Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO (BCTD) President Sean McGarvey declared March 10 during an address to the BCTD 2014 Legislative Conference intent to increase their involvement in the oil, gas and petro-chemical industries, particularly in the Gulf Coast region.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)  two recently finalized rules go into effect March 24, 2014. The rules drastically alter federal contractors’ existing affirmative action and nondiscrimination obligations with respect to veterans and individuals with disabilities.

ABC has officially launched its National Young Professional Program, which provides ABC member company employees under the age of 40 additional benefits and ways to increase their involvement within the association. By participating in the program, ABC’s young leaders have the opportunity to build relationships, expand their skills and advance their careers while continuing to promote open competition and the merit shop philosophy.

On March 10, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) co-published two documents on the use of employment background checks:  Background Checks: What Employers Need to Know andBackground Checks: What Job Applicants and Employees Should Know.  

The 2013 Year in Review uses ABC’s value proposition to take a look back at what ABC accomplished throughout the last year to support its goals, including political victories, safety and productivity initiatives and community involvement.

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) and CNA March 19 announced that during their third year as strategic partners, the groups will collaborate on driving the construction industry toward world class safety by targeting specific safety issues each quarter. Their outreach and education efforts will include webinars and CNA safety resources for ABC members to use to promote workplace safety industry-wide.

On March 10, the Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued final rules on information reporting by applicable large employers on health insurance coverage offered under employer-sponsored plans and information reporting of minimum essential coverage. The final regulations relate to the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer and insurer information reporting requirements under Internal Revenue Code sections 6055 and 6056.

More than 900 ABC members joined ABC in submitting comments to OSHA requesting it withdraw a proposed rule that would require employers to electronically submit detailed injury and illness records to the agency that would be made available to the public through an online database.

The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed two ABC-supported regulatory reform bills with bipartisan support. The Achieving Less Excess in Regulation and Requiring Transparency (ALERRT) Act (H.R. 2804) passed the House on Feb. 27 by a vote of 236-179 and the Responsibly and Professionally Invigorating Development” (RAPID) Act (H.R. 2641) passed the House on March 6 by a vote of 229-179.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is requesting comments from the construction industry in response to the potential use of government-mandated project labor agreements (PLA) on two projects covering Mississippi, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.