This is shaping up to be not just a big year for Ohio’s union construction industry, but a mega-year. Keyed by several mega projects, including the $20 billion Phase I of the Intel project in New Albany and the $3.5 billion Honda/LG joint venture battery plant in Jeffersonville, 2023 is forecast to be a record year for a number of Local Unions and regional building trades councils in terms of man-hours.
Read MoreElevator constructors who work in the State of Ohio will soon be required to obtain an industry license in order to ply their trade. On Jan. 2, Ohio Gov. Mike De-Wine signed House Bill 107, which mandated the licensure of elevator mechanics. The new law will affect the men and women who build, install or service commercial and industrial elevators, escalators and moving walks. The law will not pertain to those who install, maintain and repair residential conveyance systems such as wheelchair lifts and stair climbers.
Read MoreA proposed rule change by the U.S. Department of Labor is designed to target employee misclassification.
The proposed rule change would rescind a Trump-era rule from 2021. Jessica Looman, Principal Deputy Administrator at the DOL, announced the DOL plans to place an emphasis on protecting low-wage workers from being misclassified as independent contractors. Among the industries the rule is expected to affect are construction, healthcare, trucking, food service and retail.
The Cleveland Tradeswoman Committee recently donated items and money to a local charitable organization.
The group, Shoes and Clothes for Kids (SC4K), held a sock drive from Nov. 21 through Dec. 9, and the Tradeswomen decided to help them out this year. “We liked it because the items stay local and help children in need,” said Cleveland Tradeswoman Chairwoman Doreen Cannon.
In honor of National Apprenticeship Week, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb visited the Laborers’ Local 310 training center in Cleveland. Bibb, who began his first term as the 58th Mayor of Cleveland in January, spoke to apprentices outside of Local 310’s training center on Nov. 15, and then listened to their stories on why they became apprentices.
Read MoreBricklayers and Allied Craftworker Local 5 apprentice Donald Murray, III gave himself a great early birthday present when he took home the title of the nation’s top Point, Cleaning and Caulking (PCC) apprentice in an International competition. Murray, a fourth-year apprentice, earned first place in the BAC/IMI International Apprenticeship Contest, which took place on Sept. 23-24 in Boston at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center.
Read MoreThe Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council unanimously endorsed Gov. Mike DeWine in his re-election bid.
From the shores of Lake Erie down to the Ohio River and many areas in between, Gov. DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted have focused on job creation.
Read MoreThe Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council secured a Project Labor Agreement with Sherwin-Williams to build its new downtown headquarters and suburban research and development facility.
Dave Wondolowski, Executive Secretary for the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council, said each project is expected to create about 1,800 jobs for affiliated members of the Cleveland Building Trades
Read MoreYears of hard work paid off for the Finishing Trades Institute of the Ohio Region [FTIOR], as the training group for the Painters Union gained accreditation from the Council on Occupational Education.
Viewed as a nationally honored seal of excellence for occupational education institutions, COE accreditation denotes honesty and integrity in the organizations.
According to its website, the COE is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education as a reliable authority on the quality of education offered by the institutions it has accredited, which includes registered apprenticeship programs.
Educational programs or institutes who have been found to meet or exceed stated criteria of educational quality and student achievement are granted accreditation.
New Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council Delegates Ryan McCafferty and Dan Gallagher, both from Pipefitters Local 120, were sworn in at the July meeting.
Read MorePresident Joe Biden stopped in Cleveland on July 7 to discuss the finalization of new pension relief rules, which will keep at-risk multi-employer pension funds solvent until at least 2051.
Read MoreThe Ohio State Building and Construction Trades Council hosted an event on June 22 to discuss the 21st century workforce for its affiliated union trades.
About 50 building trades leaders from across the state gathered at the IBEW Local 683 Union Hall to attend the conference and learn about the recruitment and retention of members.
Among those in attendance were leaders of regional building trades council, business managers and representees, organizers and JATC training coordinators. Attendees not only listened to speakers, but also had a chance to participate and ask questions.
The keynote speaker was Russ Ormiston, Associate Professor at Allegheny College, who discussed how demographics and labor statistics relate to successful member recruitment in today’s tight labor market.
The Cleveland Clinic announced major construction projects in May set to take place on its main campus, with all work covered by Project Labor Agreements [PLA]. In his State of the Clinic address, Cleveland Clinic CEO and President Tom Mihaljevic, M.D., announced the Cleveland Clinic is investing in multiple capital projects, including the construction of new buildings and the renovation of several facilities in Ohio.
Read MoreFor Cleveland’s building and construction trades unions, rebuilding is just another day on the job. While most of the country saw construction projects grind to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic, the more than 29 member unions of the Cleveland Building & Construction Trades Council (CBCTC) never stopped working.
Read MoreThe AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT) will finance a Cleveland-area affordable housing project for senior citizens. HIT will provide approximately $6.6 million of the $12.6 million needed for the substantial rehabilitation of the Pinzone Towers Apartments project, located in Rocky River, a suburb west of Cleveland.
Read MoreUnited Association apprentices from across Ohio once again had the ability to show off their skillset and wage a friendly competition to identify the state’s top apprentices in the union pipe trades.
From April 18 to 22, the Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 94 Training Center in Canton welcomed 33 apprentices from across the state to demonstrate their training as either a pipefitter, plumber, sprinkler fitter, welder or HVAC service technician.
Affiliated members of the Cleveland Building Trades were on-hand April 18 for a groundbreaking ceremony to construct an all-union Habitat for Humanity house in Cleveland, funded in part by a donation from the Cleveland Building Trades Foundation. The $25,000 donation by the CBTF marks a significant investment in not only the project, but also the Greater Buckeye neighborhood, where the house will be built.
Read MoreA long-awaited project in downtown Cleveland will begin soon thanks to a major tax credit award from the State of Ohio, creating more work for area union trades.
On March 2, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority and the Ohio Department of Development awarded the Millennia Companies a $40 million Transformational Mixed-Use Development (TMUD) tax credit award for the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of The Centennial. Located at 925 Euclid Ave., the building was formerly known as the Huntington Building and has been mostly vacant for over a decade.
Union construction workers should expect to remain busy in most parts of Ohio this year. According to multiple leaders from various jurisdictions, the 2022 forecast looks promising, even with expected supply chain issues creating problems. In 2021, a number of projects across the state slowed down due to a lack of materials. Items such as steel, electrical parts, roofing material, brick, drywall, paint and other items have been in short supply. As a result, some projects such as the Cleveland Cliffs steel mill renovation work in Cleveland were pushed back.
Read MoreA partnership between the City of Cleveland, Cleveland Clinic, Meijer, Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation and Fairmount Properties will create 300 jobs for affiliated members of the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council. A Dec. 14 groundbreaking ceremonially started the project to build a small grocery store and apartment complex in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood. Located on the corner of East 105th Street and Cedar Avenue, Fairfax Market is part of the overall $500 million Cleveland Innovation District project.
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