unions – Missouri House of Representatives Newsroom

House votes to send project labor agreement ban to Governor Greitens

Missouri legislative Republicans’ labor reform agenda took another step Thursday with the final passage of a bill barring project labor agreements (PLAs) for public projects.

Representative Rob Vescovo began proposing a ban on project labor agreements for public projects when he was first elected to the House for the 2015 session. (photo; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

The House voted to send Senate Bill 182 to Governor Eric Greitens (R), who had called for the elimination of PLAs.

Under a PLA, a governing body requires non-union contractors to pay union dues to workers on a project. SB 182 would prohibit that, and would bar local governments from giving preferential treatment to union contractors. Governing bodies that violate the bill’s provisions would lose state funding and tax credits for two years.

Republicans said PLAs are unfair to non-union workers and contractors. Arnold representative Rob Vescovo (R) said PLAs discriminate against the largest segment of Missouri’s workforce.

“86-percent of that workforce will not be able to do work on those job sites or bid on those job sites unless they sign a project labor agreement,” said Vescovo.

Lake St. Louis Republican Justin Hill said PLAs amount to extortion.

“Those non-union contractors are forced to pay union dues into benefits that they will never receive,” said Hill.

Representative Bob Burns said project labor agreements are good tools for local governments, which the legislature should not move to take away. (photo; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

Democrats called the legislation an attack on unions. Representative Bob Burns (D-St. Louis) said PLAs protect local governments by ensuring that they will have work done that is quality and completed on time by skilled workers. He said his time on a board of education in Affton provided evidence of that.

“A lot of things that should have lasted 25, 30 years were failing after 5 years or 2 years, and these contractors were nowhere to be found,” said Burns. “The district wouldn’t have to spend more funds to get something done and get it fixed if it would’ve been done properly in the first place.”

SB 182 was carried in the House by Vescovo, who began introducing such legislation as a freshman in 2015. It is expected Greitens will sign the bill into law.

The House’s passage of SB 182 follows other labor reforms it has proposed, including the passage of a right-to-work bill signed into law by Greitens earlier this year. That legislation prevents the collection of union dues or fees from workers as a condition of employment.

Earlier story: House Republicans continue labor reform efforts; address project labor agreements

House Republicans continue labor reform efforts, address project labor agreements

The House Republican supermajority advanced another piece of its labor reform agenda, with the passage of HB 126 related to project labor agreements.

Representative Rob Vescovo (photo; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

The bill would bar required union agreements on public works projects. Bill sponsor, Representative Rob Vescovo (R-Arnold) said project labor agreements discriminate against non-union workers and called them, “indefensible.”

“Project labor agreements are designed to stifle competition and force non-union contractors to become signatory on certain projects,” said Vescovo.

Democrats like Bob Burns (St. Louis) said project labor agreements allow local governments to guarantee quality work will be done.

“This is only for one reason: to lower wages. That’s all it’s about. We want to pay less wages,” said Burns. “They’re not talking about quality. They’re not talking about safety.”

The bill goes to the Senate, which has already passed similar legislation.

The House earlier this session joined the Senate in sending Governor Eric Greitens a right-to-work bill, which was signed into law earlier this month. The House also passed a bill supporters call, “paycheck protection,” which requires annual permission from a public union employee before union dues or fees can be taken from his or her paychecks.

Legislation dealing with prevailing wage laws, which make contractors pay a state-set minimum wage for trade workers on public projects, is moving through House committees and could be the next labor reform the chamber will debate.

Missouri House votes to send right-to-work to Gov. Greitens

The Missouri House has sent Governor Eric Greitens a bill that would make Missouri the 28^th right-to-work state.

Representative Holly Rehder also sponsored the House's version of a right-to-work bill, HB 91, which was sent to the Senate in January. (photo; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications) — Representative Holly Rehder also sponsored the House’s version of a right-to-work bill, HB 91, which was sent to the Senate in January. (photo; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

Senate Bill 19 would bar union membership or the paying of union dues from being a condition of employment. It would make violators of that prohibition guilty of a Class “C” misdemeanor and would require county prosecutors and the state Attorney General to investigate complaints or violations.

It also includes a “grandfather” clause, which would allow existing contracts between unions and companies to remain in place until they are changed or expire.

The House voted 100-59 to send the bill to the governor, who, it is anticipated, will sign it into law.

Republicans say right-to-work is an issue of worker freedom that will allow workers to decide how their money is used and who will represent them. They say some companies have not come to Missouri because it is not a right-to-work state, and say the bill’s passage will lead to more jobs and perhaps an increase in union membership.

Sikeston Republican Holly Rehder carried SB 19 in the House. She said it felt great and humbling to be carrying the bill that appears set to finally make law a long-time Republican priority.

“It’s a huge win for Missouri,” said Rehder. “The states that have passed it in the last few years have shown unemployment drop considerably, so I think this is a big deal for all Missouri working families. I’m very excited to get it to the governor’s desk. I think that it’s not a silver bullet but it’s definitely a tool in our tool box now, and we can move on to some other things to make Missouri even more business friendly.”

Democrats say right-to-work states have lower wages and a lower quality of life, and say the passage of SB 19 will not help the state’s economy.

Representative Doug Beck still wants to see right-to-work go to a vote of the people. (photo; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

St. Louis Democrat and member of a local pipefitters union, Doug Beck, said it is a “sad day” for Missouri.

“Every conservative estimate I have seen shows right-to-work will cost our state at least $160-million in lost revenue due to lower wages. Lower wages equal lower income taxes collected. Lower wages equal less money spent stimulating the economy,” said Beck. “After years of lower wages many of these families will turn to state assistance as their only option to survive.”

Democrats, as they did when the House debated its right-to-work bill (HB 91), proposed sending the issue to Missouri voters rather than the governor. That was rejected on a Republican-led vote. Democrats said the issue is one that should be decided by the people. Republicans said they proposed sending right-to-work to voters two years ago and Democrats opposed it then, and accused Democrats of favoring a vote now only because the governor is unlikely to veto the bill.

Proposals were also rejected that would have put a sunset on the bill, making it no longer law after five years unless renewed by the legislature; and that would have made it not apply to existing union-company contracts until their renewal, as opposed to when they are changed.