1 min read

Season 4, Episode 13

2023 W.Va. legislative session could weaken construction licensing

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Guest Name:


Brad Britton

Guest Website:


www.ualocal565.org

Guest Social Media:


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Supportive Documents:


Brad Britton, Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 565 Business Manager, appeared on the America’s Work Force Union Podcast and addressed concerns regarding the 2023 West Virginia legislative session that could weaken licensing requirements for construction workers and limit unemployment benefits. 

Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 565 represent about 330 members in seven West Virginia counties.

Britton is disappointed to see the West Virginia legislature debate the importance of craft licensing, again. Building trades leaders in the Mountaineer State believe a licensing requirement for most construction work ensures men and women undergo proper safety training and have a certain skill level to ensure the safety of the public. He noted how proper training is instilled in all union members. 

Besides licensures, legislatures recently raised the state’s weekly unemployment wage from $424 to approximately $600, said Britton. He remains concerned thought because there is still talk about limiting the amount of time someone can receive unemployment benefits. 

Britton also talked about some of the larger projects his members will be working on in the upcoming year, as there are multiple new mega projects in the Local 565 jurisdiction.

Listen to today’s episode to learn more about these topics.


America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.

America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.

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