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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 3, 2006)
...Survey says Oregonians favor prevailing wage rates (From Page 8) standards on mixed-use projects. At the Oct. 18 work session, Shiprack and the nonunion Associated Building and Contractors spokesman Shawn Miller agreed that any solution to the mixed-use development debate likely will have to come from the Leg- islature by revamping state prevailing wage statute. “Right now, PDC can take the lead to help solve it,” Shiprack said. During testimony before PDC com- missioners, apprentices, journeymen and women, a contractor and several union officials praised the virtues of prevailing wage projects. Even the nonunion contractors testifying against prevailing wages, when asked by com- missioners, said that their employees “are extremely happy” when they work on prevailing wage jobs. Shiprack shared results from a re- cent survey his council conducted showing that 67 percent of Portlanders think PDC should require contractors to pay the prevailing wage on all proj- ects. “Citizens’ number one issue is to make PDC more accountable,” he told commissioners. b h m k John Mohlis, executive secretary- treasurer of the Columbia-Pacific Building Trades Council, distributed a flier showing union pension fund in- vestments of more than $83 million in the central city, and more than $22 mil- lion on the South Waterfront Develop- ment since 2002. In Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties, building trades union pension funds have invested more than $256 million. “We’re helping build this commu- nity, and our investments are getting decent returns,” Mohlis said. “And we’re doing it paying higher wages and benefits than the prevailed rates call for.” Moreover, Mohlis continued, every dollar paid to local construction work- ers is spent directly on goods and serv- ices in their communities. New work- ers are recruited and paid to get training in their chosen craft, and unions are leaders in volunteering to work on proj- ects for nonprofit organizations. “Prevailing wage laws create a level playing field for all contractors. The most productive and profitable will step forward,” Mohlis said. “It’s not a race to which contractor can get away with paying the lowest wages and providing Bennett Hartman Morris & Kaplan, llp Attorneys at Law Oregon’s Full Service Union Law Firm Representing Workers Since 1960 the fewest benefits.” During public testimony, several women and minorities from union crafts and Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. presented testimony supporting pre- vailing wage laws. Most said they learned their crafts while working on prevailing wage jobs in Portland. Nichole Craine, a fifth-term Car- penter apprentice and mother of six, said her training helped her and her family become more self-sufficient. “I now have a skill and career that I can pass on to them,” she said. William Carr, a journeyman mem- ber of Sheet Metal Workers Local 16, asked commissioners not to do away with prevailing wage rules. “Working on prevailing wage proj- ects has allowed me the opportunity to be a successful father,” he said. A homeowner and the father of four PDC to hold final prevailing wage work session boys, Carr said he now makes enough money so that his wife can stay home to be with their kids. “We’re homeowners, we have health insurance, we pay our taxes, we pay our bills,” said Chris Wade, a jour- neyman member of Local 16 who has a degree in English. “It’s not like anybody’s getting rich,” added Amy Fuger, also a Sheet Metal Local 16 apprentice. Fuger said that when she finishes her apprenticeship training she will have an associate’s degree in sheet metal technology. Carol Duncan, owner of General Sheet Metal Works, a union shop that bids on a lot of prevailing wage work, told commissioners, “It shouldn’t be a union or nonunion case. Without pre- vailing wage protections the low bid would cause the industry to erode. It The Portland Development Commission will hold its third and final prevailing wage work session on Thursday, Nov. 9, from 4 to 9 p.m. in the PDC con- ference room at 222 NW Fifth Ave., Portland. PDC, the quasi-independent development arm of the Portland City Council, set up three work- shops to determine whether or not it should set wage and benefit re- quirements on projects that aren’t clearly subject to the state prevail- ing wage law. PDC will announce its inten- tions at its regular board meeting Wednesday, Nov. 29. ...’Battle in Seattle’ (From Page 5) Chief Norm Stamper and the failure of Mayor Paul Schell to win re-elec- tion in 2001. Because the Seattle protests were covered worldwide by the media, 50,000 protesters were able to reach hundreds of millions of people, many of whom had never heard of the WTO. Their acts inspired people all over the globe — including “Battle in Seat- tle” director Townsend, who told a fan Web site this film means more to him than anything else he’s ever done. It’s not clear whether he talked with any protest organizers in preparing for the film. Rumor has it Townsend favors shooting at least exteriors in Seattle but may be overruled by funders. So far, the project’s minimal pub- licity has played up the “riot” aspect of the protests, but the producers have said all perspectives will be treated fairly. Those who were there — including tens of thousands of Washington and Oregon unionists who lived the protests firsthand — will be undoubt- edly be watching closely to see if that pledge bears out when the film ap- pears in theaters. Filming is expected to continue in Vancouver, B.C. through mid-Decem- ber. The film will be released some time in 2007. Steve Stuart Supports Good Jobs! We Now Help With Social Security Disability Claims BHMK proudly introduces our newest team member, Sharon Maynard, an experienced practitioner of Social Security Disability Law. We Work Hard for Hard-Working People! •Labor Law •Employment Law •Personal Injury •Workers’ Compensation •Civil Rights •Family Law •Social Security 111 SW Fifth Avenue, Suite 1650 Portland, Oregon 97204 (503) 227-4600 www.bennetthartman.com Our Legal Staff are Proud Members of UFCW Local 555 PAGE 12 Steve Stuart with Mike Sinner, Teamsters Local 58 Steve Delivers: • Energy • Ideas • Results for Labor! Steve has stood up for working people in Clark County, and now they’re standing up for him with endorsements: • Laborer Local 335 • International Longshore & Warehouse Union Local 4 • SW WA Electrician's PAC #48 • Clark County Central Labor Council • AFSCME • PNWRC • Joint Council of Teamsters, No. 37 • ATU Visit RE-ELECT www.stuartforclarkcounty.com Paid for by Committee to Re-Elect Steve Stuart (D), 1010 Washington Street, Suite 240, Vancouver, WA 98660 Re-elect Steve because we love it here! NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS NOVEMBER 3, 2006
