Opinion ID: 1351389
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Background of Project Labor Agreements.

Text: A PLA is a prehire' collective bargaining agreement used by a project owner to set the terms under which a contractor who successfully bids on the project proceeds in all labor relations connected to its subsequent work on the project. [1] U.S. Gen. Accounting Office, Pub. No. GAO/GGD-98-82, Project Labor Agreements: The Extent of Their Use and Related Information at 1 (1998) [hereinafter U.S.G.A.O.]; N.Y. State Chapter, Inc. v. N.Y. State Thruway Auth., 88 N.Y.2d 56, 643 N.Y.S.2d 480, 483, 666 N.E.2d 185 (1996); see also Bldg. & Constr. Trades Dept., AFL-CIO v. Allbaugh, 295 F.3d 28, 30 (D.C.Cir.2002). A PLA is considered a prehire agreement because it can be negotiated before employees vote on union representation or before the contractor hires any workers and typically provides that only contractors and subcontractors who sign [the] prenegotiated agreement with the union can perform project work. U.S.G.A.O., at 1; N.Y. State Chapter, Inc., 643 N.Y.S.2d at 483, 666 N.E.2d 185. In most industries, the NLRA outlaws such agreements. National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 158(a), (b) (2000). PLAs, however, operate under the construction industry exception to the NLRA, which allows prehire agreements because of the short-term nature of employment which makes posthire collective bargaining difficult, the contractor's need for predictable costs and a steady supply of skilled labor, and a longstanding custom of prehire bargaining in the industry. Bldg. & Constr. Trades Council v. Assoc. Builders & Contractors of Mass./R.I., Inc., 507 U.S. 218, 231, 113 S.Ct. 1190, 1198, 122 L.Ed.2d 565, 578 (1993); 29 U.S.C. § 158(f). When utilized, a PLA is incorporated into every contract entered into for a project. Moreover, PLAs are comprehensive in their coverage of contractor/labor issues: Their provisions generally (1) apply to all work performed under a specific contract or project, or at a specific location; (2) require recognition of the signatory unions as the sole bargaining representatives for covered workers, whether or not the workers are union members; (3) supersede all other collective bargaining agreements; (4) prohibit strikes and lockouts; (5) require hiring through union referral systems; (6) require all subcontractors to become signatory to the agreement; (7) establish uniform work rules covering overtime, working hours, dispute resolution, and other matters; and (8) prescribe craft wages, either in the body of the agreement or in an appendix or attachment. U.S.G.A.O., at 4. For this reason, they are often presented as the ideal bargain between the interests of the contractors and employees and the developer and the owner of the project. Jolie M. Siegel, Comment, Project Labor Agreements and Competitive Bidding Statutes, 3 U. Pa. J. Lab. & Emp. L. 295, 297-98 (2001). With this background in mind, we turn to the challenges presented to the PLA in this case. Many of the issues presented by this appeal have not previously been presented to this court but have a long and conflict-laden past.