President Obama has nominated Republican Terence Flynn to serve as a board member of the National Labor Relations Board. If he is confirmed by the Senate, the labor panel will have its full complement of five members. Obama also nominated Lafe Solomon, a Democrat and NLRB veteran, to serve as general counsel. Both will need Senate confirmation, which appears likely. The NLRB has begun to work through the backlog of cases that built up over the 27-month period between January 2008 and April 2010, when there were only two members—Democrat and Chairwoman Wilma Liebman and Republican Peter Schaumber—sitting on the

Construction’s unemployment rate showed another year-over-year improvement in November, dipping to 18.8% from November 2009’s level of 19.4% but worse than this October’s 17.3%. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest monthly employment report shows that construction lost 5,000 jobs in November, on a seasonally adjusted basis, after gaining 3,000 in October. Looking at industry segments, BLS reported that the 6,800 jobs lost in specialty-trade contractors last month more than offset gains in the buildings and heavy-civil construction sectors. November was the second consecutive month in which the construction jobless rate was lower than in the same month of last

A decade after taking over the ironworkers’ union at a particularly low point in its history, General President Joseph J. Hunt, 68, is stepping down, expressing confidence that the union now is one of the most “transparent and progressive” in the building trades. Replacing him—as of Feb. 1 in an expected succession—will be Walter Wise, general secretary since 2008. The union has 125,000 members, according to a spokesman. Hunt took over the top post of the Washington, D.C.-based International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers in 2001, several months after the resignation of his predecessor, Jake West,

Before a courtroom filled with rank-and-file workers, Michael Forde, former executive secretary-treasurer of the New York District Council of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, was sentenced on Nov. 19 to 11 years in prison, an additional three years of supervised release and restitution. He pleaded guilty in July to participating in what Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Zornberg called a �mind boggling� 15-year racketeering scheme. On July 28, 2010, Forde admitted to taking bribes from multiple contractors, helping contractors cheat the District Council Benefit Funds out of millions of dollars, rigging job assignments, lying under oath, and obstructing investigations

Women are seeking careers in construction industry firms in record numbers, but they remain a rare sight at top-firm jobsites, executive suites and boardrooms. Research suggests, however, that women at the top can add to the bottom line. This sentiment was echoed by more than 130 attendees at a Nov. 3 industry networking conference in Washington, D.C. Photo: Courtesy 0f Howrey LLP Top women attorneys at Black & Veatch, Dragados USA, AECOM and Lockheed Martin (from left) offer advice on how construction’s women managers can add value in a down market. + Image + Image Slide Show Noting the historical

Construction's unemployment rate rose slightly in October, to 17.3% from September's 17.2%, but the good news was that it was better than October 2009's 18.7%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics' latest monthly employment report, released on Nov. 5, also shows that construction posted an increase in jobs for the month, though the gain was only 5,000. The BLS jobless rate figures for individual industries are not adjusted for seasonal swings. For the highly seasonal construction industry, the rates usually worsen in cold-weather months, when work slows down. Thus, the year-over-year comparisons give a better picture of construction employment trends than

The sagging economy has kept down the number of education-related design and construction projects, but many school districts, colleges and universities facing critical needs are forging ahead with major projects. Photo: Courtesy of Clemson University Despite various challenges, Clemson University is moving forward with a $31-million expansion and renovation of one of its buildings, Lee Hall, partially funded with stimulus dollars. Related Links: The Top Owners Sourcebook Complete Report Overview: No Quick Fix For Battered Market Roads & Bridges: Lack of Long-Term Funds Stymies Local DOTs Aviation: Despite Economic Uptick, Aviation Sector Grounded Health Care: Down Economy Creates Buyer�s Market

Women have proved for years that they can fill “man-size boots” in the construction industry. But when those big boots give them blisters or heel spurs, they have had nowhere to turn. Enter Woman Up, a construction clothing and safety-gear shop in Brooklyn, N.Y., recently launched by Deidre Douglas, a craftswoman who turned a workplace problem into a business. Related Links: Woman Up: Women who wear boots not suits Joanne Foulke, vice president at Cauldwell-Wingate Co., a New York City contractor-construction management firm, knows well how men’s boots can wreck women’s feet. During a typical morning inspecting high-rise building projects,

Iceland’s erupting volcano and the breadth of global disruption it caused last spring is a clear indication of “just how connected the world is,” says Lester Gerhardt, an electrical and computer engineering professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y. He would know. Gerhardt leads global study programs at the school and is a co-founder and chairman of the New York City-based Global Engineering Education Exchange. The group of nearly 80 U.S. and overseas engineering schools has fostered global study since the mid-1990s. However, today, more engineering and construction education programs are expanding offerings and connections in international study. “More employers

Engineering education in the K-12 grades still only reaches a small fraction of U.S. students. Experts say new content standards could raise its profile in more classrooms and bring engineering in line with standards used in science, technology and math. In a new report, the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) contends that, while set standards for K-12 engineering are doable, their usefulness and implementation would be limited. Photo: National Academy Foundation A student at a high school engineering “academy” run by a business-university group explains a design project. The group now runs 29 such programs, with more set to start.