Asbury Park Press: Costly PLAs Must Be Ended
In a November 16 editorial titled, “Costly PLAs Must Be Ended,” the Asbury Park Press weighs in on the project labor agreement (PLA) controversy. The paper calls on Governor-elect Chris Christie to fulfill his campaign pledge to end the use of costly and discriminatory PLAs on public construction in New Jersey.
Here is an excerpt:
Gov.-elect Chris Christie must follow through on his campaign promise — No. 50 on his list of “88 Ways Chris Christie Will Fix New Jersey” — to put a stop to them. They drive up the costs of public projects from 7 percent to 20 percent, according to various estimates.
“I will eliminate special interest labor union giveaways that increase spending and taxes by ending the use of project labor agreements, which drive up the cost of public construction projects and fail to deliver a public benefit at a time when the economy is shedding jobs and taxpayers are struggling to make ends meet,” he said.
Hear, hear.
The editorial also provides a brief history of state government-mandated PLAs in New Jersey.
Project labor agreements have come and gone with various governors. Gov. Jim Forio issued an executive order making PLAs state policy in 1993; Christine Whitman took it back with an executive order of her own; McGreevey put them back in place with his very first executive order.
New Jersey faces an $8 billion to $10 billion budget deficit next year. Even in flush times, PLAs are a bad idea. In the midst of a severe recession, in a state where citizens have been bled dry by the highest taxes in the nation, it’s imperative Christie follow through on campaign promise No. 50.
PLAs are nothing more than a handout to one special interest group – Big Labor. This issue should not be a political football, punted a different direction each time there is a change in the party controlling the state’s (or federal) government. Government-mandated PLAs deny taxpayers the accountability the deserve from their representatives and their use should be prohibited.
Read the full editorial after the jump.
Costly PLAs must be ended
Asbury Park Press
November 16, 2009
Project labor agreements, in which governments award contracts for public construction projects exclusively to unionized firms, have been around for decades. The Grand Coulee Dam was built using a project labor agreement back in the 1930s.
But they have outlived their usefulness in New Jersey, where they have been in effect since 2002, when Gov. Jim McGreevey signed a bill mandating the budget-busting agreements.
Gov.-elect Chris Christie must follow through on his campaign promise — No. 50 on his list of “88 Ways Chris Christie Will Fix New Jersey” — to put a stop to them. They drive up the costs of public projects from 7 percent to 20 percent, according to various estimates.
“I will eliminate special interest labor union giveaways that increase spending and taxes by ending the use of project labor agreements, which drive up the cost of public construction projects and fail to deliver a public benefit at a time when the economy is shedding jobs and taxpayers are struggling to make ends meet,” he said.
Hear, hear.
Project labor agreements require all contractors, whether they are unionized or not, to subject themselves and their employees to unionization in order to work on a government-funded construction project.
Typically, it is done by including a union collective bargaining agreement in a public construction project’s bid specifications. In order to receive a contract, a contractor must sign the agreement and subject employees to union control.
This is costly to New Jersey, since nearly 80 percent of the construction work force in the state does not belong to a union. In what amounts to a form of blackmail, unions that have signed onto project labor agreements agree to have no work stoppages as part of their end of the deal. But the costs far outweigh the advantages.
Project labor agreements have come and gone with various governors. Gov. Jim Forio issued an executive order making PLAs state policy in 1993; Christine Whitman took it back with an executive order of her own; McGreevey put them back in place with his very first executive order.
New Jersey faces an $8 billion to $10 billion budget deficit next year. Even in flush times, PLAs are a bad idea. In the midst of a severe recession, in a state where citizens have been bled dry by the highest taxes in the nation, it’s imperative Christie follow through on campaign promise No. 50.
Additional Facts
In what amounts to a form of blackmail, unions who have signed onto project labor agreements agree to have no work stoppages as part of their end of the deal. But the costs far outweigh the advantages.