July 3-10, 2002

RIDING THE CIRCUIT
The 1st Quarter Safety & Health Forum conducted by the NEA: The Association of Union Constructors convened June 25th in New York City, with the Great Lakes Fabricators & Erectors Association prominent on its program. GLFEA Executive Director James Walker and Gerald T. Mendek, its recently hired safety director, outlined the GLFEA's implementation of the Safe2Work program. The program provides CD-ROM based safety training for Iron Workers, Operating Engineers, and other skilled trades throughout Michigan's organized construction industry. In past columns I've written quite a bit about Safe2Work, which was conceived by the Great Lakes Construction Alliance, so I'll spare the eyes of the already informed. Others should point their web browsers to www.safe2work.com for details. Currently Safe2Work safety certification is required on projects for Ford, General Motors, DaimlerChrysler, and DTE Energy, and is rapidly gaining construction industry acceptance elsewhere. On August 22th the NEA will be co-hosting a safety forum with the National Association of Construction Boilermaker Employers at the Hotel Sofitel O'Hare near Chicago, Ill. You'll find more details about that on NEA's website at nea-online.org.

DO CHECK IN
Last week saw lots of talk, with no specific action, on increasing the number of hotel rooms in downtown Detroit. On June 26th the owners of the city's three gambling casinos responded to a request by the city council to outline their plans for permanent facilities. MGM Grand said it wasn't ready to provide conceptual designs but may have a site for a new casino and hotel selected by July 15. The Motor City Casino said it hopes to expand at its present site, located at the Lodge Freeway and Grand River Ave., on 23 acres of adjacent land. It's looking at building a 16 story hotel with 400 rooms, a 1,700 seat theater, and a convention center. No mention of an architect or construction manager for the project was made. By far the most elaborate presentation was by the Greektown Casino, which mapped out a 40 story tall, 400 room hotel for a site bordered by the I-375 service drive, Clinton St., St. Antoine St., and Gratiot Ave. It's to be supported by 4,655 parking spaces, a 1,500 seat theater, and a spa, pool, and fitness center. While Greektown Casino said it also hadn't selected an architect or construction manager, conceptual sketches for its proposal were attributed to Neumann Smith & Associates, Southfield. It's hoped construction can get underway this coming January, aiming for a completion by the end of 2005, about two months before the 2006 Super Bowl comes to Ford Field. Speaking of that new stadium, which is on schedule to open for the Detroit Lions by the start of the team's schedule this fall, a story in the July 1 issue of Crain's Detroit Business focused on an attempt to base a 250 room hotel within it. Tom Lewand, a Detroit Lions vice president who handles stadium development, was quoted as saying using vacant space for guest rooms was one option presently being explored. If an acceptable operator can be found, the hotel would be located in the former Hudson's Department Store warehouse that was extensively adapted to contain luxury suites overlooking the south side of the field. Designed by Rossetti Associates, Birmingham, Ford Field is a 65,000 seat enclosed stadium that's expected to have 100,000 sq. ft. of retail and concession space and 100,000 sq. ft. of office space. The hotel is being viewed as a strong fit for the area, which includes nearby Comerica Park and other entertainment attractions. The list includes the Gem Theater and Century Club, Detroit Opera House (home of Michigan Opera Theater), the Music Hall, the Detroit Athletic Club, the State Theater, the Fox Theater, Hockeytown restaurant, Second City comedy theater, and a number of newly opened or soon to open nightclubs. And it's just a short walk to my office in Harmony Park, in case visitors should happen to really get bored.

