reports on legality of local hiring policies, council directs ordinance for bid discounts, 320
– – San Francisco, legislation requiring contractors on municipal projects to hire residents pending, 1065; slower implementation of planned mandate proposed after talks with contractors and unions, 1207; supervisors approve, 1242; law effective, mayor returns without signature, 1341

– Criminal records, initiatives to stimulate local hiring employed by many cities, NELP report, 622
– Del., Commerce Clause, state DOL rule requiring out-of-state contractors to pay journeyman wage rates to non-Del. apprentices on public works projects (D. Del.), 251
– Ill., bill giving preferences on state public works projects signed, 552
– Iowa, preferences, Master Builders of Iowa barring contract award for new prison to Chicago contractor, data request (Iowa Dist. Ct.), 1040; governor orders contract awarded to lowest bidder, 1066; state awarding contract to Chicago contractor upheld (ALJ), 1180
– Mass., Holyoke, proposal establishing residency goals, training programs for women and minorities, dropped after utility contractors threaten suit, city solicitor advice on constitutional challenge, 1003
– Mo., law restricting public works projects to Mo. residents and residents of states without residency reuirements challenged (E.D. Mo.), 1001
– Nevada Jobs First, preferences for firms using state workers in public contract bidding, 1558

RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION

– Beazer Homes USA, failure to workers of financial difficulties from mortgage crisis, fiduciaries continuing to offer company stock (N.D. Ga.), 218
– Bubble-related demand, job creation, BLS report, 2005, 1333
– Builder confidence, January 2011, 1546
– Building Star Energy Efficiency Act

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 5476

– Building Star Energy Efficiency Rebate Act

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, S 3079

– California

– – Marina Heights, project on closed military base, prevailing wages duty for housing development (Cal. Ct. App.), 1403
– – Merifee site shut down for using inadequate and unapproved fall protection kits, 93

– Common grant process, BCTD praises DOT plan to join HUD in awarding highway and housing funding, 567
– DR Horton, undocumented workers, misclassification as independent contractors, UBC and contractor class action (D.N.J.), 648
– Energy-efficient HVAC systems, solar panels, and insulation, rebate program proposal, 15
– Fall protection and crushing hazards, OSHA proposed fines for balcony collapse during construction, 619
– Fall protection, OSHA advisory panel to discuss, 147; OSHA to rescind interim guidelines soon, as previously recommended, Michaels , 1194; guidelines formally rescinded in June, 2011, replace with new directive, semiannual regulatory agenda, 1291
– FY2011 budget, Senate panel approves military funding and veterans affairs' spending, funds schools and housing worldwide, 645
– Housing starts

See NEW CONSTRUCTION

– Livable Communities Act

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, S 1619

– Outlook, ABC economic forecast, 2011, 1110
– Prate Installations, arbitration award for UBC most favored nation clause violations upheld but may not get damages after pact end (7th Cir.), 465
– Pulte Homes

– – Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, LIUNA mass e-mail, attempt to disrupt business operations (E.D. Mich.), 440
– – FMLA, retaliation and interference, firing for performance and disgruntled customer, right to start not absolute (11th Cir.), 216

– Sulfur-contaminated drywall, Virginia homeowners get damages, default-related ruling against Chinese drywall maker (E.D. La.), 219; Louisiana homeowner gets damages, liability stipulated, 317; industrial hygienists urge OSHA or NIOSH to investigate, issue guidance on precautions, 1026; exposure to contaminated drywall not contributing factors in deaths, CPSC announces CDC report, 1476
– Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods, sales staff assigned based on race, failure to promote blacks or women, and harassing complainant, EEOC accord (N.D. Ga.), 573
– Wis., low-income housing, bill funding bonds for construction will create jobs, 124; tax credits to fund affordable housing praised, 587

RESPIRATORS

See PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE)

RESTRAINING ORDERS

See INJUNCTIONS

RETAIL INDUSTRY

– Apple Store, SMWIA Local 73 relinquished fine against UBC, interest in remaining work disclaimer (N.D. Ill.), 1539
– Grocery stores

See GROCERY STORES

– Small Mall, wooden joists along roof not adequate fall protection under N.Y. scaffold law (N.Y. App. Div.), 1303
– Wal-Mart

