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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (June 16, 2006)
...Labor officials fight for family-wage pay scale from PDC (From Page 1) Leonard says the solution is to make PDC more directly accountable to the City Council. PDC, created by Port- land voters in 1958, is unusual in that it’s a semi-autonomous city depart- ment. It’s governed by its own board, whose members are appointed by the mayor and approved by City Council. City Council also must approve new bonds and the boundaries of any new urban renewal districts. Other than that, PDC — the city’s largest agency — is insulated from democratic accountabil- ity. It doesn’t need to go before City Council to approve its budget or its pri- orities. That has attracted criticism, most commonly that PDC is run by and for big downtown developers, with citizen input an afterthought. But Mayor Tom Potter is seen as less close to developer interests than his predecessor Vera Katz. And since taking office, he made his wishes very clear: That PDC change its focus to helping small businesses. Commissioner Leonard says he has- n’t seen that change happening. “Until recently, they argued that council couldn’t even audit their books,” Leonard says. Last year, Leonard proposed refer- ring to Portland voters a city charter change that would eliminate the PDC board and make PDC accountable to City Council just like other bureaus — and like development bureaus in most other cities. His proposal failed 4 to 1. A year later, some think a proposal like that could pass. “It’s like the sun and moon and stars got lined up and all of sudden City Council is starting to pay attention to PDC,” says Bob Shiprack, executive secretary of the Oregon State Building and Construction Trades Council. PDC invited hundreds of residents to help weigh competing bids for a Central Eastside development project on the East end of the Burnside Bridge — and then rejected the bid that got the most public support. And last year, a series of mini-scandals over misuse of funds led to a shakeup on the PDC board and the resignation of PDC’s ex- ecutive director. So the time may be right for struc- tural reform of PDC, Shiprack thinks. In case City Council shrinks from the task, Shiprack’s group, made up of construction unions in the AFL-CIO la- bor federation, is considering a ballot Pete Savage, regional manager of the Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters, testifies before the Portland City Council June 7 about the benefits of prevailing wage requirements on projects funded by PDC. With Savage are John Mohlis, executive secretary-treasurer of the Columbia-Pacific Building Trades Council, and Jim Francesconi, an attorney and former city commissioner. initiative along the lines Leonard pro- posed. Shiprack said he expects to hire a pollster to test Portlanders’ receptivity to that change — or to a requirement that PDC abide by the prevailing wage law. “We know there’s public support for family-waged jobs,” Shiprack said. In fact, a failed 1994 statewide ballot measure aimed at repealing the prevail- ing wage law got its strongest margin of victory in Portland. To refer a charter change to voters, the City Council would have to act by mid August. At the June 6 meeting, Potter said he wanted to see what comes of his Charter Review Commit- tee — a group of citizens picked by the mayor to look at the charter and pro- pose changes. Though it hasn’t re- leased its formal proposals, the com- mittee has reportedly rejected the idea of bringing PDC under council author- ity. If PDC were brought in, City Coun- cil could scrap the lawsuit against BOLI, and pass an ordinance settling the matter of prevailing wages. Whether that happens or not, build- ing trades union leaders are increas- ingly making their agenda part of city policy discussions, responding to what they see as a welcoming mood on the council — and council interest in poli- cies aimed at paying working people a living wage. On May 18, Mayor Potter met with building trades union officials at a breakfast organized by the Northwest Oregon Labor Council. Later that day, the Metropolitan Al- liance for Common Good (MACG), a coalition of churches, unions and other community groups, brought City Com- missioners Leonard and Erik Sten to the stage at an assembly in the gymna- sium of Concordia College — to hear the message that construction contrac- tors should be required to provide com- prehensive health care for employees and their families when public dollars are involved. Sten and Leonard said they agreed. [Last year, MACG won a non-binding commitment by PDC to increase funding for affordable hous- ing, though its parallel demand — that PROTECTING UNION MEMBERS’ SMILES AND WALLETS. Orthodontics Available Quality, Affordable Family Dental Care • General, cosmetic, and specialty care • Most insurance and union plans accepted • Easy credit and low monthly payments, O.A.C. • Evening and Saturday appointments • Ask about our Dental Discount Program Grants Pass 1021 NE 6th St. Grants Pass, OR 97526 541-479-6696 “I CAN GO TO ONE PLACE TO FIX IT ALL?” JUNE 16, 2006 Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Gresham 443 NW Burnside Road Gresham, OR 97030 503-492-8487 Salem 831 Lancaster Mall Dr. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-362-8359 Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Wilsonville 25700 SW Argyle Ave. Wilsonville, OR 97070 503-682-8552 Salmon Creek 2101 NE 129th St. Vancouver, WA 98686 360-574-4574 Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Real Estate Broker Milwaukie 17186 SE McLoughlin Blvd. Milwaukie, OR 97267 503-659-2525 7886 SE 13th Ave. Portland, Oregon 97202 Branch: 503-233-8883 Direct: 503-495-4932 Portland 3580 SE 82nd Ave. Portland, OR 97266 503-777-0761 Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Klamath Falls 4052 S. 6th St. Klamath Falls, OR 97603 541-883-7706 Gradine Storms E-Mail: gstorms@equitygroup.com www.equitygroup.com/gstorms the building be done by workers earn- ing prevailing wage — was rejected.] City Commissioner Sam Adams might well have been at the MACG as- sembly, too, except that a city ordi- nance restricts more than two council members from meeting without declar- ing it an official public meeting. For his part, Adams has assigned his labor liaison Terry Richardson to work with labor leaders to craft a proposed city ordinance codifying how the city deals with contractors. One approach being considered is a “responsible contractor” ordinance, along the lines of what the national AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department calls “best value” contracting. It’s also known as compet- itive sealed bidding; basically, it’s a bidding process like that used by the Oregon Department of Transportation and many federal agencies — in which factors other than cost are considered in awarding contracts. The city could require that contrac- tors — and subcontractors — prequal- ify as responsible contractors before bidding on public work. For example, they could be asked to demonstrate that they offer training, have a good safety record, pay decent wages and benefits, including family health benefits, and offer opportunities for minority work- ers. Richardson said the group is likely to seek support for a symbolic resolu- tion by the end of June, and something more tangible by the end of the sum- mer. Northwest Dental Associates, P.C. Chau Ngo, D.D.S., M.S. 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