Welcome to the September, 2014 Gregory Management & Consulting Services (GMCS) REGIONAL CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY UPDATE. The regional commercial construction marketplace continues in overdrive with the most recent announcement of another large healthcare project with the University of Pennsylvania Health System. Increasingly, developers and facility owners are recognizing the value of bringing GMCS into the discussion early on to gain a better understanding of the prospective contractors, their capabilities, industry relationships and to provide valuable guidance and insight about each contractor, their signatory obligations and their ability to maintain harmony on their projects. Developers and facility owners find tangible value and security in GMCS’s broad regional contractor knowledge base and continued participation in industry wide discussions that seek to maintain harmony between facility owners, constructors and building trades. We accomplish this through our long standing and trusted relationships in management and labor, the application of collaborative engagement and open discussion. We help project stakeholders reach mutually acceptable resolutions enabling projects, their contractors and employees to return to work quickly. In many cases, even before the dispute reaches the project. GMCS is addressing and filling the industry leadership void, not through making promises, but by providing an open conduit for communication amongst the region’s developers, facility owners, employer associations, trades and industry stakeholders and through facilitating discussions that lead to solutions. GMCS nurtures a Culture of Collaboration, Communication and Cooperation amongst Contractors and Building Trades. GMCS remains firmly committed to our contractors and our industry. Developers and facility owners should consider making GMCS an integral part of their next project planning team.
GMCS clients are continuously updated on industry jurisdictional trends and events taking place in the field; many associations and contractors continue to utilize our Contracted Labor & Industry Relations Services to successfully avoid disputes by partnering with a recognized, respected and experienced industry service provider like GMCS. We continue to be a conduit for communication amongst the region’s employer associations, trades and industry stakeholders. Many association members and national & local contractors, have come to rely on our professional and respected service when they need estimating, bidding and or project advice. Did you know that many national contractors that are interested in working within the Philadelphia marketplace contact GMCS for advice on establishing key relationships within the industry and its AEC community to gain a better understanding of the region’s collective bargaining agreements, language and contractor base? If you or your association isn’t working with GMCS, perhaps it’s time to reconsider?
Collaboration, communication and relationships are the keys to our success. GMCS has successfully been providing Contracted Labor & Industry Relations Services to associations, contractors and construction users throughout these tumultuous and challenging times. Our client’s success comes as a result of GMCS’s unique experience and industry relationships that enables GMCS to collaborate and communicate throughout the industry and to participate in the creation and implementation of project solutions that simply work.
Having successfully resolved hundreds of matters related to area collective bargaining agreements and contractors throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan, Lehigh Valley and the entire Mid-Atlantic region, GMCS has become the only recognized, educated, experienced and reliable source for labor & industry relation’s support. GMCS is the single, unbiased, industry wide provider of labor & industry relation’s support for the Mid-Atlantic region assuring information sharing, professional, educated and experienced support to the entire industry along with centralized labor event tracking, data sharing and a vendor that serves each association & contractor, not just a single association’s board of directors. This is the most effective and equitable model in management side construction labor relations. Association members interested in receiving these valuable and informative support services through their associations should contact their board of directors and request a free consultation. Independent contractor signatories and facility owners are urged to contact Wayne Gregory directly at GMCS, wegregory@gregorymcs.com. All industry associations and contractors will benefit significantly by centralizing their labor Relations through GMCS.
GMCS provides neutral, contracted Association Management and Labor & Industry Relations support to many of our associations, contractors, facility owners and industry stakeholders. We are focused on facilitating communication and collaboration amongst our construction employer associations, constructors, facility owners, building trades and governmental bodies with an emphasis on creating a centralized, focused community that actively promotes labor harmony, industry advancement, contractor opportunities and workforce development. Please accept this informative newsletter containing relevant industry topics that can impact your associations and organizations. GMCS is always available to provide clarification or additional information on any of the topics contained within.
