On Jan. 26, the National Labor Relations Board announced an extension for the public to submit responses related to its Request for Information on the 2014 “ambush” election final rule, also known as Representation-Case Procedures. The deadline for submitting information has been extended from Feb. 12 to March 19, 2018. 

The not seasonally adjusted national construction unemployment rate was 5.9 percent in December, down 1.5 percent from December 2016 and the lowest December rate on record, according to an analysis released by ABC of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Estimated construction unemployment rates were down in 46 states on a year-over-year basis, unchanged in one (Idaho) and up in three states (Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).

President Trump delivered his first State of the Union Speech on Jan. 30, calling America “a nation of builders.” ABC responded to the key components of the president’s address that focused on rebuilding America’s infrastructure, developing an effective workforce in the United States, the success of tax reform, and the need to fix our broken immigration system while continuing to grow a strong economy with limitless opportunities for all Americans.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has completed its mailing of the 2017 EEO-1 survey notification letters, according to a Jan. 24 press release issued by the agency. The annual survey requires all private employers with 100 or more employees and federal government contractors or first-tier subcontractors with 50 or more employees and a contract/subcontract of $50,000 or more to file the EEO-1 report. 

The U.S. economy grew by 2.3 percent in 2017, while fixed investment increased at an annual rate of 7.9 percent, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) analysis of data released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

On Jan. 22, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published new procedures for processing H-2B visa applications following this year’s significant increase in labor certification bids. Due to the spike in applications filed on Jan. 1, 2018, the DOL Employment and Training Administration’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification will now process these applications in order of the time of day they were received to “better reflect the sequential order in which employers filed applications.”

ABC and a coalition of construction and business associations sent President Trump a letter urging him to eliminate government-mandated project labor agreements on federal and federally assisted projects, allowing all qualified contractors and Americans to fairly compete to build and work on these taxpayer-funded projects.

On Jan. 22, President Trump signed a stopgap spending bill (H.R.195) to end the government shutdown and fund government operations through Feb. 8. Included in the bill was a suspension for 2019 of the health insurance tax (HIT) on providers included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. 

Construction Executive magazine, published by ABC, is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year with the launch of its new and improved website, ConstructionExec.com, and a new digital newsletter, CE This Week. Readers can now access a variety of articles posted daily that pertain to all facets of the construction industry: safety, insurance, technology, surety bonding, regulatory, craft training, leadership, fleet management, business development, economic trends and more.

ABC is reminding its contractor member firms that their 2017 Occupational Safety and Health Administration Form 300A work-related injury and illness log summaries must be posted in a visible spot on all construction sites Feb. 1 through April 30.