Are you excited about NUCA's Annual Meeting and your CONEXPO experience--both opening in less than two weeks? If you're a NUCA member and traveling to Las Vegas for the big show, our on-site registration for your association's Annual Meeting opens at 7:00 a.m. at the MGM Grand Hotel. We still have seats at our Monday meeting open for you to get up to speed on industry news before you hit the trade show floor on Tuesday. Our mid-day 2023 outlook presentation with top economist Anirban Basu discusses the year ahead in construction. The March 13, 2023 NUCA Annual Meeting schedule is posted at www.NUCAdigs.com. See you in Las Vegas!

Like a bad penny, the anti-business "PRO Act" (H.R. 842) was introduced again in Congress by House and Senate Democratic leadership and other lawmakers. This session's version includes dozens of radical changes to federal labor laws which would significantly delay many infrastructure projects across the United States and raise costs. NUCA's CEO Doug Carlson issued a statement about this bad news, writing, "Passage of the PRO Act would significantly disrupt those efforts to improve our community’s living and health standards. We urge Congress not to move forward with this legislation in this session, or in any other.” NUCA members are urged to contact their federal lawmakers and ask them to oppose this ill-advised legislation.

Last year the Biden Administration issued a proposed rule requiring Project-Labor Agreements (PLAs) on federal construction contracts exceeding $35 million. NUCA members know this policy will only increase costs, decrease productivity, and potentially cut non-union workers and companies out of these projects. There is a better way forward. We need your help to demand Congress pass the Fair and Open Competition Act (H.R. 1209/ S.537), which would stop government mandated PLAs. We need your help to support the bill's reintroduction--click here to send a short letter to your lawmakers today!

CONEXPO-CON/AGG is North America's largest construction trade show. Get up to speed for your CONEXPO-CON/AGG business meetings by first attending Monday's NUCA's one-day March 13 Annual Meeting. And then attend the largest construction show in North America March 14-18 where you’ll meet industry leaders and friends, and build new relationships in your local community. NUCA members also get 20% off their CONEXPO registration when using code “PARTNER20”, too!

NUCA Advantage offers free educational seminars for you and your employees. The March 15, 1:00pmET webinar will discuss the changing environment faced by today's employees when planning their retirement. This session will help attendees envision that day, plan for retirement assets and sources of retirement income, and identify the risks you might encounter. Presented by NUCA Advantage's retirement expert Chris Price. Register here.

The most recent episode of NUCA's Dig This! podcast is now available here and everywhere you stream. In this latest episode, you’ll hear from NUCA Chairman Ryan Kinning about his term over the last 12 months and NUCA's growth in membership. (9:16) Listen here or on your favorite streaming service.

BigIron Auctions's newest event with the NUCA Foundation is the Focus Auction Fundraiser to be held virtually on March 29, 2023. If you want to jump in today, the auction opens for bids March 1. Sign in or create an account and start bidding! Thank you to all NUCA members who listed their surplus equipment at BigIron. A percentage of the proceeds will be donated to the NUCA Foundation for Education & Research. We are grateful for your support!

 

Long-time NUCA member Chris Duininck had a terrific experience with our last BigIron Focus Auction: watch his personal testimonial here (1:51).

Our industry's infrastructure issues continue to require Congress's attention, and we need your federal lawmakers to understand the issues your projects are facing this year. Supply chain challenges, employee labor shortages, and regulatory delays continue to this day. Congress must be part of the solution, but they need to understand what we’re facing in the trenches every day. They also need to know this industry opposes bad legislation like the PRO Act which will also hinder project progress. Your chapter will be scheduling your lawmaker meetings, so we need every dedicated NUCA member to be on Capitol Hill this May. Register today for Summit and book your hotel room at www.WeDigAmerica.org.

Project managers are a vital part of any job, and superintendents and company leaders can discover new methods of management from their phased work processes. NUCA's Project Management Course is designed to give your existing leadership and employees a comprehensive introduction into project management. Attendees will understand the several phases of construction project management. Safety, interpersonal skills, construction planning, estimating and cost control, scheduling, and quality control are part of the course's topics. This four-day in-person course requires travel to Colorado. To find out more, contact NUCA's Mike Flowers at mike@nuca.com or 703-358-9300.

You can count on NUCA to provide benefits that help you build your business and protect it from risk. The NUCA-WINS app is an affordable, easy-to-use smartphone and tablet app for managing all damage, injury and safety incidents while protecting you from unwarranted utility hit claims (such as bad locates). Once you use NUCA WINS, you'll wonder how you managed your jobsites without it. There's no better time to subscribe to NUCA-WINS than right now. It's available with an additional 10% off the already low NUCA-member-only subscription rates. No credit card is needed - start by visiting www.NUCAWINS.com and request access today.

Get the most out of your NUCA membership and share this NUCA@Work email with your colleagues. We also encourage you to share your Utility Contractor and Chapter magazines when they arrive in your office. Let your next generation of company leaders learn what is happening in the industry to get the most out of your NUCA investment. If your staff members would like their own subscription, please have them contact NUCA membership at nuca@nuca.com or 703-358-9300 to be added to our distribution lists.

Toolbox Talks: PPE - Eye Protection

We've all heard the excuses, but let's face it, eye protection is vitally important to our people. Ensure that your employees are appropriately protected. This week's TBT: Personal Protective Equipment – Eye Protection.