ABC today celebrated an important decision limiting the scope of the Davis-Bacon Act issued by a U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.  In a March 31 decision granting summary judgment to the District of Columbia (the District) and private developer CCDC Office LLC (CCDC), Judge Amy Berman Jackson rejected the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) unprecedented ruling that the Davis-Bacon Act can be expanded to include privately funded projects.

ABC along with a group of business organizations March 31 shared their support to Senate and House Leadership of a bipartisan proposal that would repeal the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) statutory cap on deductibles for health plans in the small group market. In addition, ABC sent a letter April 1 to the U.S. House of Representatives in support of the Save American Workers Act (H.R. 2575), which would replace ACA’s definition of “full time” as 30 hours or more per week with the traditional definition of 40 hours.

The U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate March 27 introduced three bills to reverse key elements of the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) contentious “ambush election” rule. The NLRB’s proposed rule dramatically shortens the amount of time between when a union files a representation petition and when an election takes place to as few as 10 days in addition to requiring employers to submit their employees’ personal contact information to union organizers.

In an effort to raise funds for the Trimmer Construction Education Foundation and ABC’s National Craft Championships, Construction Executive magazine is donating $1 for every new “like” on its Facebook page throughout the month of April.

ABC has made some changes to its meeting schedule in an effort to provide more value for attendees. The Meetings Transformation Taskforce set goals to provide more affordable accommodations, keep registration costs in check and reduce the number of meetings overall for next year and moving forward.

The ABC-led Construction Industry Safety Coalition (CISC) testified in front of OSHA March 24 on a proposed rule that would drastically lower the permissible exposure limit (PEL) of respirable crystalline silica for the construction industry.

ABC is looking for members to help judge the 2014 National Craft Championships on May 1 in Birmingham, Ala. Members with demonstrated expertise in a craft who are interested in participating should submit a judge’s form to [email protected] indicating one of the craft competitions they would like to judge by April 11.

ABC’s annual Workforce Development Conference is bringing construction professionals education, networking and careers in construction April 29-May 2 in Birmingham, Ala. Choose from more than 40 educational sessions, keynote speakers and our many networking receptions to increase your professional development.

The U.S. Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced March 19 a new piece of their Fall Prevention Campaign to raise awareness about the hazards of falls among employers and employees in construction. The national safety “stand-down” encourages employers to take time between June 2-6, 2014 to discuss fall prevention, ladder, scaffolding and roof safety and more and will recognize employers that participate with a personalized certificate.

With education sessions and networking receptions, there's something for everyone at the 2014 Workforce Development ConferenceApril 29-May 2 in Birmingham, Ala. Construction owners; mid to upper management; project managers and supervisors; safety and risk professionals; and ABC Chapter staff can pick and choose from concurrent sessions covering a variety of industry topics and network with industry leaders. In addition, attendees can watch more than 180 craft trainees compete in the National Craft Championships.