"The president has listened to our legitimate concerns," Sean O'Neill, spokesperson for the Big Dig, the $14 billion massive highway construction project in the heart of the city here, tells GlobeSt.com. "But going forward, all federal projects will not have project labor agreements."
The ban would have had a major impact on this project where an agreement with the labor unions has been in effect for the past ten years. The agreement specified that only union workers would be used on the project and in exchange, unions promised not to strike. While worker's wages would not have been affected by this directive because the prevailing wage in this state is equal to the union wage, when projects would be put out to bid--reportedly, the project still has $800 million in work left to bid--bidders would no longer have to be union organizations. If union members do not like certain outcomes, a strike delay on a project this large would be extremely damaging.
According to O'Neill, the Big Dig has filed for an exemption and is still waiting to hear back from the government. In the meantime, the current project labor agreement is still standing. "The formal approval of the extension is due any week now," he says.
While the Big Dig waits, it has also come up with a plan to curry favor with other parts of the state, where resentment about the huge cost overruns of this project is building. A decision has been made to recycle the temporary bridges built for the project and use them in future bridge construction around the state. "Any of the temporary structures would be handed back to Mass Highway," says O'Neill. At least 35 temporary ramps and sections of bridges will be available before the completion of the Big Dig. After being inspected, they will be used as permanent structures.
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