Thursday, March 13, 2025

Congressional Democrats Re-Introduce PRO Act Last Wednesday, House and Senate Democrats re-introduced the “Protecting the Right to Organize Act” (or PRO Act), a bill that would rewrite much of the country’s private-sector labor laws by banning Right-to-Work states, require federal government-appointed arbitrators to mandate first contracts, effectively outlaw independent contracting, among other dramatic changes. Although it may only be a political stunt, as Teamsters’ President Sean O’Brien indicated during his podcast interview with Marianne Williamson, the legislation is being led this year by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), reported HuffPost. O’Brien explains the “inside baseball” being played inside Washington, explaining to Williamson how the “PRO Act was going to be used as a political pawn” (by Democrats). O’Brien then explains how the Teamsters are working with Democrats and Republicans to enact a “version” of the PRO Act and how his union avoids using the NLRB. The bill has passed the House of Representatives twice in the past, however, it has never reached the Senate Floor for a vote.

This year, with both the House and the Senate under Republican control, it is uncertain whether the bill would even pass the House, let alone reach the Senate Floor. In the unlikely event it were to pass both chambers, though, it would likely face a presidential veto.

On Tuesday, though, a bipartisan Senate bill was introduced that, if passed, would implement a key component of the PRO Act called binding arbitration. Given its bipartisanship and presuming the PRO Act fails, it is possible that the bipartisan binding arbitration bill may get support from both sides of the political divide. If that were to happen and the Faster Labor Contracts Act were to pass, it is unclear whether President Trump would veto it.

Predictably, employer representatives, including Associated Builders and Contractors and the Associated General Contractors of America, have long opposed the PRO Act, declaring it anti-competitive and claiming it may force workers to join a union when they don’t wish to.

“While the PRO Act purports to help workers, it actually strips away many of their rights and privacies while expanding opportunities to coerce law-abiding employers, thereby hurting the economy and upsetting a delicate balance of rights and restrictions established by the National Labor Relations Board, the courts, and Congress,” Brian Turmail, AGC’s vice president of public affairs and workforce, told Construction Dive. “If enacted, this measure will harm workers, undermine the economy and end decades of labor stability.” In a statement, Kristen Swearingen, ABC’s Vice President of Legislative and Political Affairs, called the PRO Act and its provisions harmful. Story

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California Union Pushes Arizona Jobs Out For more than 30 years, Axon, a public safety technology company that makes Tasers and bodycams, has called Scottsdale, AZ home. Founded by Chaparral High School graduate Rick Smith, the company is planning a major expansion of its corporate headquarters as part of a development of 74 acres near Hayden and the 101. The new investment would be approximately $1.3 billion. But an out-of-state labor group, Worker Power, the political arm of the California-based UniteHere, was lurking, determined to disrupt the job-creation project. Story

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Study Shows Workers Want Better Communication, Psychological Safety

• While workplace safety remains a top priority for employees, significant gaps persist between employee expectations and employer efforts, according to a new study by risk management provider AlertMedia.
• The report surveyed more than 2,000 full-time U.S. employees to understand their perceptions of safety and to provide employers with data and insights into how they can better deliver against employees’ safety expectations.
• Among the key findings, while nearly all employees (96%) believe physical safety at work is essential, more than half (56%) do not feel completely safe at work.
• Nearly all (95%) consider mental health important, yet 15% believe their employer ignores it altogether.

Read More

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Legislation

Licensure

SB 291 – Grayson | The CSLB wants to reverse the industry-supported elimination of workers’ compensation exemptions for construction contractors.

SB 282 – Wiener | Requires the California Energy Commission, by 2027, to establish a statewide certification program for licensed contractors of residential heat pump water heaters and heat pump heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to obtain a heat pump installation certification, and would require the commission to create a state training program.

Apprenticeship:

AB 296 – Davies | Would require schools to hold at least one career fair every year, which would include information on apprenticeships.

Contracts:

AB 483 – Irwin | Would create new contact requirements for installment contracts that could make home improvement loans disappear.

AB 559 – Berman | Would clarify that ADU construction falls under HIC requirements, controlling progress payments. The bill is in reaction to recent cases in which consumers lost hundreds of thousands on ADUs that were never delivered.