This month’s newsletter is comprised of the most popular postings over the last 30 days on gregorymcs.blogspot.com. They are listed by the following categories: INDUSTRY, LABOR, OSHA, MULTIEMPLOYER PENSION PLANS, HUMAN RESOURCES. Additional topics and subject matter may be found on the GMCS companion blog @ gregorymcs.blogspot.com. GMCS continues to track relevant industry legislation and provide summary updates on its companion blog.
GMCS continues to provide an annual legislative affairs
subscription service that monitors and reports on the daily activity of the PA
General Assembly to Associations and organizations in all industries throughout
the Commonwealth. This is accomplished through our specialized GLASS Report’s product. Current GLASS Report recipients include commercial & residential
contractor associations, labor organizations, transportation management
associations and local & regional governmental bodies. Associations
and organizations that subscribe to the GMCS GLASS Reports receive timely updates to each piece of legislation
impacting their organizations as they occur along with a listing of the bill’s
primary and co-sponsors. Please contact GMCS @ wegregory@gregorymcs.com to discuss
your organization’s needs and how you can benefit from this informative and
essential service.
INDUSTRY:
Penn Health moving closer to building massive new hospital tower:
The
University of Pennsylvania Health System is moving forward with the
construction of a new hospital tower that would cost an estimated $1.5 billion
and be built in phases over several years, sources say.
Read
more here…
Who did Penn Health invite to the dance?:
The
bench is deep when it comes to prospective Philadelphia businesses that would
likely pursue working on a proposed hospital tower for the University of
Pennsylvania Health System
Read
more here…
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Ruling a Big Win
for Residential Homebuilders:
In
its August 18, 2014 decision in the case of Conway v. Cutler, No. 80 MAP 2013
(Pa. Aug. 18, 2014)(Op. by McCaffery, J.), the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled
that a subsequent purchaser of residential real estate cannot pursue a
contractual claim for implied warranty of habitability as that claim is limited
to original homeowners who had a direct contractual relationship with the
builder/vendor.
Read
more here…
Where's construction headed? 5 insights
from economists:
What’s
the outlook for the construction market for the rest of the year? Economists
from trade associations representing home builders, construction companies and
architects provided their answers in a webinar Monday.
The
bottom line: Nonresidential construction is beginning to recover, because
businesses are more confident about investing in growth. The housing market is
gaining as well, but is still a couple of years from getting back to normal
levels of home-building.
Read
more here…
Is There Really a Shortage of Construction
Workers?:
Anecdotal
concerns about a shortage don’t quite add up for many economists, who say if
there was truly a shortage of skilled construction workers, then the share of
construction workers who say they’re seeking employment and can’t find any
would be lower. July’s report on the job market shows that the unemployment
rate for construction workers has fallen to 7.5%, back to 2007 levels. Still,
that level is higher than pre-recession norms, and the ratio of construction
workers to housing starts stands roughly 40% above the pre-crisis level,
suggesting considerable slack.
Read
more here…
Construction jobs growing but skilled workforce nearly tapped out
During
the past year, construction firms added jobs in 39 states but the availability
of skilled workers is beginning to fall short of demand.
Nevada
led the way with the largest yearly percentage gain while Florida added the
largest number of jobs, according to an analysis of Labor Department data that
the Associated General Contractors of America released on Monday
Read
more here…
DOL Proposes New Equal Pay Report: Rule to
collect summary pay data from federal contractors proposed by US Labor
Department. Equal Pay Report would help combat pay discrimination:
The
U.S. Department of Labor issued a proposal to collect summary data on how
federal contractors and subcontractors pay their employees. This Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking will be published in Friday’s edition of the Federal
Register and open for public comment from August 8 – November 6, 2014. A press
release announcing this action is copied below.
Read
more here…
NLRB and OSHA partnership expands to now
include reporting of possible fair wage, recordkeeping, and child labor
provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) violations to the Department
of Labor.
