Open Letter about Mitt Romney’s record as governor of Massachusetts
By FRANK CALLAHAN
President
Massachusetts BCTC
I am sure that many of you share my
frustration at trying to sift through cam-
paign commercials and talking points
to find out where the candidates for
president really stand on issues that are
important to you. Part of the problem
is Mitt Romney’s habit of changing his
positions to suit his audience.
One thing he can’t change is his
record. I had a front-row seat for Rom-
ney’s term as governor of Massachu-
setts. His positions and his actions on
the issues that have a direct impact on
building and construction trades work-
ers were not good for our members.
Wages: Romney filed legislation to
eliminate the prevailing wage on broad
segments of public construction proj-
ects. Romney vetoed a minimum wage
increase just two years after promising
to support raising it in his campaign.
Romney vetoed legislation to stiffen
penalties on employers that cheat
workers out of their proper wages.
Unemployment insurance: Rom-
ney filed legislation to reduce the num-
ber of weeks you could collect benefits,
made it far more difficult for construc-
tion workers to be eligible for benefits
and cut premiums to the point of jeop-
ardizing the financial health of the un-
employment fund.
Construction safety: Romney ve-
toed a bill to require a 10-hour Occu-
pational Safety and Health Administra-
tion (OSHA) training on public
projects. Romney said it “would in-
crease the cost of doing business for
contractors,” even though they are only
required to maintain a copy of a
worker’s OSHA 10-hour card. Ironi-
cally, this was one time when Romney
brought the Democrats and Republi-
cans together when members of both
parties in both the House and Senate
voted unanimously against Romney
and overrode his veto.
Apprentice training: Romney tried
to eliminate the state Division of Ap-
prentice Training in his first state
budget. He tried to undercut the divi-
sion’s funding every year after that.
Candidate Mitt Romney often
changes his positions to suit varying
segments of the electorate. On issues
impacting building and construction
trades workers, he has been consistent.
Candidate Romney has vowed to re-
peal Davis-Bacon prevailing wage, ban
project labor agreements and pass anti-
union “right to work” for less laws.
This is one area where Romney’s rhet-
oric matches his record. As governor of
Painting contractor Siegner
and Co. gets safety award
The Joint Safety Committee of the
Signatory Painting Contractors Organi-
zation (SPCO) and the International
Union of Painters and Allied Trades
District Council 5 presented its Con-
tractor of The Year Safety Award to
Siegner and Company.
The award is based on overall safety
record, participation in safety commit-
tee meetings, and for companywide in-
novation in safety programs. The com-
pany also maintains an innovative
internal safety rewards program to en-
courage employees to make jobsite
safety a priority.
Siegner and Company reported no
citations or on-the-job accidents among
its workforce of more than 40, for the
award period.
“The commercial and industrial
painting industry has become more
complex in regards to safety and train-
ing issues,” said John Kirkpatrick, di-
rector of the SPCO and District Council
5 Joint Safety Committee. “Our prior-
ity is the safety of our workforce and
the safety of our jobsites. Not only do
we contend with fall protection issues
on scaffolding, ladders and lifts, but also
the coating products that we use require
safe handling and disposal. Worker
safety for confined spaces and respira-
tory protection are also significant pri-
orities. Our OSHA (Occupational
Safety and Health Administration)-rec-
ognized Joint Safety Committee pro-
vides leadership for all of our contrac-
tors in developing and maintaining
strong safety programs. This year, Sieg-
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ner and Company’s safety record stood
out as exceptional.”
Siegner and Company was chosen
for the award from among union paint-
ing contractors in Oregon and South-
west Washington .
SPCO is an association of contrac-
tors that employ union labor. The or-
ganization has been recognized for its
emphasis on contractor safety and is a
past recipient of the Governor’s Occu-
pational Safety and Health (GOSH)
Award for an association.
For more information go online to:
www.spco.org.
...Union-built
airplanes
(From Page 4)
U.S.-made aircraft. Of the seven biggest
airlines:
• Southwest and Alaska: 100 per-
cent Boeing 737s.
• American: 100 percent Boeing
and McDonnell-Douglas.
• United: about 80 percent Boeing,
20 percent Airbus
• US Airways: about 75 percent
Boeing, 25 percent Airbus
• Delta: About 66 percent Boeing,
33 percent Airbus
• JetBlue: 0 percent Boeing, 100
percent Airbus for larger flights, and
Brazilian-made Embraer craft for
smaller.
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NOVEMBER 2, 2012
Massachusetts, every time Romney had
a choice between supporting workers’
interests and the interest of Big Busi-
ness, he chose Big Business every time.
Please keep this in mind when you
cast your vote on Nov. 6.
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