Unions have been pressuring the Dublin City Council since at least 2010 to require construction companies to sign a costly Project Labor Agreement with unions. Their latest attempt began on December 3, 2019 with an item placed on the city council meeting agenda described as an "Introduction to Community Workforce Agreements and Concepts.”

This introduction to higher costs to taxpayers for government-mandated favoritism for special interest groups should have settled the matter. But Project Labor Agreements are about politics, not logic. When it comes to union lobbying and influence, the introduction is merely political cover for the implementation. And the vote to begin implementation is scheduled at the Dublin  City Council meeting tonight (July 21, 2020).

Item 7.2 is "Review of Community Workforce Agreements: Themes, Data, and Proposed Negotiation Terms”

The City Council will review and discuss the report and provide direction on whether to initiate negotiations with the Building and Construction Trades Council of Alameda County for a Community Workforce Agreement on City construction and other public works projects. Community Workforce Agreements are agreements between a city and local labor organizations that address issues related to a specific construction project or a class of construction projects.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Receive the report and provide feedback and direction, if any, on initiating negotiations with the Building and Construction Trades Council of Alameda County for a Community Workforce Agreement and the proposed negotiation terms outlined in the report.

The staff report, based on interviews with public works staff at other local governments in the East Bay of San Francisco, indicate numerous drawbacks for requiring contractors to sign Project Labor Agreements with unions.

Here is the staff report: Review of Community Workforce Agreements - Themes, Data, and Proposed Negotiation Terms