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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 2018)
PAGE 4 | July 6, 2018 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS BUILDING COMMUNITY Crackdown on illegal contractors finds 82 violators Ironworker Shopmen #516’s Montgomery helped build a bridge in Panama in Oregon and Washington The effort is part of a nation- wide construction enforcement campaign. Surprise sweeps for unregis- tered contractors in Oregon and Washington last month re- sulted in 82 citations in three days. Inspectors with the Oregon Construction Contractor Board (CCB) and Washington State Department of Labor & Indus- tries (L&I) discovered the vio- lations during unannounced visits to 636 construction sites throughout both states from June 12 to 14. Inspectors conducted the contractor compliance sweeps as part of a national effort co- ordinated by the National As- sociation of State Contractor Licensing Agencies (NASCLA) to highlight the is- sue of illegal contracting in construction and to track down violators. The coordinated ef- fort also involved sweeps in Arizona, California, Florida, Mississippi, Nevada, Rhode Island, Texas and Utah. NASCLA reported a total of 779 contractors that were found non-compliant with state licensing requirements. Administrative citations, criminal notices, legal actions, additional investigations, and more have been issued by the respective state contractor li- censing agencies. Most states require con- struction contractors to register with a specific state agency to confirm that they have a busi- ness license, insurance and bond — requirements that pro- vide some financial protection in case a project goes wrong. In Oregon, the CCB con- centrated its investigators at job sites along the northern Oregon Coast from Newport to Astoria. The largest number of 32 alleged violations in- volved people working on home improvement projects without a CCB contractor li- cense, including contractors that hired unlicensed subcon- tractors or worked on homes built prior to 1978 without the required Lead-Based Paint Renovation license. The CCB is now sending notices of in- tent to issue civil penalties to those suspected of violations. Additionally, CCB shared the information about sus- pected instances of employers “paying under the table” with state revenue and employment departments to ensure employ- ers are reporting payroll and paying taxes. In Washington, L&I inspec- tors held surprise sweeps in Clark, Kitsap and Pierce coun- ties, Mercer Island and Belle- vue in King County; Spokane, Spokane Valley, Cheney, and Medical Lake areas in Eastern Washington. Inspectors checked 636 ac- tive construction sites and 1,522 contractors, plumbers and electricians. They issued 48 citations to unregistered contractors and unlicensed electricians and plumbers. In- spectors also checked whether contractors were following other L&I requirements. The sweeps resulted in 53 contrac- tors being referred to the work- ers’ compensation audit pro- gram, 63 to collections, and one to the L&I Division of Oc- cupational Safety & Health. “While most contractors are following the rules, our recent sweeps show that there are some out there who are break- ing the law. Hiring unregis- tered contractors puts your project dreams and your dol- lars at risk,” Dean Simpson, L&I’s contractor compliance chief said in a press release. Consumers in Washington can check whether contractors are registered at ProtectMy- Home.net. Oregon consumers can ver- ify contractor licenses at www.oregon.gov/ccb. Contrac- tors and consumers can report unlicensed contractors and other illegal activity on the CCB’s website or by calling 503-934-2246. NOTICE: A reminder that the NW Labor Press will publish only one issue in August — the special Labor Day edition on Aug. 24. If your local needs to update a meeting notice prior to that date, please do so in the July 20 edition. Patrick Montgomery and his employer, Fought & Co., are recognized at Labor Appreciation night banquet. Patrick Montgomery, an appren- tice with Ironworkers Shop- men’s Local 516 employed at Fought & Company, volun- teered to travel to El Macho, Panama, March 16-30, to help build a pedestrian bridge under a program organized by Bridges to Prosperity. B2P is a U.S. non- profit that partners with local governments around the world to connect impoverished rural populations with urban facilities and resources. Montgomery was part of a 9- person team that spent two weeks erecting a suspension bridge so people and animals in the area could cross the river during rainy season and have safe, year-round access to edu- cation, health care, and markets. They slept in tents and worked with villagers who were willing to help. Montgomery was the only tradesperson in the group. The others were department of transportation engineers. Montgomery brought a box of union T-shirts with him to give to villagers who helped build the footbridge. “On the first day, two vil- lagers showed up to help, and I gave them each a T-shirt,” he said. “The next day, 25 villagers showed up. I gave away all my T-shirts.” Montgomery, a 15-year member of Local 516, recently completed a mechanic appren- ticeship. A mechanic is Fought’s Patrick Montgomery (right), a member of Ironworkers Shopmen’s Local 516 workers with a villager from El Macho, Panama, building a pedestrian bridge across a river that prohibits travel when it rains. version of a fitter or assembler and is the highest achievable level as a fabricator. Mont- gomery’s job is to fabricate high rise components and bridge girders at the company’s facility in Clackamas, then complete as- sembly checks before tearing it down for shipment. “I just love what I do,” Montgomery told the Labor Press. “Patrick takes tremendous pride in his work ethic and was very excited, and grateful for the Bridges to Prosperity opportu- nity,” said Fought president Steve Fugate. “He was a great ambassador for the industry.” Montgomery called the expe- rience “very rewarding,” and hopes his story will generate more interest among signatory shops with Local 516. “I came back totally humbled. We don’t know how good we have it here,” he said. “If I get asked to do it again, I’ll go in a heartbeat.” Fought’s and Montgomery’s participation in the Bridges to Prosperity program spurred Phil Casciato, business manager of Local 516, to nominate them both for Labor Appreciation and Recognition Night awards. This was Fought’s first ven- ture with B2P, but Fugate says it won’t be their last. “The value of what these bridges bring to these communities is unmeasur- able,” he said. Editor’s Note: Since its found- ing in 2001, Bridges to Prosper- ity has connected nearly 1 mil- lion people, and built over 250 footbridges, and expanded to 18 countries across Southeast Asia, Africa and Central and South America. How to get single parents into the trades: Childcare It’s boom time in the building trades. For anyone ready to work hard, family-wage union construction jobs are available — but first you have to get in. That’s what pre-apprentice- ship training programs are for: They help people get into the building trades, especially women and minority candi- dates who haven’t historically had opportunities or connec- tions in the industry. Their pro- grams are free, but they’re also unpaid, which means candi- dates have to have a way to support themselves during a training that lasts five to 11 weeks, depending on the pro- gram. Single parents have an extra barrier: paying for child care during that time. What if there were help to overcome that hurdle? There is, now, thanks to La- bor’s Community Service Agency (LCSA), a union- sponsored charitable organiza- tion. With a $40,000 grant from the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries and donations from local unionists, LCSA has just launched the Pre-Ap- prenticeship Childcare Initia- tive, a pilot project to provide child care stipends to low-in- come single parents who want to enroll in pre-apprenticeship programs. This summer, the first four recipients will enroll in programs at Oregon Tradeswomen Inc., Pacific Northwest Carpenters Insti- tute, Portland Youth Builders, and Constructing Hope. If the pilot succeeds, LCSA director Eryn Byram hopes to establish it an ongoing pro- gram.