WILBUR LEAVES THE CIS
On June 28th Governor John Engler announced the resignation of Kathy Wilbur, the long serving director of the Michigan Dept. of Consumer & Industry Services. She has accepted an offer to become vice president of government relations and public affairs at Central Michigan University, where she'll move into her new office on July 9th. "Kathy was an original department director back in January of 1991," said Gov. Engler. "She has been with me my entire term as governor and she is the only woman in the history of the state to head three departments. She will be missed. She has been a great leader and a trailblazer." Ms. Wilbur has served as CIS director since 1996 and previously was director of the Michigan Dept. of Commerce and Michigan Dept. of Licensing & Regulation. In one of her last acts she announced publication of two Michigan Occupational Safety & Health Administration documents in Spanish. The MIOSHA poster is required to be displayed in all businesses covered by state safety regulations. Also available now is the Spanish edition of the "Your Rights & Responsibilities Under MIOSHA" brochure. Copies of both can be obtained by contacting MIOSHA's Consultation Education & Training Division at 517/322-1809. MIOSHA also maintains a web site in Spanish - information about that can be found at www.cis.state.mi.us/bsr.

LET'S NOT GET CARRIED AWAY
Of course the circumstances of each specific case will have to be assessed, but according to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month, a contractor may not be committing an unfair labor practice when bringing an unsuccessful lawsuit against unions that have been campaigning against it. The decision was handed down June 24 in BE&K Constr, Co. v. NLRB, Supreme Court Case No. 01-518. An open shop contractor, in 1987 BE&K was awarded a contract to renovate a Californian steel mill. In response, a number of unions mounted a corporate campaign against it. The unions lobbied state and local governments to adopt a toxic waste emission standard that would negatively impact the project, encouraged subcontractor employees to strike, distributed handbills and picketed the work site, and filed a lawsuit alleging violations of California's safety and health regulations. In response, BE&K sued the unions in federal district court, claiming these and related union activities violated federal antitrust and labor laws. The contractor's claims were later withdrawn or dismissed by the court. The National Labor Relations Board ruled that the unions had been engaged in protected acts under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act and that BE&K had violated Section 8 of that law by prosecuting an unsuccessful lawsuit in an attempt at retaliation. It ordered the contractor to pay the defense fees and expenses of the unions. And that order was affirmed in April 2001 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. But in reversing the appeals ruling by a unanimous vote, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 on what the standard should be in future cases, The high court did say the right to petition the government through the court system is a "precious" constitutional right. It also pointed to earlier decisions, in which it held the NLRB can't enjoin the prosecution of an allegedly retaliatory lawsuit unless the lawsuit lacks a "reasonable basis." And it said there's nothing in Section 8 of the NLRA that compels the NLRB to enjoin all unsuccessful lawsuits that have been filed by employers with a retaliatory motive, regardless of whether they are reasonably based. But, at least in my view, it appears the question still will fall on the particular facts in a particular case that determine whether or not the employer's lawsuit is reasonable - or not. Open shop advocates, such as the national office of the Associated Builders & Contractors, are hailing the decision as a "significant victory for employers" but I hesitate to take it that far. And, in fact, despite its ruling the high court ended up by remanding the BE&K case to lower courts for further hearings. If I were you, on this one I would be lighting up any skyrockets yet.

SPARKING YOUR IMAGINATION
Don't be shocked. It's free. The National Electrical Contractors Association's Guide to State Electrical Codes, Enforcement & Licensing (2002) is a 49 pages pdf document available for downloading from the "Online Category" link at www.neca-neis.org. It provides an overview of the electrical codes for every state in the union, plus the District of Columbia. It illuminates state practices, report if a state is plugging the National Electrical Code or allows local jurisdictions to decide, and whether inspections and code enforcement are handled on a statewide basis, delegated to third parties, or performed by local governmental units. The listing for Michigan is spotlighted on page 23. Also wired into the publication are contact and web site information for state agencies regulating electrical construction. All guaranteed to brighten up your day.

Questions? Comments? Idea?
Please submit your responses to the Great Lakes Fabricators & Erectors Association as soon as possible. You can call our new offices in downtown Detroit at 313/309-2000. Or you can drop an email to Guy Snyder at guysny@concentric.net or call him at 313/961-9217. We hope to hear from you soon!