(December 2007)
AGC member Don Bilbo (Don Bilbo General Contractor) and AGC CEO Steven Vermillion both testified in opposition to a proposed ordinance at the Chesapeake City Council Meeting on Tuesday, December 11. The proposed ordinance would have required employers to certify that all employees are “legal” employees in order to obtain or renew a business license. The AGC testimony stressed that employers so certifying would be required to meet a far stricter test than that imposed by the Federal government, and would be assuming liability for any acts of perjury that may be committed by employees in the employment process.
The Council delayed consideration of the matter until April (after adjournment of the General Assembly Session).
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(November 2007)
Please see the attached release from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services: WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that a revised Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9) is now available for use. All employers are required to complete a Form I-9 for each employee hired in the United States.
The revision seeks to achieve full compliance with the document reduction requirements of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), which reduced the number of documents employers may accept from newly hired employees during the employment eligibility verification process. The revised Form I-9 is a further step in USCIS’ ongoing work toward reducing the number of documents used to confirm identity and work eligibility.
Key to the revision is the removal of five documents for proof of both identity and employment eligibility. They include: Certificate of U.S. Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-570); Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550 or N-570); Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-151); the unexpired Reentry Permit (Form I-327); and the unexpired Refugee Travel Document (Form I-571). The forms were removed because they lack sufficient features to help deter counterfeiting, tampering, and fraud.
Additionally, the most recent version of the Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) was added to List A of the List of Acceptable Documents on the revised form. The revised list now includes: a U.S. passport (unexpired or expired); a Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551); an unexpired foreign passport with a temporary I-551 stamp; an unexpired Employment Authorization Document that contains a photograph (Form I-766, I-688, I-688A, or I-688B); and an unexpired foreign passport with an unexpired Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) for nonimmigrant aliens authorized to work for a specific employer.
As of November 7, 2007, the Form I-9 with a revision date of June 5, 2007 is the only version of the form that is valid for use. However, DHS will publish a Notice in the Federal Register that provides employers with a 30-day period, beginning on date of publication of the Notice, to transition to the new Form I-9. The revision date of the Form I-9 is printed on the lower right corner of the form and states "(Rev. 06/05/07)N". Both the revised form and the "Handbook for Employers, Instructions for Completing the Form I-9" are available online at www.uscis.gov.
To order forms, call USCIS toll-free at 1-800-870-3676. For forms and information on immigration laws, regulations, and procedures, call the National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283.
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25 MOST FREQUENTLY CITED SAFETY STANDARDS DURING CONSTRUCTION
INSPECTIONS
(October 1, 2005 – September 30, 2006)
from Virginia OSHA
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1. |
1926.501(b) Fall Protection--Unprotected sides & edges 6 ft. or more above a lower level |
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2. |
1926.050(c) Medical Services and First
Aid--In absence of an infirmary |
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3. |
1926.451(g) Scaffolds--Fall protection above 10 ft |
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4. |
1926.100(a) Personal Protective Equipment--No hard hat |
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5. |
1926.1053(b) Ladder secure and rails extend three feet above landing |
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6. |
1910.1200(e) Hazard Communication--Written hazcom |
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7. |
1910.1200(h) Hazard Communication--Employee information and training |
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8. |
1910.1200(g) Hazard Communication--Material Safety Data Sheets |
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9. |
1926.451(b) Scaffold Platform Construction--Fully planked |
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10. |
1926.453(b) Aerial Lift--Fall protection |
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11. |
1926.451(e) Manually Propelled Mobile Scaffolds--Access |
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12. |
1926.451(c) Scaffolds--Adequate firm foundation (mud sills or base plates) |
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13. |
1926.050(d) First Aid Supplies |
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14. |
1926.652(a) Protection from Cave-in |
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15. |
1926.1052(c) Stair rails and Handrails |
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16. |
1926.404(f) Grounding requirements |
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17. |
1926.051(c) Toilets at Construction Sites |
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18. |
1926.451(f) Use of Scaffolds |
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19. |
1926.502(b) Fall Protection systems criteria and practices--Guardrail systems |
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20. |
ARM 307 Failure to provide abatement verification |
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21. |
1926.150(c) Fire Protection |
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22. |
1926.452(c) Fabricated frame scaffolds |
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23. |
1926.602(a) Earth moving equipment |
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24. |
1926.021(b) Safety training and education |
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25. |
1926.1101(k) Communication of asbestos hazards |
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Minimum Wage
Increases
Part of the
emergency Iraq funding bill signed by the President on May 25 was an
increase in minimum wage. Increases are planned over the next
three years as follows:
effective 7/24/07
- $5.85
effective 7/24/08 - $6.55
effective 7/24/09 - $7.25
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811 is the new national
FCC-designated number that quickly and easily begins the
process of getting your underground utility lines marked for
free. When you call 811, your local utility companies
will be notified and will mark the approximate location of
your underground utility lines for free. This
number is now in operation in Virginia. Unintended incidents
result in nearly 700,000 underground utility damages
annually - more than one unintentional hit per minute.