– – Building and Constr. Trades Council of Greater N.Y., PLA attained, 1526
– – Chicago, job creation, unions may block plan to build several dozen area stores, 552; UFCW and Chicago Labor Federation endorses, zoning approved, 586
– – Pre-hire pact, concrete contractor signed with LIUNA, unilateral repudiation, no misrepresentation (7th Cir.), 243

RETALIATION

– 1st Amend., contractor status as prequalified bidder revoked after contractor criticized Okla. highway project design (11th Cir.), 502
– FMLA interference, firing for performance and disgruntled customer, right to start leave not absolute (11th Cir.), 216
– Outreach, OSHA training program to teach workers' rights, 536
– Qui tam, foreman retaliation for false claims on U.S. embassy in Iraq, no fraud or adverse treatment (4th Cir.), 649
– Racial harassment, hostile environment, joint employers, machine operator subjected to racist incidents at lessee work site (4th Cir.), 699
– Union employee wins suit tied to assistance of other employee's bias claim (W.D. Wis.), 821

RETIREE HEALTH BENEFITS

– Anti-cutback rule, ERISA, pension amendment removes monthly supplement for early retirement in lieu of postretirement benefits (D.S.C.), 220
– Preservation of Access To Care For Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act

See PRESERVATION OF ACCESS TO CARE FOR MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES AND PENSION RELIEF ACT

– Termination, ending benefits when Volvo went out of business violated UAW pact (U.S., rev den), 21

RETIREMENT

– 401(k) plans

See 401(k) PLANS

– Imminent, recruitment and retention of young workers to avert talent deficiencies, report, 691
– IRAs

See INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS (IRAs)

– Post-retirement plans other than pensions, FASB project to improve multiemployer plan participation disclosures, 103

RFPs

See REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS (RFPs)

RHODE ISLAND

– Transp. Dept., bond measure allows borrowing to match federal highway funds, direct financing of infrastructure improvements approved, 1131

RICO

See RACKETEER INFLUENCED AND CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS (RICO) ACT

RIGHT-TO-WORK

– Idaho, provisions for public works tabled, 57; lawmakers weighing new bills outlawing market recovery, PLAs in state projects, 1494
– Ind., Democrats boycott session to deny GOP vote on bills harmful to unions, 1587
– Mich., GOP controlled legislature, proposal gives municipal financial managers power to circumvent CBAs, right-to-work, prevailing wages, 1587

RIPENESS

– Or., law bars worker discipline for missing mandatory meetings where employers views on unions expressed, 1st Amend. and NLRA preemption (D. Or.), 343
– Salting, IBB request to review retroactivity of remedies for refusing to hire organizers unripe (2d Cir., rev den), 408

ROOFERS, WATERPROOFERS, AND ALLIED WORKERS (RWAW)

– Local 49, benefits plan victim of bankruptcy fraud by contractor, guilty plea (D. Ore.), 815

ROOFING CONTRACTORS

– A.W. Farrell & Son, refusal to provide jurisdictional provisions of pact, ULP (NLRB), 1238
– Colo., legislation creating registry and process for examination, bonding, and liability insurance needed, report, 1068
– Elmer W. Davis, EEOC race bias settlement (W.D.N.Y.), 733
– Falcon Roofing, Cal. shuts down residential construction site for using inadequate and unapproved fall protection kits, 93
– Ill., law imposing criminal penalties for contractors who misrepresent licensing status signed, 708
– Kirberg Roofing, OSHA cites, proposes fines after worker death from fall through roof opening, 1053
– Lakeside Roofing and Shay Roofing, Mo. law restricting public works projects to Mo. residents and residents of states without residency reuirements challenged (E.D. Mo.), 1001
– Leed Indus., N.Y.

– – Port Chester, contractors charged with failure to pay prevailing wages on school and other public projects (N.Y. Crim. Ct.), 382
– – Withholding funds owned to contractor to satisfy prevailing wage violations (S.D.N.Y.), 217

– Negligence, failure to provide safe workplace, claim against homeowners for roofer fall (8th Cir.), 962

RULES AND REGULATIONS

– Executive Order, regulatory reform, recent order could cut delivery time for transportation projects, DOT proactive, 1443
– Generally

See specific agencies and subjects

– Regulations.gov, OMB best practice guidelines to improve E-Rulemaking, 1263
– Semi-annual regulatory agendas

See specific agencies and departments