NCSRCC Priorities
Workplace Safety
Safety is an essential piece to construction, protecting workers and employers alike. Worker safety is a priority for the UBC and North Central States. Through training and certifications, and the Regional Council’s dedication to end worker exploitation, carpenters have been increasing and maintaining jobsite safety since the very beginning.
Higher Wages
Because of our strength in numbers and ability to participate in collective bargaining, Union construction workers earn, on average, 60 percent more than nonunion workers doing the same kinds of jobs, according to the federal government.
What does that mean in real dollars? Union construction workers earn an average of $376 more each week than nonunion construction workers. That’s $9.40 more an hour. To put it another way, the typical nonunion construction worker must be on the clock almost 13 hours a day to earn what the typical union construction worker earns in 8 hours.
Better Benefits
In addition to higher wages, union workers typically have more benefits and typically pay less out of pocket for those benefits. In our region, most members have family health insurance, prescription drug coverage, dental insurance, vision coverage, a pension, disability pay, a death benefit and a savings plan.
Tax Fraud
Tax fraud drains tax revenues and hurts honest employers every year. The UBC and North Central States are dedicated to shutting down this destructive criminal activity, regaining lost tax revenue, and protecting honest employers and taxpayers. To learn more about construction industry tax fraud, its impact on UBC members, and to find additional resources related to tax fraud, visit: http://stoptaxfraud.net/
political action
The Carpenters mobilize to help all workers gain jobs that are fair, safe and respected. We continue to expose developers and contractors who exploit workers, cheat our communities, and drag down the standard of living for all of us.
Right to Work vs Prevailing Wage
Prevailing Wage
Prevailing Wage is how federal, state and local government agencies determine the “area standard” for wages and benefits on public construction. As a union construction worker, it is vital that you understand how Prevailing Wage laws are important to your livelihood.
Prevailing Wage laws mean that, on taxpayer-financed construction projects, the government agency matches the wages that workers already earn in the marketplace.
Prevailing Wage helps taxpayers get the best results for their money by ensuring the job is done right the first time. It helps taxpayers hold government agencies and contractors accountable because it requires contractors to meet community standards.
Prevailing Wage laws mean taxpayer money won’t subsidize cut-rate contractors. They ensure that public construction projects won’t undercut local workers and destabilize the local construction industry.
Prevailing Wage has a long history of bipartisan support. Nonetheless, anti-union politicians and business groups are constantly trying to undermine the federal Davis-Bacon Act and local Prevailing Wage laws.
Learn more about Prevailing Wage so you can separate the fact from the myth.
Right to Work
So-called “Right to Work” (RTW) laws prohibit employers and unions from negotiating agreements that make union membership and payment of dues or fees a condition of employment. RTW laws mean lower wages, fewer benefits and fewer protections for all workers.
Under RTW, no workers would be required to pay union dues, but the union would still be required to represent non-payers at its own expense. RTW laws place an unfair financial obligation on workers by requiring them to pay for the representation of those who opt out of paying their fair share. Ultimately, this leaves unions with fewer resources to negotiate fair contracts, workplace safety, health benefits and more.
RTW laws focus on corporate interests, rather than the interests of the working class. In our Council, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin are already RTW states. Let’s make sure Minnesota doesn’t follow that same path.
Learn more about Right to Work — Unfair, Unsafe, Unnecessary
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