Joshua Barlow
February 5, 2022, 10:32 PM
President Joe Biden joined union members at Ironworkers Local 5 in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, where he signed an executive order that gives construction workers new protections for federally contracted projects.
According to the White House, the executive order requires federal construction contracts worth more than $35 million to use project labor agreements.
The order, which goes into effect immediately, will affect an estimated 200,000 union workers in an industry that has taken severe economic hits due to the pandemic.
Project labor agreements (PLA) are legal mechanisms by which the terms and conditions for workers on an individual project are determined. Within the new executive order, any contractor who is awarded a federal contract must co-sign the PLA with any union representing their labor force.