Memorandum
OM 14-60, “OSHA Referred Charges,” announced that the Agency had entered into a
program with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) under
which OSHA will notify all complainants who file an untimely OSHA retaliation
charge of their right to file an unfair labor practice charge over the same
conduct with the NLRB. Conversely, there may be occasions during the processing
of an NLRB charge where it also would be appropriate to apprise the Charging
Party or a witness of his or her right to contact OSHA and/or the Wage and Hour
Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL) to discuss the filing of a
complaint with those agencies. This memorandum supplements OM 14-60 to outline the
circumstances of such a referral and the procedures that Board personnel should
utilize.
Read
more here…
PA amends Mechanic's Liens Law: Act 117 is
effective September 7, 2014:
See
the original GLASS Report: Legislative Action Alert: Senate Bill 145: Regular
Session 2013-2014 detailing the history and specifics of this legislation and
the language of ACT 117 by going here…
On
July 9, 2014, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett signed into law Senate Bill 145 (aka "Act 117"), amending
Pennsylvania's Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963. Act 117 is effective September
7, 2014.
Read
more here…
Industry Report: No clear winner for
construction delivery systems:
There
is no clear-cut favorite among established construction project delivery
systems, according to a recent report from McGraw Hill Construction, a division
of McGraw Hill Financial.
Established
systems include design-bid-build, in which owners hold a separate contract with
the design firm and contractor on a project; design-build, in which one entity
delivers both design and construction to the owner; and construction management
at risk, in which the owner contracts with a construction manager during design
who works collaboratively with the design team in the final design stages and
offers the owner a guaranteed price for the final completion of the project.
Read
more here…
BIM Evolved: The BIM system phenomenon:
Contemporary
computer technology changes rapidly, forcing people to adjust the way they work
in accordance with accumulative modifications.
Architectural
design is one of the businesses affected by such change. From the process of
manual drawing and drafting of 20 years ago, the profession has moved on and
adopted CAD (computer-aided design) for the presentation and production of architectural
documents, especially with construction drawings.
Read
more here…
BIM Evolved: BIM Giants: Firms enhance
BIM/VDC with advanced collaboration tools:
This
past April, more than 500 AEC professionals—many from Giants 300 firms—gathered
in Boston for BIMForum. Now in its ninth year, the group, which is co-sponsored
by AGC and AIA, brings together tech-minded professionals twice yearly to
discuss how BIM/VDC tools and advanced workflows are being used to enhance
collaboration of the Building Team.
Read
more here…
Reed
Construction Data announced today that the dollar value of construction starts
in July, excluding residential activity, fell 19.5% versus an exceptionally
strong June. The drop appears worse when seasonality is factored in. Reed’s
long-term average June-to-July percentage change has been +3.5%.
By
way of comparison, June versus May was +35.7%. A surge of project
authorizations at the beginning of summer has been followed by a significant
retreat. The latest month was a return to equilibrium as established over the
past several years.
Read
more here…
Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate, 2014 Edition - 96 Page, Detailed Report
The
commercial construction sector continued its recovery in 2013, and forecasts
for 2014 project accelerating construction spending in office, retail,
commercial, health care and manufacturing facilities.
Combining
the economic contributions of new development with operation of existing
buildings in 2013, direct expenditures of $258.5 billion, resulted in the
following economic contributions in the U.S. economy:
·
Contributed
$747.25 billion to U.S. GDP (or 4.45 percent of GDP);
·
Generated
$236.8 billion in personal earnings; and
·
Supported
a total of 5.7 million jobs
Read
more here….
LEGO launches set aimed at professional
architects:
Danish
toy company Lego has launched Lego Architecture Studio – a new set of building
blocks aimed at the architecture and design community.
The
Lego Architecture Studio set comprises over 1,200 pieces of 76 unique
components, from chamfered wedge-shaped blocks to simple bricks, designed to
give as much freedom and creativity to the maker as possible.
Read
more here….
Architecture Billings Index Reaches Highest
Mark Since 2007:
The
last three months have shown steadily increasing demand for design services and
the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) is now at its highest level since 2007.
