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Union members want local labor to build Santa Paula plant
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Men wearing hard hats overflowed out both doors of Santa Paula City Council chambers Monday evening.
They were members of about 10 local unions, and they were there to speak about the use of local labor in the construction of the city's new water treatment facility. The facility broke ground last month.
Pacific Environmental Resources Corp., or PERC, is designing, building and operating the facility. PERC has offices in California and Arizona. Union leaders alleged at the meeting that PERC was selecting contractors and subcontractors who would bring in labor from other areas, including from out of state. PERC and contractor Layton Construction officials told the City Council they were using local companies and workers.
"We want jobs for people here in Santa Paula," said Alan Butler of the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters. "They are trained, they are highly motivated ... they know how to do this job."
Nate Owen, PERC's vice president of construction, said PERC was putting $100,000 into the community by hiring locally. Jeff Beecher, executive vice president of Layton Construction, said they had selected fewer than half of their subcontractors. Of those selected, he said about 60 percent used union labor, though whether a subcontractor uses union labor does not factor into Layton's decision-making process. One company from Arizona was selected because of its history working on PERC projects, Beecher said. Beecher did not name the company.
"We're on a fast track. We need to use people we know," said Owen.
Council members said their discussions with PERC officials before selecting the company led them to believe PERC was committed to using local labor.
"We specifically asked for local hiring, and the response to that was, absolutely,'" Councilman Gabino Aguirre said.
Councilman John Procter requested an agenda item at the next meeting to discuss the issue further, and the council unanimously approved the motion.
Posted by vcsexplorer11 on August 19, 2008 at 8:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Isn't local labor from Mexico?
Posted by dom_kenpo on August 19, 2008 at 10:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Typical union terrorist tactics.....
Posted by somepeople on August 19, 2008 at 11:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
If you watched the meeting on TV, yes the Union was there to discuss WHY NOT use local Labor UNION or NON UNION! PERC promised to use local labor they have for about 10% of the project and the rest has been contracted out of State or out of the Local Tri Counties. It is not fair that we have so many unemployed skilled workers in our area for them to use labor from out of state!
Posted by C2ShiningC on August 19, 2008 at 12:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Somebody is trying to pull the city's leg. Try telling any of the union bosses down in their LA headquarters that you will only accept workers out of the Camarillo hiring hall who are currently living in Santa Paula. Was the person being quoted an official spokesperson for the SWC? Hard to believe so, based on my close up experiences as a union member.
Posted by johnnyringo on August 19, 2008 at 5:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If the city wanted as many local people to be hired as possible, that should have been in the RFP and the final bid form. To make it work, the City would have had to set up a local hiring hall for local resident workers to apply and be qualified at. The Union would have balked at this, undoubtedly, but maybe it could have been tried. That this did not happen is not PERC's fault, they are between a rock and a hard place. If it's a Union job, the Union selects the workers by priority, and that is not based upon living in Santa Paula. This is a false issue if you know the real facts and how hiring is done.
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