PRESIDENT BIDEN: STOP MINIMIZING THE VITAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF 88% OF THE U.S. CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY | December 2023
President Joe Biden continues to push his rhetoric, promoting himself as—and fulfilling his oft-repeated promise to be—”the most pro-union president in history.”
Using this discriminatory language, President Biden discounts the value of the work of the vast majority of the construction industry that chooses not to join a union—nearly 9 in 10 workers, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Associated Builders and Contractors supports awarding public works projects to contractors that can complete infrastructure projects safely, on time, and budget, regardless of labor affiliation.
Fair and open competition for these projects delivers the best value to Pennsylvania and all of America’s taxpayers, not excluding the 88.3% of the construction industry that freely chooses not to join a union.
The latest data show that year-over-year, the percentage of construction industry union membership dropped despite robust overall job growth, suggesting that construction industry workers are not enthusiastic about joining a union when given a choice. This is why the Biden administration should refrain from advancing controversial policies specific to the construction industry requiring workers to subject themselves to union-only policies.
There is no reason to mandate union-only labor when contractors can fairly compete against each other.
Exclusionary policies and campaign speeches are just about the last things Pennsylvania’s citizens need as they continue to face rising prices for food, energy, housing, and everything else. We deserve better.
To make matters worse, State legislators are buying into the same nonsense. During this past year, the Department of General Services used a Project Labor Agreement for a project in Westmoreland County. The State House just passed a statewide RCO bill that is designed to favor the unions. One must look at the 37 House Republicans who voted for the bill to see they are buying into the rhetoric that only the union provides good jobs.
As company owners and employees, this should make you question why. ABC will continue to fight, but we need you all to fight with us. While politics is an ugly business, you need to “Get into politics or get out of business” as a company owner. Your business and your employees depend on it to survive.
