Author: agcnews
Attendees at the 2023 AGC Annual Convention in Las Vegas participated in several sessions of specific relevance to union construction contractors. On March 12, 2023 attendees participated in a tour of the Carpenters International Training Center where they received presentations by the Carpenters Training Fund and the education and training department of the ITC as well as a tour of the 17 acre campus, 1.2 million square foot facility. The convention also offered an opportunity for attendees to participate in a Collective Bargaining Seminar on March 13. At the seminar members heard from speakers on negotiation strategies and legal and practical considerations…
Construction employment increased in 306 of 358 metro areas between January 2022 and January 2023, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new government employment data. Association officials urged officials in Washington to ease hiring of foreign-born workers to accommodate expected growth in infrastructure, manufacturing, and renewable energy-related projects. Read more.
In AGC’s annual survey with FMI, the top risks identified included price increases in materials and equipment, lack of skilled/craft labor as well as lack of field supervisors. While most respondents reported moderately higher or significantly higher backlogs today compared to the end of 2021, 70 percent of them admitted having a low labor force relative to backlog demands. Furthermore, almost 40 percent of survey respondents reported an increase in subcontractor defaults compared to a year ago. In light of these trends, contractors are increasingly trying to lock in pricing and add contingencies in contract language as well as increase…
The price of materials and services used in nonresidential construction increased by 0.4 percent from January to February, outpacing the 0.1 percent increase in contractors’ bid prices, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government data released today. Association officials urged the Biden Administration to rethink planned Buy America limits on the materials firms can use on a broad range of projects that will make many key materials even more expensive. “Today’s price report shows that construction costs are not necessarily settling back to ‘normal’,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “A resurgence of prices for…
Construction employment climbed in 45 states in January from a year earlier, while 42 states added construction jobs from December to January, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America today. Association officials said the job gains were welcome news but noted the industry would likely have added more jobs if the pool of available workers were larger. “The construction industry has been adding jobs nearly everywhere in the past year even as homebuilding slowed,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Most nonresidential contractors continue to report little letup demand and would like…
AGC Charities Inc. and the Construction Leadership Council of the Nevada Contractors Association teamed up to lead dozens of volunteers to make improvements and repaint a large gym for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada. The volunteer workday at the Donald W. Reynolds Clubhouse in Henderson involved painting – free of charge – a 45-foot-tall gym that encloses three basketball courts and serves the local community. “A couple hours of work will make years of difference for the local community,” said Thomas Brown, the chairman of AGC Charities, Inc. “These volunteers gave back to the community and showed…
Construction firms added 24,000 employees in February, as hefty pay raises for hourly workers enabled the industry to increase employment more steeply than other sectors, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new government data. Association officials said that while employment levels are now at record levels in the industry, future job gains will be hard given the lack of people who have been exposed to construction career opportunities. “Average hourly earnings for craft and office workers in construction have consistently risen more sharply than across the private sector as a whole for several months,” said Ken…
AGC of America and other business groups jointly submitted an amicus brief at the U.S. Supreme Court on March 3 in support of a land developer’s request for review of a Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision that allows citizen enforcement even when the state environmental agency has begun enforcement for a Clean Water Act (CWA) violation. The issue in the case, Dakota Finance LLC (dba Arabella Farm) v. Naturaland Trust (No. 21-1517), is whether a state agency’s notice of violation (NOV) commences an action that is sufficient to protect a regulated entity from citizen-suit liability. Citizen suits are generally barred if the state “has…
Engineering News-Record (ENR) Magazine recently wrote a thought-provoking article entitled “Will Claims by Contractors on Big Design-Build Projects Ever End?” Progressive design-build is mentioned as a means to address some of the critiques that design-build faces today. Progressive design-build has attracted increasing usage on larger projects, especially horizontal construction.[i] So is progressive design-build (PDB) as good as a PB&J sandwich with the crusts cut off? And if so, what does that mean for standard form contract language around this approach? What is Progressive Design-Build? Progressive design-build procurement uses two phases. The first phase is a qualifications-based or limited-scope best-value selection to procure the…
Texters beware: Your data is not your own! Joining on this episode to share their experiences on the front line are Lauren Abeyta, COO at Construction Discovery Experts, and Kristin Protas, VP & Deputy General Counsel at Gilbane Building Company. They talk about the realities and proliferation of electronic communication and how to successfully manage your digital footprint and train your teams to keep you out of trouble.