How county awards bids to contractors before council
Hoping to level the playing field
By ALLISON BOURG, Staff Writer, The Capital
Published 01/16/12
When Anne Arundel County officials award bids to contractors, they don’t consider whether those businesses are affiliated with unions.
And if the Anne Arundel County Council passes a bill pushed by councilmen Jerry Walker and Derek Fink, they never will.
The legislation, scheduled for a public hearing tomorrow, would prohibit government-mandated project labor agreements in the county.
Such agreements usually require contractors to negotiate a pre-hire collective bargaining agreement with one or more unions, establishing employment conditions for a particular project. Opponents of such agreements complain that they exclude nonunion companies, particularly small businesses.
Critics also say the agreements drive up project costs by eliminating competition.
Walker, a Gambrills Republican, said that’s one of the reasons he introduced the bill. Walker said his goal was to pre-empt any project labor agreements before they crop up in Anne Arundel.
“There hasn’t been any, and my hope is that there won’t be any going forward,” he said.
Mandatory labor agreements also may increase costs by requiring contractors to pay dues and other union-related expenses, in addition to the salaries and benefits of nonunion employees, the councilman said. It gives an unfair advantage to unions, he said.
Co-sponsor Fink, a Pasadena Republican, said the legislation would level the playing field among contractors and give business owners the freedom to hire whom they want without bringing unions into the equation.
“Obviously, we’re going to go with the lowest bidder,” Fink said. “I think it’s the right thing to do.”
Bill Schull, the county’s purchasing agent, said he was initially surprised by the bill.
“This isn’t typically seen at the local level,” Schull said.
In 2009, President Barack Obama issued an executive order encouraging federal agencies to require project labor agreements on federal and federally funded construction projects in excess of $25 million.
And last year, Sen. Allen Kittleman, a Republican who represents parts of Howard and Carroll counties, introduced legislation that would have prohibited project labor agreements in state contracts. But the bill didn’t make it out of committee.
The issue also is gathering steam in Virginia. Two delegates there have filed a bill that would prohibit state agencies and agencies that receive state funding from requiring union agreements.
Schull said Maryland is already a prevailing wage state, meaning construction workers such as carpenters, plumbers and other laborers must receive the appropriate hourly wage and benefits as determined by the state Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.
“We don’t anticipate any negative impacts in any way,” Schull said of the legislation. “It’s going to be interesting to see how it works. It’s a new twist, if you will.”
Walker said if the bill passes, he would like to see other counties follow suit.
The council may vote on the bill at the council meeting, to be held at 7 p.m. tomorrow at the Arundel Center, 44 Calvert St. in Annapolis.
abourg@capgaznews.com
