Hoffa Applauds Obama Executive Order on Project Labor Agreements

Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa praised President Obama today for signing an executive order allowing the federal government to require project labor agreements (PLAs) on large-scale construction projects. Such agreements are efficient, save money and promote safety and labor standards.

“This is yet another reason for working families to be grateful that we have a champion in the White House,” Hoffa said. “Project labor agreements are a win-win for everyone involved. Contractors get highly trained, skilled labor with fixed costs, and workers are fairly compensated with their rights and safety protected.”

Project labor agreements have been commonly used for more than 60 years on such successful major projects as Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, Kennedy Space Center, the Grand Coulee Dam in Washington and the clean up of Boston Harbor.

Obama’s order overturns an order signed by President George W. Bush in 2001 that banned the federal government from requiring PLAs. Obama’s order does not mandate PLAs on large-scale, federally funded projects, but it encourages agencies to consider requiring them to promote efficiency and achieve cost savings.

Founded in 1903, the Teamsters Union represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.