Photo from AP Wide World Officials of Local 401 were indicted on charges that include arson at non-union projects. Related Links: Federal Charge: Violent Ironworkers' Local 401 Valued its 'THUGS' Trades Must Play Key Role To Keep Industry Competitive, Employers Tell Union Ironworkers Years of alleged intimidation by an ironworkers' union local in Philadelphia through site vandalism, violence and extortion targeting non-union contractors, workers and even the carpenters' union culminated in the arrest last month of 10 of the local's managers and members.They were indicted on U.S. racketeering, conspiracy and arson charges, while the parent union took over the local's
Like other big-city unions, ironworkers' Local 401 in Philadephia found its once-unchallenged hold on the city and its suburbs compromised as nonunion contractors increased their market share.In response, say federal prosecutors, the local's leaders carried out, over many years, a program of intimidation that stands out for its violence and audacity. According to a grand jury indictment opened in Philadelphia last week, business manager and local leader Joseph Dougherty and nine other officers and members regularly employed violence and threats to extort contractors, limit nonunion work and even keep union carpenters from performing work the local believed it should control.In a
An AECOM executive makes a presentation to win a construction management contract for sewer repairs in Miami-Dade County, as shown in in documents provided by rival CH2M Hill's attorney. The $1.6-billion Miami-Dade county sewer repair project has produced a steady flow of controversy as Florida public officials changed the rules for competitors for the prime contract, and the two finalists clashed over the accuracy of their stated qualifications.Where the sales work by the finalists ends, and unethical misrepresentation begins, is hard to tell at this point. Some of it concerns simple math that ought to be easy to agree on.After
A portion of the newsletter sent out by Steven Golia with the message about Scarborough bonds that was later retracted. Related Links: A Bold Individual Surety Claims Coal-Backed Bonds are Rock Solid Two days before Christmas, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., the world's fourth-biggest insurance broker, announced one of the last of its 31 mergers and acquisitions of 2013: McIntyre Risk Management, a brokerage in Cherry Hill, N.J.Some time during December—whether it was before or after the acquisition isn't known—McIntyre apparently hired a key player in the world of individual surety, Steven Golia. He had been president of Charlottesville, Va.-based
The U.S. government still owes contractors good faith and fair dealing, a federal appeals court ruling indicates.Some attorneys believed that good faith and fair dealing had been pared back in previous court cases, but the appellate court’s Feb. 11 ruling in favor of Metcalf Construction Co. v. U.S. is apparently good news for contractors.Construction industry associations had filed briefs supporting Metcalf, a Hawaii-based general contractor that had been hired by the U.S. Navy in 2002 to build housing units under a design-build contract. The ground conditions involving expansive soils and the presence of chlorate, a pollutant, vastly exceeded what the
A state court in Texas restored some order to U.S. contractors' general liability insurance, limiting insurers’ efforts to narrow what is considered an “occurrence” covered under a policy. Insurers have been trying to eliminate coverage for defects in the contractor’s own work.The issue has come up in several states in recent years, and state legislatures have stepped in several times to restore coverage through laws.The current case originated in Texas and was widely watched as a bellwether.In an opinion issued January 17, Judge Phil Johnson of the Texas Supreme Court ruled that general contractors don’t “assume liability” for damages arising
Related Links: Short-seller Takes Aim at Construction Software Maker Textura Wows Wall Street With Cloud Collaboration The argument between a promising software maker for construction firms, Textura Corp., and a short-seller, Andrew Left, has entered a contentious second phase. Retail stock analysts defended the cloud company and characterized Left's recent profanity-laced report, which accuses Textura of fraud, as a gross distortion.In addition, Textura's top managers expanded on their prepared statement calling claims by Left's firm, Citron Research, which published the report, as unfounded and false. Textura suggests Citron's accusations made in Citron's newsletter and website were designed only to drive
Photo by Tudor Van Hampton for ENR Patrick Allin, Textura chief executive and co-founder, met with upbeat investors on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on June 7 to watch the company trade its first shares on the open market. Related Links: Textura Wows Wall Street With Cloud Collaboration A short-seller known for hitting companies hard in published reports has accused construction software maker Textura Corp. of misrepresenting its financial prospects and the background of its chief executive and co-founder, Patrick Allin.Textura's shares (NYSE: TXTR) fell 17% in trading on the day the report appeared, Dec. 26th, and
Related Links: Walsh Chosen as Preferred Bidder for Ohio River Bridge Responding to the demands of potential lenders and concessionaires, sureties may play an important role in expanding public-private partnerships in the U.S. by providing a new type of completion and payment bond, according to speakers at the International Risk Management Institute’s construction conference in San Diego held Nov. 17-21.The new bonds would allow P3 project lenders or developers to make a claim for cash while the majority of the guarantee would be fulfilled in the traditional manner, with the surety investigating the claim and controlling the method of completion.P3
Photo by AP Wideworld The popularity of narcotic painkillers has a downside and cost that some states may not fully recognize. Related Links: Tightening Up the Rules for Hydrocodone, the Favorite PainKiller The Myth of Workers' Compensation Fraud Someone forgot to send Missouri the memo about the latest research on rising costs in workers' compensation.Concerned about fraudulent claims by workers, state Senator Mike Cunningham (R) late last year sponsored a bill that would have given employers access to a free online database of compensation claims. Employers would be able to screen workers for a history of fraud, without first securing
