VOTE

POLITICAL ACTION
Roofer delegates on the conference floor—first
row from left: I.V.P. Richie Mathis, Southern
Rep. James Scott, Int’l Rep. Gabbie Perea, I.V.P.
Doug Ziegler. Second row: Int’l Rep. Mitch
Terhaar, I.V.P. Jim Hadel, Marketing Dir. Jordan
Ritenour, Asst. Marketing Dir. Frank Wall.
Federally and Locally,
Roofers Should Support Friends of Labor
At North America’s Building
Trades Unions’ Annual
Legislative Conference,
held in Washington, DC, in April,
the focus was on creation of good
paying jobs, training, prevailing
wages, energy policy, project labor
agreements (PLAs) and support of
political candidates who support
building trades men and women
and their families.
It is extremely important to
Roofers and Waterproofers, and
all building trades workers, that
we tell our elected federal officials
to support a modern United States
energy policy that will result in economic
prosperity, enhanced domestic
energy security and robust job
creation. Our dependence on foreign
supplies of oil and gas, along
with the threat of global climate
change, exemplifies the need for a
comprehensive energy policy that
benefits our domestic economy
and American workers.
At all levels of government—federal,
state and local—we must tell
our elected officials that we expect
them to support prevailing wage
laws and PLAs in the public sector.
Prevailing wage laws mandate
that fair wages be paid on government-funded
projects. Contractors
compete on the basis of who can
best train and best manage a construction
crew—not on the basis
of who can assemble the cheapest,
most exploitable workforce. PLAs
contain provisions that keep projects
running smoothly and safely,
promote efficiencies and nurture
the development of a skilled workforce.
In the public sector they create
a positive community impact
and promote on-time and on-budget
job completion.
Local and state elections are
equally as important as federal
elections. When we elect candidates
to local and state office,
we elect people who will decide
whether union or non-union contractors
get awarded work. School
boards decide who will build or
re-roof the schools. Mayors and city
councils award contracts for hospitals,
public buildings and airports.
State legislators pass budgets for
state construction, and the language
they include in legislation
will determine whether PLAs and
prevailing wages are to be used.
Our job is to find out which candidates
support union construction and
do all we can to get them elected. ■
Int’l Pres.
Kinsey Robinson
sports a Local
33 Boston
Hillary t-shirt
with Laborers’
International
Union Gen. Pres.
Terry O’Sullivan.
Int’l Pres. Robinson welcomes Hillary Clinton
to the legislative conference.
Hillary Clinton addresses the delegates at
the legislative conference.
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• The Journeyman Roofer & Waterproofer