Welcome to this edition of the Weekly “UPDATE” Alert. The “UPDATE” Alert will keep you informed of upcoming classes, current events and general information important to you as members of ABC. This publication is e-mailed or faxed you every Thursday evening. If you are receiving this via fax and would prefer to have it emailed, please respond to Deb Hose at debh@abcnebraska.org.
*UPCOMING ABC EVENTS*
September 23, 2009
Omaha Networking
Luncheon
Anthony’s Restaurant
11:30 – 1:00 p.m.
September 29, 2009
Lincoln Networking
Luncheon
Valentino’s Restaurant
11:30 – 1:00 p.m.
September 30, 2009
SPORTING CLAY EVENT
Brainard, NE
More info to follow!
CONTRACTORS WIN MAJOR LABOR LAWSUIT AGAINST UNION: A federal jury in Boston Sept. 1 issued a verdict in favor of merit shop steel erector contractors who filed suit against Ironworkers Local 7 for conspiring to deny work to nonunion steel erection contractors and their employees through a job-targeting fund. The jury awarded the merit shop contractors $290,000 in damages. In December 2004, five merit shop contractors sued Local 7 in a district court, claiming the union conspired with contractors who had signed a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) to monopolize steel erection work in the Boston area by excluding nonunion companies. The five companies claimed the union used Market Recovery Program (MRP) funds to help underbid nonunion companies and used methods including threats and picketing to coerce companies that were signatory to a CBA into breaching their contracts with nonunion companies.
The district court granted summary judgment to Local 7 prompting the nonunion contractors to appeal the decision. Once the case reached the Court of Appeal, ABC filed an amicus curiae, or “friend of the court,” brief. On review, the appeals court reversed the decision and sent the case back to the district court for resolution, stating that since the union’s MRP is a combination of labor and nonlabor groups, the union is not protected from the antitrust laws by the statutory labor exemption.
The jury award was based on the contractors’ claim brought under Section 303 of the National Labor Relations Act, but is part of a larger antitrust case against Local 7 focusing on the union’s MRP and whether it violated antitrust laws. “This is precedent setting,” said Michael Avakian of Smetana & Avakian in Springfield, Va., the lawyer for the five nonunion contractors. “The jury’s verdict has provided damages to these contractors and helps allow the larger case to move forward.”
UPDATED FORM APPROVED UNTIL 2012: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Aug. 27 approved the updated Employment Eligibility Verification Form, also known as Form I-9, to be valid through Aug. 31, 2012. The new I-9 form can be downloaded at www.uscis.gov/i-9.
PENNSYLVANIA PRISON PROJECT DROPS PLA REQUIREMENT: The Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) Aug. 21 announced that the 2,000-bed State Correctional Institution at Benner Township prison project in Rockview, Pa., will be opened for a second round of bids without a project labor agreement (PLA) because the first round of bids came in too high.
DGS opened the project to bidders in June with expectations of a $200 million budget and a requirement that bidders sign a PLA. When the first round of bidding closed in July, bids were tens of millions of dollars over budget and the decision was made to reopen the bidding process without the PLA.
ABC PETITIONS COURT TO DELAY IMPLEMENTATION OF E-VERIFY RULE PENDING:ABC Aug. 31 appealed a court decision that rejected a challenge by ABC to the legality of Executive Order 13465 and a corresponding final rule, which amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), by requiring certain federal contractors and subcontractors use the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) E-Verify system to verify that their employees are legally authorized to work in the United States. ABC also petitioned the court to delay implementation of the final rule pending appeal.
In December, ABC and its coalition partners challenged the authority of the government to promulgate this regulation and sought an injunction from the United State District Court for the District of Maryland, Southern Division. The legal challenge echoed ABC's position in previous comments on the rule, arguing that to require broader use of E-Verify would be illegal and expose contractors to needless liabilities. Aug. 26 the federal court ruled to uphold the E-Verify final rule despite ABC’s objections prompting ABC to file an appeal and then request a delay of the implementation of the rule that is scheduled to take effect Sept. 8.
COBRA UPDATE:When the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was enacted in February, a specific provision provided COBRA premium assistance for employees who are involuntarily terminated between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009. The subsidy available through ARRA assists laid-off workers in purchasing continued health insurance coverage through their former employers under COBRA. Under the plan, eligible employees pay 35% of the premium and employers pay the remaining 65%. The employers are reimbursed through a federal tax credit. On August 25, the IRS published a notice requiring individuals who receive the subsidy but thereafter become eligible for other group coverage to notify the COBRA plan in writing that they are no longer eligible for the subsidy. Individuals who do not notify the plan of the insurance change may be subject to a penalty of 110% of the subsidy. In addition, those who suspect that someone may be receiving the subsidy after they become eligible for other group coverage or Medicare may report this fact to the IRS by completing Form 3949-A. The form is available athttp://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f3949a.pdf.
By Bill Harding, Chapter Attorney