WANTED:  APPRENTICE STUDENTS!!

ABC APPRENTICESHIP CLASSES BEGIN SEPTEMBER 8, 2008 IN  OMAHA AND LINCOLN

New classes offered in Omaha are Sheet Metal & Drywall

Call TODAY to enroll!

For further information call Theresa in Omaha at 344-4258 or Deb in Lincoln at 477-4451

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NEBRASKA REGISTRATION FOR CONTRACTORS: The Nebraska Department of Revenue (NEDOR) and the Nebraska Workforce Development Administration (NWD) are implementing TWO separate databases.  Contractors should have received separate registrations for each database.  The NWD registration should be completed and returned as soon as possible.  The NEDOR registration, Form 16 should be completed before the end of the year in order to be properly included in the database.

 If a subcontractor is not registered with the Nebraska Department of Revenue, the contractor must withhold 5% of the payments and remit as Nebraska withholding.  The database will allow you to view all registered contractors and their contractor option.  If the contractor does not withhold, the tax plus penalty and interest would be assessed under audit.  It is recommended that your accounts payable/job cost system includes procedures to document the registration by each subcontractor on an annual basis.

 If a contractor is not licensed with the Nebraska Workforce Development Administration, fines will be issued.  The fine is $500 for the first violation and $5,000 for each subsequent violation.  Some small contractors may be exempt fro this registration. 

 CALIFORNIA CITY UNANIMOUSLY VOTES TO ACCEPT BIDS WITHOUT A PLA: The Riverside City Council in Riverside, Calif., Aug. 26 unanimously voted to accept bids on the second phase of the city’s main power plant that don’t include a union-only project labor agreement (PLA).  ABC’s Southern California chapter became aware that only bids including a PLA would be considered for the project and launched a campaign to garner support from the community.  Despite an endorsement for the PLA by the Public Utilities Office, the city council voted at their last meeting to accept bids that do not include a PLA.

 “More than 175 ABC supporters showed up to offer their encouragement at the meeting and the city council received several phone calls before the vote from residents opposing the idea of PLA,” said Jackie Nutting, director of government affairs for the Southern California chapter.  “This is another great victory for merit shop construction and for our community.”

OSHA IMPLEMENTS REVISED LEAD EMPHASIS PROGRAM:The Occupational Safety and Health Administration Aug. 15 announced that it will implement a national emphasis program on lead exposure that will affect 40 industries, including heavy construction, wrecking and demolition and steel erection. The new emphasis program will replace a lead program introduced in 2001.

 Under the new program, OSHA inspectors will conduct air monitoring and wipe sampling for lead at targeted sites.  The program will also contain guidelines for inspecting personal protective equipment, engineering controls and medical surveillance programs.  The list of targeted industries was based on a study by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health that investigated the lead levels in the blood of employees across multiple industries. More than 927,000 companies and 7.5 million employees will be affected by this new program.

SALTING UPDATE: Earlier this summer, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit issued a decision in a salting case which underscored some of the problems which face construction industry employers during union organizing drives.  The non-union contractor in this case performs structural steel erection work for commercial buildings and was targeted for union organization.  The main union organizer applied for a job as a welder and did not list his union affiliation or any prior employment with union contractors despite the fact that he was an organizer.  The organizer had 12 more years of work experience with multiple union contractors than what he listed on his application for employment.  The NLRB found that the contractor violated the NLRA when it terminated the union organizer after he admitted that he was a salt.  In addition, another union organizer was terminated after he told co-workers that he was a union organizer.  Two additional applicants who acknowledged their union membership were not hired for work.  The Circuit Court agreed with the NLRB that a salt may “lie to obtain a job if the lie concerns merely his status as a salt, union organizer, or union supporter and not his qualifications for the job.”  The non-union contractor probably lost the case in large part due to the other terminations and refusals to hire.  However, this case underscores the fact that union organizers may lie about prior employment with union contractors in order to obtain employment as a salt and such a lie will not be of any help with the NLRB in attempting to defend subsequent unfair labor practice charges.

                                                                                                By Bill Harding, Chapter Attorney

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Training Classes

Management & Safety Class Schedule

First Aid/CPR Classes

$50.00 each attendee – Member Price/$55.00 each attendee – Non-Member

Recertification only - $35.00 each attendee – Member Price/$45.00 each attendee – Non-Member Price

¨  September 23, 2008 – 7:00 – 11:00 a.m.. – LINCOLN

¨  September 25, 2008 – 7:00 – 11:00 a.m. – OMAHA

OSHA 10 Hour Class

OSHA requires a competent person on all job sites.  This course ensures that your people have the necessary training to comply with OSHA standards CFR 1926.32(f) for a competent person. Training includes OSHA Construction Standards CFR 29 1926, Scaffolds, Ladders and Stairways, Housekeeping, Personal Tools, Electrical Hazards, Fall Protection, Materials Handling, Hazardous Communications and much more!

**CFR 192 OSHA Regulations Book for the Construction Industry with new steel erection standards will be available for $25.00** each for class participants.

$135.00 each attendee – Member Price/$240.00 each attendee – Non-Member Price

¨  September 17, 2008 – 7:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. – OMAHA

¨  September 18, 2008 – 7:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. – LINCOLN

CONTINUING EDUCATION:

HVAC/MECH Code                            Lincoln                                 $125.00

Oct. 22 through January 7, 2009                                   .                     Call 477-4451 for more details

6:30 – 8:30 p.m.

 
Construction Blueprint Reading    Lincoln                                  $250 member/$350 non-member

Oct. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, Nov. 6, 13, 20 & Dec. 4, 2008                           Call 477-4451 for more information

6:00 – 9:00 p.m.

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Omaha Classes are held at the Education Center, 2602 Harney Street, Omaha

Lincoln Classes are held at the Training Center, 830 Westgate Blvd., Lincoln

PLEASE DUPLICATE THIS FORM FOR MULTIPLE CLASSES

Company:                                       Address:                              Phone:                                 Fax:               

Names (please print):                                                                   Class/Date:                         Cost:             

                                                                                                         Class/Date:                         Cost:            

                                                                                                           Class/Date:                         Cost:             

Return Registration Form and Check Payable to Associated Builders & Contractors

830 Westgate Blvd., Lincoln, NE  68528   402-477-4522