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Honda/LG pick TYK as GC for EV battery plant project

Posted by / November 16, 2022 / Categories: News / Tags: , , , , / 0 Comments

The Honda and LG joint venture selected TYK as the general contractor for its $3.5 billion electrical vehicle (EV) plant in Jeffersonville.

According to multiple media reports, TYK is a joint venture between Turner Construction Co., Yates Construction and Kokosing Industrial.

The two other partners are Westerville-based Kokosing, a civil construction company and Yates, a Mississippi-based company with a history of work in the auto sector and battery projects. Yates built the Nissan North America Electric Vehicle Battery Plant located in Smyrna, Tenn.

The three firms will work together to build Honda’s EV plant on an accelerated schedule. Continue reading →

$3.5 billion EV battery plant proposed in Fayette County

Posted by / October 14, 2022 / Categories: News / Tags: , , / 0 Comments

Another megaproject is coming to Central Ohio that will create at least 100 jobs for members of Sheet Metal Workers Local 24.
On Oct. 11, after weeks of speculation, Honda and LG Energy Solution announced that they will partner together to form a new joint venture battery company, and the plant will be built about 40 miles southwest of Columbus in Fayette County.

The companies expect to invest about $4.4 billion into the total project, which will create 4,000 construction jobs for building trades members and 2,200 full-time permanent jobs within the battery plant pending final government approvals, according to an official announcement released Oct. 11.

The $4.4 billion project includes $700 million to re-tool three Honda auto plants in Ohio. Continue reading →

Intel ceremonially breaks ground on $100 billion project

President Biden, Governor DeWine and hundreds of other guests gathered at the site of future Intel semiconductor plants to commemorate the start of the largest construction project in the history of Ohio.

On the morning of Sept. 9, hundreds of guests – made up of local, county, state and federal officials, along with building trades, business and education leaders – stood on the ground where Intel’s first fab will be constructed and took part in the groundbreaking ceremony.

Initially scheduled to take place on July 22, the ceremony was postponed to September due to concerns regarding the inability of Congress to pass the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Act. In late July, Congress passed the CHIPS Act as part of House Resolution 4346, and Biden signed it into law on Aug. 9. A month later, with site work already started, dignitaries gathered to formally celebrate the beginning of the $20 billion project that will build two Intel fabs, an office building and other key infrastructure.  Continue reading →

Gallup Poll Reveals Union Support Highest Since 1965

Posted by / August 31, 2022 / Categories: News / Tags: , / 0 Comments

Public support for unions has hit its highest point since 1965, according to the Gallup Organization’s annual poll, as respondents approve of unions by a 71 percent to 26 percent margin, with the rest undecided.

That ties the 1965 figure of 71 percent support, Gallup reported, adding that 19 percent of the public opposed unions that same year, with the rest undecided. The poll started in 1936, with the highest union support recorded at 75 percent a few times in the 1950s. Continue reading →

Biden Touts Pension Relief During Ohio Visit

Speaking in front of a supportive crowd of union members in Cleveland, President Joe Biden touted the finalization of the rule that will save or protect the pension plans for millions of Americans, including members of SMART.

On July 7, Biden made an appearance at Max S. Hayes High School – the Cleveland vocational school built under a Project Labor Agreement by affiliated members of the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council – and discussed provisions to the American Rescue Plan, which will keep at-risk multi-employer pension funds solvent until at least 2051. The finalization of the rule will provide nearly $90 billion for the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation to ensure more than a generation of retired union members receive their full pensions. 

It will keep multi-employer pension plans solvent and well-funded for 30 more years — with no cuts to earned benefits of participants and beneficiaries; restore full benefits for retirees in plans that previously had to take cuts; increase the maximum Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBGC) insurance amount; and require each plan that receives assistance to file regular status reports with the PBGC and Congressional Committees to prevent recurrence and protect retirees’ benefits.   Continue reading →

OSBCTC Conference Stresses Recruitment Of Next Generation Of Workers

The Ohio State Building and Construction Trades Council hosted a conference for building trades leaders from across the state to discuss the 21st-century workforce for its affiliated union trades.

The event, held June 22 at the IBEW Local 683 Union Hall in Columbus, brought together leaders of regional building trades councils, business managers, business representatives, organizers and JATC training coordinators to listen to featured speakers and participate in other sessions. 

Russ Ormiston, Associate Professor at Allegheny College, was the keynote speaker and discussed how demographics and labor statistics relate to successful member recruitment in today’s tight labor market. Continue reading →

In new program, OSHA will target heat illnesses to keep workers safe

Posted by / April 15, 2022 / Categories: News / Tags: , , / 0 Comments

Workers may soon get some much needed protection from heat illnesses and injuries, thanks to a new program from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

On April 12, U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh and Vice President Kamala Harris announced the program at the Sheet Metal Workers Local 19 Training Center in Philadelphia.

Under the program, OSHA will conduct heat-related workplace inspections in order to avoid heat related illnesses, injuries and deaths that are highly preventable.  Continue reading →

Proposed Davis Bacon updates are good news for member of SMW 24

For the first time in over 40 years, the government has proposed updating the Davis-Bacon regulations.

The 1931 Davis-Bacon Act requires the payment of Prevailing Wage rates on federal or federally assisted construction contracts. The law applies to workers on contracts in excess of $2,000 entered into by federal agencies and the District of Columbia for the construction, alteration or repair of public buildings or public works. It protects local wage standards by preventing contractors from basing bids on cheaper wages than those prevailing locally. 

If the proposal is acted upon, it would directly benefit members of Sheet Metal Workers Local 24 members, along with other union building trades and even some non-union construction workers. It would benefit all Local 24 members working on federal projects, especially on contracts at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which have been particularly prevalent.  Continue reading →

2022 Central Ohio Construction Forecast Strong

Unions need to grow to meet strong job demand

The 2022 forecast for construction work in Central Ohio looks strong, as the region will continue to be one of the nation’s hotbeds. 

Despite supply chain shortages and manpower issues, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council Executive Secretary-Treasurer Dorsey Hager is expecting a booming year.

Some projects in Ohio, including several within the C/COBCTC jurisdiction, slowed last year due to a lack of materials. Contractors were affected by shortages in steel, electrical parts, roofing material, brick, drywall, paint and other items. As a result, some projects were pushed back, but in many instances, contractors simply adjusted schedules to accommodate material delays.  Continue reading →

Sellers, Union Leaders Celebrate the Passage of Historical Infrastructure Bill

SMART General President Joseph Sellers, Jr., along with other union leaders, celebrated the signing of the five-year $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. 

“The bill can create jobs for existing SMART members and spur new union jobs, which will help us grow the power of union,” said Sellers in a prepared statement on the SMART website. 

“The bill includes over $1 billion in funding for Indoor Air Quality for schools along with commercial and residential buildings that can be used for badly needed HVAC upgrades,” he said. 

Sellers also noted the legislation will invest $25 billion in airport and $17 billion in port infrastructure to not only address repair and maintenance backlogs, but to invest in keeping America’s supply chain moving.  Continue reading →