IUPAT commends Biden Administration’s historic Prevailing Wage announcement
Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE
IUPAT COMMENDS BIDEN ADMINISTRATION’S HISTORIC PREVAILING WAGE CHANGES WHICH WILL BENEFIT MILLIONS OF CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
HANOVER, MARYLAND (AUGUST 8, 2023)
The following statement was issued by IUPAT General President Jimmy Williams, Jr. in support of the U.S Department of Labor’s final rule updating Davis-Bacon Act regulations:
“Today, the Biden-Harris administration has once again demonstrated their commitment to putting workers at the center of economic policy with the announcement of a long overdue update to the Davis Bacon Act.
This change is arguably the most significant and impactful to our pay in the trades in over 40 years and it reverses the Reagan era rule that redefined prevailing wage to help bosses, not workers. The updated rule will also benefit workers in our trades who need it the most – workers across the South who are paid less, exploited more and often at the complete mercy of their employers.
President Biden and the Department of Labor are making certain that the historic infrastructure investment of his administration supports good-paying union jobs. These policy changes will ensure federal investment on these projects means a greater share for everyone building the projects. Importantly, these changes don’t stop there – they include more enforcement, anti-retaliation provisions for workers, and a vehicle to hold contractors who commit wage violations responsible.
These changes will uplift millions of construction workers, help thwart the underground economy and low-road contractors in construction, and bring the jobs of the future in the clean energy industry to include prevailing wages going forward.”
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THE INTERNATIONAL UNION OF PAINTERS AND ALLIED TRADES (IUPAT)
Represents a growing community of over 140,000 active and retired craftspeople in the United States and Canada. The IUPAT membership extends far beyond the workplace. Recognized as one of the most active unions in the labor movement, IUPAT members help shape their communities in many ways: through an abiding commitment to service, by fighting passionately for workers’ rights that benefit all working families, and through effective worker education and mobilization.