As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the
approximate nine to twelve month lead time between architecture billings and
construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the
July ABI score was 55.8, up noticeably from a mark of 53.5 in June. This score
reflects an increase in design activity (any score above 50 indicates an
increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index was 66.0, following a
very strong mark of 66.4 the previous month.
Read
more here…
LABOR:
Construction employment expanded in 223 metro areas,
declined in 72 and was stagnant in 44 between July 2013 and July 2014. As
employment grows, 25 percent of firms report labor shortages are forcing them
to turn down work.
Construction
employment expanded in 223 metro areas, declined in 72 and was stagnant in 44
between July 2013 and July 2014, according to a new analysis of federal
employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of
America. As employment grows, 25 percent of firms report labor shortages are
forcing them to turn down work according to a new survey conducted by
SmartBrief, an industry leader in curated business news and custom content, in
partnership with the association.
Read
more here…
A Comparison of Construction Material and Labor Costs for
30 U.S. and Canadian Cities
RSMeans
monitors construction costs in 318 U.S. and Canadian cities. In an earlier
Economy at a Glance, I set out total index comparisons for the 20 largest
population centers in the U.S. and the 10 biggest in Canada.
This
time, for those same 30 cities, the two major sub-components ‒ materials and
installation ‒ will be placed in
the spotlight. (“Installation” is mainly labor, but it also includes equipment
rental.)
Read
more here…
Collective Bargaining So Far This Year Yields Average
First-Year Increase of 2.2%:
The Construction Labor Research
Council (CLRC) has recently released its latest report on collective bargaining
settlements in the industry. Settlements reported to CLRC between January and
June 2014 resulted in an average first-year wage-and-benefit increase of 2.2
percent or $1.10. For newly negotiated multi-year agreements, the average
second-year increase was 2.5 percent or $1.23, and the average third-year
increase was 2.5 percent or $1.28. Each of these averages is very similar to
the average increases negotiated in 2013 and slightly higher than those
negotiated in 2012, CLRC reports. The percentage of settlements with no
increases negotiated during the latest period was the same as that reported in
2012 but higher than that reported in 2013.
Read more here…
Construction firms added jobs in 39 states from July 2013
to July 2014 and in 34 states from June to July: Pipeline of skilled craft
workers, supervisors and other employees appears to be emptying rapidly:
U.S.
Construction firms added jobs in 39 states from July 2013 to July 2014 and in
34 states from June to July, according to an analysis today of Labor Department
data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials
said the employment gains are good news, but that the pipeline of skilled craft
workers, supervisors and other employees appears to be emptying rapidly.
Read
more here…
Pay raises continue gradual growth: Energy sector plans
to offer largest pay hikes in 2015
U.S.
employees are starting to see the effects of the economic recovery in their
paychecks. The latest Mercer compensation report found that the average pay
raise expected to be doled out in 2015 will be 3 percent, up from 2.7 percent
in 2012.
Read
more here…
The NLRB affirms ALJ’s decision in favor of employee who
failed to submit to a drug test after invoking Weingarten Rights:
Under NLRB v. J. Weingarten,
Inc., 420 U.S. 251 (1975), a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United
States, employees in unionized workplaces have the right under the National
Labor Relations Act to the presence of a union steward during any management
inquiry that the employee reasonably believes may result in discipline
Read more here…
New Executive Order Targets Federal Contractors: Contractors
and subcontractors to Disclose their own Labor Law Violations:
President Obama
has issued yet another executive order that will impose additional labor
compliance requirements on companies that choose to do business with the
federal government. Entitled “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces,” the new
Order requires contractors and subcontractors to disclose their own labor law
violations and requires federal agencies to exclude from federal contracting
those companies with a history of poor labor law compliance.
Read more here…
Regional Collective Bargaining Settlement
Sheets available:
GMCS has compiled a detailed settlement report defining the regional trade
settlements from last year’s collective bargaining as well as detailing the
previously negotiated settlements for trades and associations. Copies are
available to associations engaged in regional negotiations. Please
contact GMCS at wegregory@gregorymcs.com
today for instructions on how to receive your copy.