Smart digging means
calling 811 before each job. Marked lines show diggers
the approximate location of underground lines and helps
prevent undesired consequences.
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AGC – Saving You
Money on Motor Vehicles
(ebulletin
December 22, 2006)
AGC of America recently announced
that it had negotiated a discount program for
AGC members with General Motors. In essence,
negotiate your best deal, then show your AGC
membership card and you will be entitled to an
additional discount of up to $2,000 per vehicle.
For many members the savings on a
single vehicle could exceed your AGC dues for
the year. And the more you buy, the more you
save!
While all the details aren’t
available yet, some basic information on this
great money-saving program are at the end of
this newsletter.
This is just another example of
the value of AGC membership to your firm.
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VOSH
Multi-Employer Jobsite Policy
(eBulletin Sept. 29th, 2006)
In March the
Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board conducted
a public hearing on the Commonwealth’s policy
relating to multi-employer jobsites. AGC,
and some AGC members, testified
at that time that the policy should not always
require the issuance of safety citations to the
general contractor.
As a result of
the public hearing, VOSH has revised its field
operations manual and is now instructing its
inspectors to look at the specific circumstances
in these instances to determine:
-
Contractual
rights and responsibilities;
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Actual work
practices on the site;
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Whether the
individual employers knew or should have
known of the hazard;
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Whether the
employers had provided adequate safety and
health programs and trained their employees;
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Whether
employers had complied with VOSH standards
requiring frequent and regular inspections
of the jobsite;
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What was the
level of technical expertise and experience
of the employers involved;
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How long the
hazard was in existence before the accident
occurred.
Thus, if a
VOSH inspector finds a safety violation on a
jobsite, he will most likely cite:
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The employer
who actually creates the hazard;
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The employer
whose employees are exposed to the hazard;
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The employer
who has the responsibility for actually
correcting the hazard;
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The
controlling employer.
The difference
is that now the controlling employer is
considered to be either:
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The employer
who, by contract or actual work practices,
is responsible for overall jobsite safety,
and who has authority for ensuring that the
hazardous condition is corrected (the
general contractor); or
-
The employer
who, by contract or actual work practice, is
responsible for safety and health conditions
for a specific area of the worksite, or a
specific work practice, or a specific phase
of the construction project, and has
authority for ensuring that the hazardous
condition is corrected (usually a prime or
subcontractor).
Click
here for a copy of the
VOSH Manual
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Quick Facts About the Construction
Industry
The construction industry has played a powerful
role in sustaining economic growth and helping the recovery.
•
Construction is a major source of jobs.
The industry provides employment to 7.5 million employees—more
than 5% of the total nonfarm workforce. From June 2005 to June
2006, construction employment rose by 228,000 or 3.1%—more
than double the 1.4% increase in all new nonfarm jobs,
according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). More
than 260,000 people are employed in Virginia's construction
industry.
•
Construction jobs are
good-paying jobs.
In June 2006, seasonally adjusted hourly earnings in
construction averaged $20.03 per hour, 20% higher than the average for all private industry nonsupervisory workers, according to BLS.
•
Construction makes a disproportionately large
contribution to GDP.
The value of construction put in place in 2005 exceeded $1.14
trillion—more than 9% of gross domestic product (GDP), which
was considerably higher than the construction industry’s share
of employment.
•
Construction is a major purchaser of U.S.
manufactured products.
In 2005, shipments of construction materials and supplies
topped $500 billion for the first time—nearly 11% of total
manufacturing shipments. Shipments of construction machinery
totaled $33 billion—10% of total machinery shipments.
• The typical construction
firm size
is very small. In 2004, according to the Census Bureau, there
were 760,000 construction establishments with 6.6 million paid employees, plus more than two
million firms without paid employees—mainly self-employed
individuals but also partnerships and holding companies. Thus,
average employment
was only nine per establishment. (An establishment is a
permanent business location. Most construction firms have only one establishment.)
• Small business
is big in construction. In 2004, 91% of construction
establishments had fewer than 20 employees. Only 1% had 100 or
more.
•
The 2003 Construction Industry Annual Financial Survey,
conducted by the Construction Financial Management Assn.,
included responses from 575 companies.
Net margins
in 2002 averaged 1.7%. The
return on assets
averaged 5.1%
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AGC to Sponsor Development of
Universal Document Exchange Standard
for Construction Industry
AGCxml Will Save Contractors Time & Money
The Associated General
Contractors of America (AGC) recently announced it has reached an
agreement with The National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) for
the development of AGCxml, a set of standard industry schemas for
exchanging electronic data among A/E/C business process software
applications in order to increase efficiency and collaboration among
facility owners and design and construction professionals.