AB 1327 – Aguiar-Curry | Would permit a notice of cancellation of a home improvement or home solicitation contract to be conveyed to the seller orally by telephone.

SB 61 – Cortese | Will limit retention on private construction projects to 5% of the contract value.

SB 517 – Niello | Will require a home improvement contract with a subcontractor performing more than 50% of the total estimated project cost to contain the subcontractor's name and contact information.

Public Works:

AB 963 – Petrie-Norris | Requires contractors and developers to give unions extensive documents about development projects, putting contractors and their employees at risk.

AB 1198 – Haney | Will require contractors to pay new prevailing wage rates whenever DIR changes them.

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Lori Chavez-DeRemer Confirmed as Labor Secretary Several unions welcomed news of Chavez-DeRemer’s confirmation on Monday evening. The Amalgamated Transit Union called the former congresswoman from Oregon “a strong advocate for working people and unions.” Sean O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said Chavez-DeRemer will do “an excellent job” and “protect the working class.” Story

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Solar-Utilities Reporting, Guidance, and Education (SURGE) provides some essential resources to help solar contractors better understand prevailing wage requirements as they submit copies of certified payroll records to the SURGE Compliance Portal per AB 2143 and PUC 769.2.

Prevailing Wage/Labor Compliance Training The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has announced its series of upcoming trainings for 2025. These educational seminars across the state provide an overview of prevailing wage and apprenticeship standards compliance and public works enforcement. The first webinar event is on Thursday, March 13, 2025 from 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM. To explore all of these upcoming events, please visit the following link: DIR Upcoming Trainings

DIR Distribution List To stay current with the DIR prevailing wage training and other information and resources, you can sign up for email notices. Please use the following link to sign up on the DIR’s website. Sign Up for DIR Email Notices

SURGE Upcoming Events Additionally, SURGE has upcoming events for solar contractors to navigate the SURGE Compliance Portal. Visit the SURGE Happenings website for upcoming event information.

• March 25, 2025: CPUC SURGE Event: What is AB 2143/PUC 769.2? How to Stay in Compliance - Register Here
• April 16, 2025: SURGE & DIR Informational Webinar (registration coming soon)

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30 states have adopted English as an official language—11 through ballot measures—since 1920 On March 1, President Donald Trump (R) issued an executive order "[designating] English as the official language of the United States." While the federal government had never established an official national language before, 30 states have designated English as their official language. Three of the 30 states—Alaska, Hawaii, and South Dakota—also recognize some Indigenous languages as co-official languages. Nebraska was the first state to adopt an official language by ballot measure in 1920. Oklahoma is the most recent state to vote on a measure, with voters approving State Question 751 in 2010. Story

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District Supes Denounce Taxpayers Association School districts pushing bond measures have long coveted endorsements from the San Diego County Taxpayers Association. But district superintendents started getting sick of the process the Taxpayers Association demanded. They raised concerns to the media before Taxpayers Association CEO Haney Hong resigned late last week. Story

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Rivas Purges Members from Assembly Committee Posts A group of Republican lawmakers—and at least one Democrat—have touched a nerve with Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister). In a late Friday night announcement, Rivas booted five Republican lawmakers from key committee posts. Story

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Out Of Energy: California paused a $290 million home energy rebate program on Monday, citing the uncertainty created by President Donald Trump's decision to freeze funding for climate-related programs, reports POLITICO. The California Energy Commission said it will stop accepting applications for the program, which uses federal money to help homeowners replace broken or inefficient heating or cooling systems with more efficient heat pumps. However, the commission said it would continue to honor rebates for homeowners whose applications have already been approved. The commission said in a statement that the program will be paused "until the Trump Administration provides additional information on the funding for this program."

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Law On Legislators’ Sponsored Travel Falls Short Following a CalMatters investigation, California’s campaign finance watchdog agency concluded this month that a law — meant to make transparent who is paying for California legislators’ sponsored travel — is falling short. In 2023, CalMatters revealed that a 2015 law requiring trip organizers to annually disclose their major donors had been used only twice in seven years — despite interest groups paying for millions of dollars in travel for lawmakers during that time. The Fair Political Practices Commission’s audit, triggered by CalMatters’ reporting, recommends simplifying disclosure requirements to cover more interest groups that take lawmakers to policy conferences and on international study tours — a change that can only be made by those very same legislators.

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