GMCS is the Philadelphia Region’s Leading Labor Relations Solutions Provider:
A recent study by the Center for Construction Research and
Training indicates that work site conflict costs, on average,
$11,000.00 per incident. GMCS provides contracted labor relations
services to many of the region’s employer associations, contractors, facility
owners and industry stakeholders helping you to avoid those costly
conflicts. With two
levels of affordable annual agreements costing less than 50% of the cost of an
average conflict, contracted
labor relations services can help your organization stay on schedule and
budget.
Contact wegregory@gregorymcs.com for your
consultation today.
OFCCP Posts New FAQs on the Employer-Employee
Relationship:
The OFCCP has
posted Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) addressing how federal contractors
should assess their employment relationships to distinguish “employees” from
“independent contractors” or other non-employee workers.
Read more here…
5 expected to plead guilty in Ironworkers case:
The attorney
for Edward Sweeney said yesterday that Sweeney, 55, who was one of Ironworkers
Local Union 401's business agents, will plead guilty to some charges at a
hearing Sept. 30 in federal court.
Read more here…
WTI Points to Higher Pay Gains by End of Year:
Workers in the
private sector likely will see higher wage growth by the end of this year,
according to the preliminary third-quarter Wage Trend Indicator™ (WTI) released
today by Bloomberg BNA, a leading publisher of specialized news and
information.
Read more here…
OSHA & SAFETY:
Comment period
extended on proposed rule to improve tracking of workplace injury and
illnesses:
OSHA has announced it will extend the
comment period on the proposed rule to improve tracking of workplace injuries
and illnesses to Oct. 14, 2014. The proposal, published on Nov. 8, 2013, would
amend the agency's recordkeeping regulation to add requirements for the
electronic submission of injury and illness information that employers are
already required to keep.
Read more here…
Human Error Caused
Superstorm Sandy Crane Failure, Expert Says:
The "dangling crane" that
partially collapsed nearly 1,000 ft over Manhattan during Superstorm Sandy was
caused by a worker who unintentionally tied down the rig and kept it from
weather-vaning—or freely rotating—according to a forensic engineer who
investigated the accident.
Read more here…
US Department of Labor's OSHA announces summer 'Construction Incident Prevention Initiative:
The
initiative is designed to identify and eliminate safety and health hazards at
construction sites and to prevent injuries and fatalities resulting from the
four leading causes of incidents: falls, crushing events, electrocutions and
caught-in-between events. The initiative will target health hazards involving
silica, lead and hexavalent chromium, and will draw on OSHA's national
campaigns to prevent fall hazards at construction sites and heat illness among
outdoor workers.
Read
more here…
OSHA education centers
offer specialized safety training for the oil and gas industry:
The
oil and gas industry employs more than 450,000 workers. The Bureau of Labor
Statistics reports that in 2012 alone, more than 2,400 workers were injured and
181 more were killed, which is five times higher than the national average.
Read more here…
New CDC report on OSHA’s review of heat-related enforcement cases highlights need for acclimatization to prevent worker deaths:
The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today issued a report on the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s review of 20 heat-related
enforcement cases from 2012 to 2013. OSHA’s analysis, described in the CDC’s
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, suggests that the primary risk factor
for heat fatalities is the lack of acclimatization programs.
Read
more here…
Philadelphia Area Project on Occupational Safety and Health (PhilaPOSH) Makes Opportunities Possible: Worker Well-Trained to Land Job in Building Trades:
For
Philadelphia native Darrell Hendricks, training provided by the Philadelphia
Area Project on Occupational Safety and Health, and funded through a Susan
Harwood Grant awarded by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, was
key to his career change from youth services to construction. "I was
seeking employment in the building trades, and I knew the PhilaPOSH training
would prepare me
Read more here…
OSHA’s Severe Violators Grow by 23 Percent from 2013:
Construction companies make up about 60 percent of the severe violators list:
A
total of 423 employers—an increase of 23 percent from a year ago—make up the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) really bad actors list,
according to recently updated data.
