City Contracts and Meet Mayor Adams’ Moonshot Goal of 30,000 Apprenticeships by 2030
Our Bureau
New York, NY
New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Office of Talent and Workforce Development (NYC Talent) Executive Director Doug Lipari have announced two Project Labor Agreements (PLA) with the Building & Construction Trades Council of Greater New York and Vicinity (BCTC). These PLAs — which cover more than $7 billion in city capital projects — establish fair wages, union benefits, and safety protections for workers on city projects. They will help connect more underserved New Yorkers to quality union careers and apprenticeship opportunities through community hiring requirements and allow the city to complete capital projects more effectively and efficiently through the use of standardized work rules.
“Under our administration, we haven’t just talked about creating opportunities, we’ve put our money where our mouth is and invested real dollars in real projects and delivered the good-paying jobs New Yorkers need,” said Mayor Adams. “If the city is going to build a new library or recreation center, we want to make sure those jobs pay well during the day and get workers home safe at night. With more than $7 billion labor agreements, we’ll do both — all while hiring from the local community and completing critical projects faster. That’s a win for everyone involved.”
“Project Labor Agreements are a proven tool for delivering capital projects efficiently, establishing fair wages and working conditions, and creating robust career pathways for New Yorkers,” said Mayor’s Office of Talent and Workforce Development Executive Director Doug Lipari. “These new PLAs reflect the city’s strong partnership with the Building and Construction Trades Council and solidify the city’s dedication to the future construction workforce through Community Hiring.”
The newly signed PLAs announced today will serve a broad range of city capital projects. The Citywide Renovation and New Construction PLA will apply to new construction, renovation, and rehabilitation of city-owned buildings and structures; for instance, this PLA will apply to projects like construction of recreation centers and solar photovoltaic systems for public schools, as well as renovation of water treatment facilities and libraries like the recently announced renovation of Baisley Park Library in Jamaica, Queens. The PLAs follow last year’s announcement of a new infrastructure design-build PLA and furthers the Adams administration’s commitment to establish work standards for family-sustaining wages and benefits, industry-specific safety standards, and training opportunities.
The PLAs announced today also include community hiring requirements, which allows the city to use its purchasing power to set workforce and hiring goals on city contracts and provide hardworking New Yorkers good-paying union career opportunities that pave a path to the middle class. Since launching, nearly 100 city procurements — totaling more than$7.5 billion — have been released with community hiring goals. These include construction and building services contracts that require a significant portion of labor hours be performed by people who live in New York City Housing Authority housing or in a ZIP code where at least 15 percent of the population lives below the federal poverty threshold.
Today’s announcement will also create additional apprenticeship opportunities in the construction sector through community hiring requirements and advance Mayor Adams’ 2023 State of the City moonshot goal of connecting 30,000 New Yorkers to apprenticeships by 2030. Through a new memorandum of understanding (MOU), the city, BCTC and the Building Trade Employers’ Association of New York City (BTEA) will work collectively to recruit and fill 700 pre-apprenticeship positions with residents of NYCHA housing and low-income communities. These pre-apprenticeship programs provide free skills and training and offer individuals direct entry into unionized apprenticeship programs. These efforts demonstrate the commitment to invest in the next generation of the City’s construction workforce and provide a pathway for career advancement.
“We are thrilled that city-funded projects are being produced with union labor, safer work requirements, and community hiring that will bring good job opportunities to the underserved while upgrading libraries, recreational centers, and other public works,” said New York City Councilmember Carmen De La Rosa.
“Thank you to President LaBarbera, Paul O’Connor and Santos Rodriguez along with Deputy Mayor Carrion Jr. and the whole mayoral team who worked on this project labor agreement,” said New York City Councilmember Julie Won. “As the representative of the council district that is home to UA Local 1 Plumbers, I am always happy to support apprenticeships and the expansion of PLAs in the City, and I will work to make it priority that we get new PLAs all future projects in my district.”
“In order for capital projects to reach their true economic potential, it is critical that they generate family-sustaining careers for hardworking New Yorkers,” said Gary LaBarbera, president, Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York. “PLAs like the ones signed help them to do just that and more by establishing fair wages, safety standards, and community hiring initiatives that boost apprenticeship opportunities and open up more pathways to the middle class. We are happy to collaborate with the Mayor’s Office and NYC Talent on these agreements and our members look forward to being catalysts for these important projects that will improve the lives of countless New Yorkers.”
