June 2024 - Council's Corner

The Des Moines Construction Council sees a growing need for signatory contractors, regardless of their trade, to have an outlet to share information and learn more about the challenges of managing not only collective bargaining agreements, but also the many aspects that union contractors face. Though the trades are different, there is a commonality amongst signatory contractors that DMCC hopes to serve.

Des Moines Construction Council

Quarterly Meeting Scheduled:

We are pleased to let you know that the next DMCC Annual Meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, June 18^th from 3:00-5:30PM. The meeting will be held at the Master Builders of Iowa headquarters (ELEVATE Business and Events Center) at 4100 Westown Parkway, West Des Moines, IA.

DMCC members and all signatory contractors in Central Iowa are invited to attend. Due to rescheduling last month’s quarterly meeting, we are pleased that newly elected Des Moines Mayor Connie Boesen will join us for a meet and greet.

PLEASE RSVP BY CLICKING HERE

New Contract Dates Published

You are encouraged to review those contract expiration dates on our website here: https://www.dmcc.build/contract-expiration-dates. Additionally, by attending our quarterly meeting in June, you’ll get a small recap of those negotiations.

Built By Pro's Media Planned

In our last update, we informed members that the Built By Pro’s Central Iowa website has launched! Next, we are excited to tell you about the radio and TV launch planned for this summer and fall. The goal here is brand awareness and we are confident in the strategy of getting on both radio and TV. If you have any questions on Built By Pro’s, please reach out to Amanda Wendling at awendling@grit-capital.com.

Associated General Contra ctors Of America Joins With U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Other Groups Sue To Block Dangerous "Walkaround" Rule

The Associated General Contractors of America, along with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a coalition of business groups, filed a lawsuit in the Western District of Texas, Waco Division against the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The lawsuit challenges the agency’s new “walkaround” rule, which forces contractors to let potentially anyone, regardless of safety training, construction experience or intent to accompany a federal safety inspector on a jobsite.

The suit argues that agency officials upended over 50 years of precedent by dramatically expanding the type of third parties allowed to accompany inspectors during walkarounds. Previously, the agency would only permit employee representatives to accompany the inspectors, which was generally limited to employees themselves, with very limited exceptions. The agency’s new measure, however, forces contractors to allow anyone, regardless of background, or safety training, onto jobsites during an inspector visit.

AGC Challenges DOL Independent Contractor Rule

On April 26, AGC of America and other business groups jointly filed a friend-of-the-court amicus brief urging a federal district court in Texas to declare unlawful a significant U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) final rule (2024) revising the standards for analyzing who is an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The final rule took effect March 11, 2024, and rescinded the Trump administration final rule (2021), replacing it with a more complex analysis for determining employee or independent contractor status.

The fate of the rule is uncertain. Recently filed lawsuits claim the DOL rulemaking is arbitrary and capricious, an abuse of discretion, and exceeds the agency’s statutory authority under the FLSA.

In support of the legal challenges to the rule, the AGC-supported coalition brief explains why the regulation fails to provide “fair notice” of the conduct necessary to avoid liability, including civil monetary penalties. The brief also explains why the 2024 rule does not derive from a reasoned analysis of statutory text and legislative intent.

In addition to the lawsuits, Congress introduced AGC-supported resolutions to overturn the independent contractor final rule. The legislative effort is meant to complement the legal challenges which is the strongest effort to block the rule.

AGC has long called for federal clarification of the independent contractor status and preservation of legitimate independent contractor relationships, such as those that have historically existed in the construction industry. AGC submitted comments to DOL on the proposed rule, opposing the creation of this new standard and urging DOL to withdraw the proposal. AGC supported the Trump administration’s rule that adopted a consistent, clear and common-sense standard for determining independent contractor status under the FLSA and filed comments opposing DOL’s move to withdraw that rule.

AGC’s involvement in this case was made possible thanks to your contributions to the Construction Advocacy Fund. AGC will keep you updated on all lawsuits and congressional action related to this rule.