Eighty
workplaces have been added to OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP)
log since July 1, 2013. Five companies successfully contested violations and
were removed from the program in that time.
Read more here…
Fatalities in the construction industry: findings from a revision of the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System:
Version
2.01 of the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System enables
researchers to more readily identify factors that contribute to construction
industry fatalities and provide the industry with insight into developing
injury prevention strategies; the revision improves on current safety and health
surveillance and will have long-term effects on safety and health intervention
programs and policies targeted at both the construction industry and the
overall U.S. workforce.
Read
more here…
New resources: OSHA updates Heat Stress QuickCard:
OSHA's
updated Heat Stress QuickCardTM serves as a reminder to employers to acclimate
workers to heat conditions. Employers should gradually increase workloads and
allow more frequent breaks for workers who are new to the heat or those who
have been away from work. The updated QuickCardTM also advises employers to
modify work schedules and establish a complete heat illness prevention plan to
protect their workers. OSHA's Heat Safety Tool, a mobile app that allows users
to calculate the heat index, is also available for employers and workers.
Read
more here…
Alliance with Scaffold and Access Industry Association renewed to protect workers from scaffold hazards:
OSHA
has renewed its alliance with the Scaffold and Access Industry Association to
provide information and training to protect the safety and health of workers
who use scaffolds and lift equipment. Through the alliance, OSHA and SAIA will
work to reduce and prevent fall and caught-in-between hazards and issues
related to frame, mast climbing and suspended scaffolds and aerial lift
equipment.
Read
more here…
OSHA urges Employers to prevent texting while driving:
OSHA reminds employers
that they have a responsibility to protect their workers by prohibiting texting
while driving. It is a violation of the OSH Act if employers require workers to
text while driving, create incentives that encourage or condone it, or
structure work so that texting is a practical necessity for workers to carry
out their job.
Read more here…
OSHA National fall
Prevention Program:
Falls
are the leading cause of death in construction, and OSHA is working with NIOSH
and the National Occupational Research Agenda to get the word out about how to
"Plan, Provide, Train" to prevent fatal falls. To learn more, please
check out OSHA’s Fall Prevention Campaign resource page here…
MULTI-EMPLOYER PLAN UPDATE:
Milliman analysis: Corporate pension funded
status drops by $5 billion in July due to investment losses:
The
funded status of the 100 largest corporate defined benefit pension plans
decreased by $5 billion during July as measured by the Milliman 100 Pension
Funding Index (PFI). The deficit rose to $257 billion from $252 billion at the
end of June, primarily due to declines in equity and fixed income returns
during July. As of July 31, the funded ratio declined to 85.0%, down from 85.3%
at the end of June.
Read
more here…
Globally,
defined-benefit retirement plans are becoming a thing of the past and
defined-contribution plans more widely accepted as the preferred alternative, a
trend that could spur inquiries from international employer clients.
Read
more here…
De-risking trend redefining the global
pension market:
On
July 4, 2014, the trustees of the BT Pension Scheme in the U.K. announced a
record-breaking longevity risk transfer transaction that will provide long-term
protection and income to the pension scheme in the event that members live
longer than expected.
Read
more here…
Hybrid retirement plans offer
pension-styled security Pension:
Traditional
pension plans have been going the way of the Dodo for a few years, but many
employers are switching to hybrid plans to minimize their risk while continuing
to offer a lifelong benefit to employees.
Read
more here…
Withdrawal liability: Why employers can’t
sue trustees:
For
employers who cease to contribute to a multiemployer defined benefit pension
plan, withdrawal liability is becoming more and more common. When a pension
fund is underfunded, the cessation of the contribution obligation can trigger
the obligation to pay off the allocated portion of that unfunded liability
which can be substantial. When I am working with employers who are addressing
withdrawal liability, I am frequently asked whether the employer can sue the
fund or the trustee for causing the unfunded liability. The short answer is no,
but a recent case lays out very clearly why that answer is no.
