Two Sheet Metal Local 24 members were presented with their 70-year pins.
In the South Point region, Business Rep. Jeff Rowe presented a 70-year pin to Brother Vernon Martin.
This was a special event for both Rowe and Martin (pictured above).
Rowe said it was first time he has presented a member with a 70-year award. Continue reading →
In a late June ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Mark Janus, denying public sector unions the right to collect “fair share” fees.
The court’s 5-4 ruling in Janus vs. AFSCME District Council 31 overturns its 1977 ruling Abood vs. Detroit Board of Education.
Joining in the majority were Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch.
Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg dissented with the opinion. Continue reading →
Sheet Metal Workers Locals 24 and 33, with help from a SMART lobbyist and the Affiliated Construction Trades (ACT) West Virginia, defeated an attempt by state legislators to repeal HVAC licensing requirements in the state.
After two years of working with legislators, SMW Locals 24, 33 and 100 won a key victory in 2015, as the state enacted a law to require state licensing for all workers who perform work on HVAC/Fire Dampers in West Virginia. Continue reading →
Following an early January Ohio Appeals Court ruling that cleared the way for Cincinnati to enforce its disputed Responsible Bidder ordinance, the city administration is now attempting to stall its implementation.
The ordinance requires contractors on certain public construction projects to have graduated at least one employee from a registered apprenticeship program every year for the last five years. This ordinance is to be implemented in conjunction with a local hire program as well. The Responsible Bidder ordinance essentially requires contractors to supply a union workforce for Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) projects over $400,000. Contracts under $400,000 are exempt from the ordinance in order to allow smaller businesses to bid on these projects.
By creating the ordinance, the city understood that a registered apprenticeship program produces a construction worker who, regardless of race or gender, works efficiently and can help save time and money on the jobsite. Continue reading →
A court ruling has cleared the way for the city of Cincinnati to enforce its Responsible Bidder ordinance.
In early January, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the ruling of a lower court, paving the way for the city to require contractors to have graduated at least one employee from a registered apprenticeship program every year for the last five years.
Allied Construction Industries, a not-for-profit construction trades group for non-union contractors, sued the city, saying the ordinance was a way to ensure only union signatory contractors could successfully bid on contracts. Continue reading →
Sheet Metal Workers Local 24 stands to benefit from a bill recently passed in the Ohio House.
House members voted unanimously to approve House Bill 98, the Ohio High School Career Opportunity Act, which gives equal opportunity for representatives from colleges and universities, the armed forces, skilled trades, businesses and charitable organizations to present information on future career and post-graduate opportunities to high school students.
HB 98 now moves to the Senate for possible committee hearings and floor vote. If passed by the Senate, it will become law and give the building trades more access to public schools to expose students to careers in the building trades. Continue reading →
Ohio’s 8th District Court of Appeals ruled House Bill 180, which banned residency requirements on public construction projects, as unconstitutional.
The ruling upheld a Cleveland residency law that requires contractors who successfully bid on certain public construction projects within the city, to guarantee 20 percent of the hours worked must be performed by Cleveland residents, and 4 percent of that 20 percent must be allocated for low-income Cleveland residents.
By striking down H.B. 180, the court has granted chartered municipalities the right to enforce hiring requirements on certain publicly-funded construction projects. This means cities such as Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati can require contractors hire a designated percentage of their residents to work on certain construction projects. Continue reading →