Unemployment Benefits Extension Act

The IBEW urged support of Davis-Bacon wage rates for school construction when new funding mechanisms are used to "creatively finance" construction. In the past several years there has been a move away from traditional direct financing such as credit enhancements, tax credits, tax-exempt bonds and state infrastructure banks (SIBs). Davis-Bacon protections prevent contractors from competing based on cutting wages and benefits. Contractors on federal projects must pay their workers the wage rates prevailing in the community for each craft, as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor. Davis-Bacon wage rates are not union pay scale, they are rates based upon a broad Department of Labor wage survey taken in local areas. Bill Ref.: HR 1840-School Construction; HR 4252-School Construction; HR 599-School Infrastructure The IBEW supported an amendment to carve-out civil rights and wage & hour cases in the Class Action Fairness Act of 2004. It is important that civil rights & wage and hour class actions filed in state courts remain in state courts. State wage & hour laws provide more complete and timely remedies for victims of unscrupulous employers than the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In the absence of a carve-out, many of these cases would be forced into federal court, where they will face delays and less favorable procedures. It is generally more difficult and time-consuming to certify a class action case in federal court than in state court and state civil rights laws often afford greater protection than federal law. Bill Reference – S. 2062 (Ltr. 7/6/04) The IBEW supported the Employee Free Choice Act because unions give working people a voice on the job that brings them better pay and benefits, dignity and respect in the workplace. Employers routinely block workers from exercising their rights. This legislation would restore workers' freedom to form unions by ensuring that when a majority of workers decide to form a union they can do so, without intimidation, harassment and delaying tactics by the employer. It would provide for certification of a union if the NLRB finds that a majority of employees have signed cards (“card check”) indicating their preference for representation. It also requires first contract mediation and arbitration if the employer and union aren’t able to reach an agreement within 90 days and institutes strict penalties for employer violations while workers are attempting to organize or obtain a first contract. Bill Ref. H.R. 3619/S. 1925 The IBEW opposed the final regulations written by the Department of Labor (DOL) to change federal overtime pay rules that took effect on August 23. Eliminating overtime pay eligibility is a pay cut that hurts America's working families already harmed by widespread joblessness, stagnant or declining wages, increased health care and prescription drug costs. Overtime laws guaranteed that extra work will be rewarded with increased pay. These job protections were won after decades of struggles with passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in 1938. Bill Ref. H.R. 2600, amendment to the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2004 (to block the DOL from using funds to implement the new overtime rules). The IBEW supported a provision in H.R. 4200 that prevents the Department of Defense (DOD) from continuing long-term leasing of foreign-built ships for transporting supplies for our troops. DOD’s leasing of foreign-built ships for up to ten years at a time allows our own shipbuilding industry to decline, leaving inexperienced workers to build the next generation of ships for the U.S. Navy if we allow shipbuilding to continue to be outsourced. Ref. Ronald W. Reagan Nat. Defense Authorization Act. The IBEW opposed expansion of the H-1B and H-2B Visa Programs. As American jobs are being outsourced, expanding this program would bring more foreign workers to take American jobs. Bill Ref. H.R. 2688, Amend Immigration and Nationality Act to Repeal Authorities Relating to H1-B Visas for Temporary Workers. The IBEW supported an additional 13-week extension of unemployment benefits. Bill Ref. H.R. 1652, S. 1943, S. 1708,Unemployment Compensation Extension Act; H.R. 3244, Emergency Unemployment Compensation The IBEW supported raising the minimum wage. Future increases to the minimum wage should be indexed to inflation, as is Social Security. The $5.15 minimum wage in effect today needs this fix to keep up with the ever-increasing prices needed to support working families. Bill Ref. H.R. 5043, Minimum Wage Indexation; H.R. 4256/S. 2370, Fair Minimum Wage Act.