Read
more here…
Pa. Health Insurers Request Increases Up To
26 percent on some plans:
Pennsylvania
insurers have requested rate increases of up to 26 percent for some individual
and small-group plans starting Jan. 1, 2015, according to regulatory filings
with the Pennsylvania Insurance Department.
Read
more here…
HUMAN RESOURCES:
OFCCP
Posts New Directive on Gender Identity and Sex Discrimination:
The
directive reaffirms that in compliance evaluations and complaint
investigations, OFCCP fully investigates and seeks to remedy instances of sex
discrimination that occur because of an individual’s gender identity or
transgender status. The directive explains that, when investigating such
instances of potential discrimination, OFCCP adheres to the existing Title VII
framework for proving sex discrimination, as outlined in OFCCP’s Federal
Contract Compliance Manual.
Read
more here…
How painful can it get? Penalties for
immigration noncompliance:
Remember—all
employers have immigration-related compliance obligations regardless of whether
they employ any foreign nationals. Some of the companies suffering significant
penalties identified below never even had any unauthorized workers in their
workforce but merely fell short on their obligation to verify employment
eligibility (the Form I-9 process) or discriminated against certain individuals
during the Form I-9 process.
Read
more here…
Retaliation charges on the rise: how to protect your company
In
2013, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) investigated 93,727
charges of discrimination, which resulted in penalties totaling $372.1 million.
Retaliation claims accounted for 41 percent of all the charges. The most
frequent bases of claims across all statutes are related to discharge and
discipline. Therefore, employers have opportunities to reduce the risk by
thoroughly documenting and reviewing all practices before, during, and after
any adverse action toward an employee.
Read
more here…
Feds release draft tax forms for employer compliance with
ACA:
The
Internal Revenue Service on Thursday released drafts of the forms employers
will use to report on health coverage they offer to their employees, unveiling
a glimpse of the administrative onus in store for benefit advisers and their
employer clients working to comply with the Affordable Care Act.
Read
more here…
FMLA notice requirements: Are you
prepared?:
Since
1993, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) has provided eligible employees
with job security for unpaid leave related to certain family and medical
issues, including serious health conditions and the care of a newborn baby, a
newly placed foster child, or an adopted child. The serious health condition
protections extend to employees who care for a parent, spouse, or child. The
FMLA also provides protections for caring for injured military
servicemembers.
Read
more here…
Executive Order Bars Discrimination against
LGBT Workers for Federal Contractors, Government:
President
Obama recently signed an executive order that will prohibit federal contractors
from discriminating against employees based on sexual orientation and gender
identity. The executive order adds sexual orientation and gender identity to
the list of protections that apply to federal contractors and adds gender
identity as a protected category that applies to federal employees, who are
already protected from discrimination based on sexual orientation. President
Obama signed the order in the wake of the stalled Employment Non-Discrimination
Act (ENDA), which was passed by the Senate last fall but has yet to be
considered in the House of Representatives.
Read
more here…
This e-mail newsletter has been provided complimentary to Associations and
industry stakeholders by Wayne Gregory of Gregory Management & Consulting
Services (GMCS). Wayne
Gregory has been the recognized regional leader in the areas of Labor &
Industry Relations since 2005 and is continuing to serve the industry and its
multi-employer Associations under the GMCS
brand, Knowledge, Trust, Integrity
and a unwavering commitment to Serve
the industry. From Association Management & Executive Leadership
services, Owner Representation, Government & Legislative Affairs
& Subscription Services and Labor & Industry Relations, let GMCS help
your Associations and organizations to forge a new and clear path forward.
We hope that you enjoy the new newsletter format and welcome all comments
and suggestions regarding these changes. You may forward those to Wayne
Gregory @ wegregory@gregorymcs.com.
Best wishes to all for a safe, prosperous, healthy & harmonious 2014.
Sincerely,
Wayne E. Gregory
Gregory
Management & Consulting Services
2869 Eagleville Road
Audubon, PA 19403-2051
Phone: (215) 498-5790
E-Mail: wegregory@gregorymcs.com
