Operating Engineers rejoin
Building Trades Department
WASHINGTON, D.C. (PAI) —
After nearly eight years since leaving,
the International Union of Operating
Engineers rejoined the AFL-CIO
Building and Construction Trades De-
partment on Jan. 1.
“Raising our collective voice and
acting with common purpose through
this affiliation will benefit not only
IUOE members, but all union con-
struction tradesmen and women,” said
Operating Engineers international
President James Callahan. “We look
forward to working with (BCTD) to
create opportunities for construction
workers and to provide a reliable and
highly skilled workforce for contrac-
tors and owners. The construction in-
dustry and its workforce endured sig-
Business group sues
to stop workers’
rights poster
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Na-
tional Association of Manufacturers
(NAM) filed a lawsuit Dec. 18 chal-
lenging the U.S. Department of Labor’s
rule that requires federal contractors to
display posters informing workers of
their rights under the National Labor
Relations Act. The 11 by 17 inch poster
advises employees of their legal rights
to organize unions, bargain collectively,
and go on strike and picket without ret-
ribution by an employer. It also informs
workers of their rights not to join a
union or be coerced by union officials.
The employer group asserts that the
regulation violates the free speech
rights of employers by forcing them to
promote unionization of their work-
forces or risk losing federal contracts.
Last year, two federal appeals courts
struck down a similar poster rule issued
by the National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB). That rule covered most large
private businesses, not just federal con-
tractors.
The Labor Department rules, which
have been in place since 2010, affect
federal contractors and subcontractors
that employ about 16 million workers.
A spokeswoman for NAM told As-
sociate Press that her group is challeng-
ing the Labor Department rule now
based on the precedent set by the ap-
peals courts in the NLRB case.
The poster rule for federal contrac-
tors was approved by the Labor Depart-
ment’s Office of Labor Management
Standards. It was based on a White
House executive order signed by Presi-
dent Barack Obama shortly after he
took office in 2009.
Obama’s executive order rescinded
a prior executive order from President
George W. Bush that required federal
contractors to post a notice informing
employees of their rights “not to join a
labor union or pay fees for union ex-
penses that are unrelated to representa-
tion issues.”
NAM did not challenge Bush’s ex-
ecutive order.
PAGE 8
nificant losses in the recent recession,
but by working together as North
America’s building trades unions, we
can achieve a brighter and more pros-
perous future for our members.”
Building Trades Department Presi-
dent Sean McGarvey called the reaffil-
iation “a great day” for the construction
industry in North America in general,
and the union construction industry in
particular.
“With the Operating Engineers as a
formal partner, we will better serve the
needs of our clients, our customers, our
contractors and, most importantly, the
members we represent,” he said.
The Operating Engineers has ap-
proximately 400,000 members in 123
local unions throughout the United
States and Canada, including Local
701 in Gladstone, Oregon, and Wash-
ington Locals 286 in Auburn, 302 in
Bothell, 280 in Richland, 370 in
Spokane, and 612 in Tacoma.
It is the 10th largest union in the
AFL-CIO.
With the addition of the Operating
Engineers, the Building and Construc-
tion Trades Department now consists
of 14 national and international unions
that collectively represent nearly 3 mil-
lion construction workers in the United
States and Canada.
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
JANUARY 3 2014