Los Angeles Signs Labor Deal Covering $1.5B in Port Projects

Pacific Maritime Online ^ | June 30, 2011 | editors

[Eva]

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa signed a five-year labor agreement on Tuesday that will cover more than $1.5 billion in planned Port of Los Angeles construction projects.

Approved by the port governing board in March and the City Council in May, the agreement sets guidelines on the types of workers that must be hired by contractors for all capital projects at the port. The terms cover about 95 percent of the port's projected capital projects outlays for the next five years.

"This project labor agreement gives thousands of our local workers in some of the most economically disadvantaged communities the jobs and job training opportunities they need to get back on their feet," Villaraigosa said.

The projected port projects are expected to require a total of more than 6,000 workers through 2016. Under the terms of the agreement struck with the trades council: 30 percent of the jobs must go to local port-area residents; 10 percent must go to "at-risk" workers, such as unemployed or workers with criminal records; and, at least 20 percent must go toward union apprentices.

The rest of the available positions will go to union workers.

Supporters have argued that such labor agreements assure union workers for projects while reducing work stoppages and strikes during construction.

Opponents of similar labor agreements have said they drive up costs and shut out small contractors who cannot afford to provide labor from outside their own firms.

[Eva]

I don't know how these projects are going to be funded. That's a whole lot of money that won't be going to any local non-union contractors.

[Eva]

As I suspected this $1.5 billion is stimulus money that was withheld to influence the election.
Stimulus Bill Provisions for Ports

President Obama has signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) that provides significant new funding for transportation infrastructure.

AAPA is focused on working with agencies for quick distribution of the funds. AAPA will continue to provide updates on the process and are working to have speakers to discuss this program at this Spring Conference. Below is a chart that highlights the final stimulus funding levels.

PROGRAM FINAL AGREEMENT
State Highway Program - DOT $27.5 billion
Discretionary Transportation Grants - DOT $1.5 billion

[the invisib1e hand]

I don't know how these projects are going to be funded.

This might be a clue.

[Ben Ficklin]

TxDot got close to 2.5 billion of that. Port of Houston got 99 million and Port of Galveston got 25 million.

[Waverunner]

What do I smell?

[calcowgirl]

"...10 percent must go to "at-risk" workers, such as unemployed or workers with criminal records"

I assume "skilled" is not among the job requirements?

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Union and non-union guys working side-by-side? Really? With equal wages? Or a 2:1 differential? Doesn’t sound like a recipe for success to me.

[Eva]

But did they spend it? These are all projects that are still in the planning stages, just in time for the election.

[Eva]

It’s all stimulus money from 2009.

[Eva]

At risk and APPRENTICES! That means high school drop outs and former gang bangers, who will make the best of working on the docks.

[calcowgirl]

Should I also state the obvious?

That the requirements do not include U.S. citizenship or legal residency?

And folks wonder why we’re losing the port business to Mexico.

[jmaroneps37]

This will be a “Terminal to Nowhere” project. The cruise lines that USED to sail out of SoCal have moved out because they didn't want the problems of bringing passengers to the dangerous third world shiite hole south of our border.

[Eva]

Is it any wonder that the Democrats are now pushing for legalization of drugs and government regulation? They are doing everything possible to facilitate the illegal drug trade, first with their gun running program in AZ and now by putting the illegals and gang bangers right on the docks in LA, where they can oversee and facilitate the importation of their most important products, drugs.

[Eva]

Well, if you consider "developing nations" nowhere, that's what it will be. This is another UN Agenda 21 project, with goals such as empowering the ILO, International Labor Organization, with emphasis on the International. That's why the hiring practices are so different from other union projects. The Obama administration is moving forward, full steam with it's goal to change the US trading policy to be more in line with the GSP, as laid out by the World Bank. It involves shifting consumption patterns in the US, as well as shifting trade from the traditional Mississippi routes to the West Coast through Goldman Sachs owned terminals and across Warren Buffet owned rail lines. It involves shifting commercial exports from the traditional producers in the heartland to new producers in western land locked states, possibly on government owned or controlled lands. It involves Agenda 21.

[Eva]

I was doing a little more research on the funding of the Los Angeles port project and found out that in addition to the 2009 stimulus money, Goldman Sachs and De La Rosa and Company handled the sale of bonds?

I wonder how that sale turned out, how many bonds were actually sold.

[calcowgirl]

>>... Goldman Sachs and De La Rosa and Company handled the sale of bonds?

That goes back to Arnie’s big-bang-bonds. In total, it was a $107 billion dollar plan, heralded by his leftist Agenda21 Commissar, Sunne Wright McPeak. It started with voters (foolishly) passing Proposition 1B in 2006, $20 Billion in Transportation Bonds. I haven’t followed the status of bond issuance since then.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1686184/posts
CA: Official backs billions in state bonds (Essential for economy - “must spend $107 billion”)

http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/transprog/ibond.htm
Proposition 1B - Transportation Bond Program

[the invisib1e hand]

I assure you, any bond that acts like a treasury but pays above market rates will not go unsold. It would be fiduciary irresponsibility to fail to take the government's bribe, no matter how immoral.

Talk about a slippery slope. Talk about "moral hazard."

[Eva]

There’s a lot about this project that I don’t understand, bonds are part of that.

I am also wondering about how much of this money is stimulus money because there are already restrictions on that money and the jobs created by it, that hey pay prevailing wages to union members only.

So, are they going to unionize all the illegals in San Pedro and surrounding area?

[TheOldLady]

Click the Pic

My vicious cat Rocket cruelly cuts one from the herd

It was the one who didn't donate

Become a monthly donor and end FReepathons

[calcowgirl]

>>It would be fiduciary irresponsibility to fail to take the government’s bribe

LOL. Good point. I do not question that the bonds were sold (or are being sold). I just haven’t followed the details to be able to speak to the status off the top of my head. The State Treasurer issues a report every year called the “Debt Affordability Report.” It usually wraps up the status of all things bondage. I haven’t read it in a couple of years, though. So many things to research, so little time...