AGCxml will be one of the few
document exchange standards to address the interoperability issue in
the construction industry, enabling any software products or tools
using AGCxml to exchange information in a manner that is recognizable
between authors using different software systems. While building
information modeling has received a great deal of recent attention in
the industry, AGCxml is intended to address a related challenge by
facilitating the reliable, electronic exchange of the
business-to-business transactional data created by owners, contractors
and design professionals in the course of every design and
construction project and found in such documents or forms as
owner/contractor agreements, change orders and requests for
information.
AGCxml will enable the efficient
exchange of electronic construction project information between
various industry software applications, including software designed
for generating construction contract documents, project management,
accounting or related construction work-flow systems.
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Peninsula Construction
Academy
Peninsula district AGC
companies, in cooperation with other local agencies, will be
launching the Peninsula Construction Academy this fall. The
initiative is a proactive response to the continuing need for
qualified commercial construction industry workers.
The effort
involves Peninsula AGC of Virginia, the Peninsula Council for
Workforce Development, New Horizons Regional Education Center and
Thomas Nelson Community College. The goal is to provide a series
of courses and training certificates to prepare individuals for
the continuum of career opportunities within the construction
industry serving the Peninsula Region. Key elements of the
program will include safety training, workplace readiness skills
and computer and technical skills.
The Skill
Certificate Adult Program is set to roll out this August and
includes 28 hours of employment skill training and 66 hours of
skills training. Initial skill areas will focus upon General
Carpentry, Electrical, Plumbing, Masonry and Concrete Finishing.
The
Leadership Pathway portion of the program is being developed for
the 2007 school year and will include a focus upon Construction
Leadership, Construction Management and other related areas that
can lead to an Associates Degree in Project Management.
Peninsula
District AGC recently held a Breakfast Seminar to introduce the
Peninsula Construction Academy to interested companies. For
further information regarding this program, contact AGC Executive
Director Dick Moyers at (804) 364-5504.
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AGC of Virginia
and McGraw-Hill Construction Enter Alliance Agreement
to Promote
the AGC
of Virginia / McGraw-Hill
Construction Network
and Network Bid Management Service
McGraw-Hill Construction, the nation’s leading provider of
construction information and intelligence services and the AGC of
Virginia, have announced that they have entered into an “Industry
Alliance Agreement.” The partners will
promote the AGC
of Virginia /McGraw-Hill Construction Network and Bid Management
Service, offering members of AGC-VA the opportunity to find, manage
and bid jobs faster and easier than ever before.
“The AGC
of Virginia entered into this alliance to add value to the benefits
enjoyed by our members,” said Steven
Vermillion, AGC of Virginia CEO. “We believe that access to the
various products and services offered by McGraw-Hill Construction will
enhance our members’ competitiveness in the marketplace and increase
their ability to access viable construction information.”
Vermillion
also noted that significant discounts are available to AGC of Virginia members through
the new program. Members will have access to the McGraw-Hill
Construction Network Bid Management Service at special AGC of Virginia
rates.
In
addition to access to the McGraw-Hill Construction Network, members
will receive special pricing on other services and products. Through
web links between the AGC of Virginia and McGraw-Hill Construction,
members will also be able to participate in a variety of future
events.
"The AGC
of Virginia believes these services will provide a great opportunity
for our members to gain a competitive edge and increase profits. We
are pleased to
promote the AGC of Virginia
/McGraw-Hill Construction Network and Bid Management Service. We
believe this Network will provide our members with a fast, easy way to
find and manage jobs,” added Vermillion.
“We are
proud that the AGC of Virginia selected McGraw-Hill Construction to
provide their members with construction information, intelligence and
bidding services,” said Cleveland Parker, Director, Sales, McGraw-Hill
Construction. “We believe that this Network will save AGC of Virginia
members time and money in finding jobs, securing plans and
specifications, and will increase their members’ ability to grow more
profitably.”
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New Poster Required
The U.S. Department of Labor now requires that employers
display the poster entitled "Your Rights
Under USERRA”. The Uniformed Services Employment and
Reemployment Rights Act protects
the job rights of individuals who voluntarily or
involuntarily leave employment positions to undertake
military service. It is a notice of the rights, benefits
and obligations of such persons and such employers under the
USERRA. To download and print a copy of this poster, please
use the following link:
http://www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/poster.htm
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Health Savings Accounts
Legislation passed this year
allows insurance subscribers to make tax deductible contributions to a Health
Savings Account (HSA). And we are pleased to advise that Anthem Blue Cross/Blue
Shield recently announced that they will offer these programs.
The money deposited into an HSA can be used to pay qualified healthcare
expenses. With a high deductible health plan, as defined by the same bill, these
consumer-driven concepts may help reduce health insurance premiums.
The potential savings with these plans is largely dependent on your company’s
particular situation. Some of the most immediate advantages may be to an
employer currently enrolled in a low or no deductible PPO plan, and to small
businesses with very little claims experience.
To learn how HSAs and high deductible health plans may reduce your company’s
health insurance premiums, please contact AGC’s endorsed insurance professional,
Jay Dew at (804) 965-9744 or (800) 234-7817.
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