Onward! ABC Keystone Continues to Meet Member Needs
BY: ROGER S. BRUBAKER, ABC KEYSTONE 2020 CHAIR OF THE BOARD
After three long months of shutdown, members are looking to regain some form of pre-COVID momentum, the strong momentum that was evident in the first quarter of 2020. According to ABC’s Chief Economist Anirban Basu, construction employment, backlog and contractor confidence are on the rise again, which is good news for recovery. Indicators support a strong third and fourth quarter; however, Mr. Basu believes it may take a year or more before contractors return to early 2020 revenue levels. I strongly recommend your company participate in the ABC Construction Backlog Indicator (CBI) and confidence monthly survey if not already doing so. This is an excellent source of data broken down into regions, based exclusively on responses from open shop contractors across the country. For more information on how to participate and receive results, contact Rachel O’Grady at ogrady@abc.org.
As of June 26, all but one county in PA moved into the governor’s least restrictive “green” phase. Interestingly, Lebanon County remained on the outside looking in. Could it be possible this was due to legislation, crafted by Lebanon County legislators, ending Governor Wolf’s emergency declaration? Whether you are active in politics or not, elections have consequences. Later this month, Keystone will be hosting virtual town hall style, regional, PAC fundraising meetings with local legislators. This is an excellent opportunity to contribute, ask questions, get to know our leaders in Harrisburg who support free enterprise values, and make a difference in the November elections. Rep. Scott Perry and Sen. Scott Martin are just two of our local champions who will have tough races this year and will need our help. Register for these events here.
Unquestionably, graduating classes of 2020 missed out on the “regular” celebration normally associated with this lifetime milestone. The Chapter’s own graduation celebration had to be postponed as well. I’m pleased to share that on August 13, ABC Keystone will be recognizing our Apprenticeship Class of 2020 and the Craft Professionals of the Year in a unique ceremony. We look forward to honoring this elite group of craft professionals. Details will be coming soon.
The Chapter facility will soon see in-person education classes return to headquarters. Professional development classes resume in July as do continued supervisor and safety training courses. During the shutdown period, ABC Keystone provided over $27,000 worth of free virtual training to our members, and the Chapter continues to be the go-to resource for CDC compliance information.
This same period saw our Keystone Chapter member STEP applications exceed last year’s totals, and we are well on our way toward my goal of obtaining a 30% participation rate from our contractor members. This also puts us well ahead of the current ABC National chapter average participation rate. Thank you for STEPping up. Learn more here.
The Board of Directors has continued to provide direction and guidance to staff and members throughout the pandemic shutdown and will be holding the annual strategic planning meeting in September to determine the Chapter path for the next three years. Meanwhile, we continue to monitor and adjust our current plan to ensure we are meeting our members’ needs for the rest of 2020 and beyond.
Onward,
Roger S. Brubaker
2020 Chair of the Board
Director of Construction Services
Meadow Valley Electric, Inc.
roger@mvegroup.com(717) 397-9600
Posted July 6, 2020
