MONTPELIER - Legislative leaders say they'll pass a formal resolution urging the Douglas administration to reconsider its opposition to a proposed labor agreement for the Champlain Bridge project.
The announcement Wednesday culminates weeks of wrangling between the two government branches over a so-called "Project Labor Agreement" - a union-negotiated contract that would govern labor rules on the $110 million project.
Transportation officials in the Douglas administration call the document a pro-union agreement that would disadvantage Vermont contractors, the majority of whom run "open shops."
Union officials say the Project Labor Agreement would save up to $3 million in total project costs and ensure the use of Vermont workers on the highest-dollar bridge contract in recent memory.
"We firmly believe that if the administration will reconsider its position, we can get Vermonters working, rebuild the bridge and save taxpayer money," Senate President Peter Shumlin said at an afternoon press conference. "It would be pennywise and pound foolish to proceed in any other fashion."
Shumlin, joined by Sen. Vince Illuzzi, an Essex County Republican, and House Majority Leader Floyd Nease, a Johnson Democrat, said witness testimony compiled during two days of hearings cemented the Legislature's position.
While the resolution won Shumlin and other lawmakers the good graces of Vermont union officials, the symbolic gesture won't compel a change in the administration's stance.
John Zicconi, director of planning and community affairs for the Vermont Agency of Transportation, said Wednesday that Secretary of Transportation David Dill maintains his opposition to the PLA.
"The overriding issue all along has been fairness to all contractors vying for work," Zicconi said.
Dill has said the PLA violates that fairness by giving undue preference to union contractors. Provisions in the PLA, Dill said, would require almost all work on the job to be performed by union members. Dill said Vermont contractors have told his agency that the requirements would either force higher bids or, more likely, keep them out of the bidding process altogether.
Union officials say the maximum allowances for nonunion labor don't preclude open-shop firms from using their own workers. Rather the contractors would have to operate under a union framework for the duration of contract, they said, and their workers would have to temporarily join up with the local union hall.
Union officials also say the PLA guarantees a minimum number of Vermont workers for the project. A clause in the contract stipulates that 84 percent of labor positions will be split between union workers in Vermont and New York.
"I can guarantee you that no Vermont contractor is going to win the bid on a project of this size," said Michael Morelli, business agent for Ironworkers Local 7 Vermont. "So if it's going to be an out-of-state contractor, wouldn't we want some assurance that workers in the impacted areas are still going to benefit?" Citing a feasibility study conducted by a New York consultant, union officials say the Project Labor Agreement would save up to $3 million in project costs. Harmonizing work schedules between various union trades and avoiding overtime for unconventional shifts, the study found, would achieve significant savings.
"The Project Labor Agreement - brings about wage concessions, and secondly it will help to ensure that Vermonters and New Yorkers will have a substantial part of the construction work issued in connection with one of largest construction projects in recent history," Illuzzi said.
Some prominent lawmakers remain opposed to the Project Labor Agreement. The chairmen of the House and Senate committees on transportation - who signed a letter to the New York Department of Transportation opposing the use of a PLA - say the contract would hurt Vermont contractors.
Rep. Pat Brennan, a Colchester Republican, said he thinks the PLA is more likely to increase project costs, not reduce them. And with open-shop contractors comprising 95 percent of the Vermont workforce, Brennan said, it's unwise for the state to enter into a contract negotiated by union heads.
"This is going to force our guys to join a union whether they want to or not," Brennan said. "With a PLA in place, it's going to preclude a Vermont contractor from even bidding."
Zicconi said with the bid-opening happening tomorrow, it's far too late in the process to introduce a PLA now. Doing so, he said, would push back the project schedule and prolong the ferry service that costs Vermont about $30,000 a day to operate.
"If we were to attempt to do anything at this point it could jeopardize us moving forward in a timely manner," Zicconi said. "And time literally is money with this project due to ferry costs."
Legislative leaders said the PLA could be negotiated in a single day without affecting the project schedule at all.
The Legislature could have sent a more forceful message by passing a bill tying the appropriation of bridge funding to the use of a PLA. Shumlin said "practical" concerns would make that an unwise course to pursue.
"We understand that bill might not get signed so we're sending a resolution," Shumlin said. "If they veto the bill, we're in the same place, and time is of the essence here."
