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Season 6, Episode 133

Dorsey Hager Discusses Central Ohio's Construction Boom

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Dorsey Hager

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Dorsey Hager, Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, joined the America's Work Force Union Podcast to discuss the expansion of the Building Futures program, Prevailing Wage legislation and challenges with the Columbus airport project.

The Building Futures program, an Apprenticeship Readiness Program established in 2018, is expanding through a partnership with the First Church of God on Columbus' east side. Funded by the city, this pilot program aims to provide 12 to 20 participants with soft skills training and direct pathways into the trades. Hager emphasized the program's importance in light of ongoing construction projects in Central Ohio, including the Early Childhood Learning Center and tech industry developments from companies like Intel, Google and Amazon.

Hager highlighted a proposed ordinance in Columbus that would require Prevailing Wages on city-funded projects of $500,000 or more. This legislation, modeled after similar measures in Cleveland and other cities, aims to ensure fair compensation and benefits for workers on publicly funded projects. Hager argued that tying Prevailing Wages to tax incentives and public funding would benefit the local workforce and economy, preventing situations where out-of-state contractors undercut local wages.

The $2 billion John Glenn Columbus International Airport renovation project faces challenges, according to Hager. Despite some union involvement in initial work, concerns have arisen about minority contractor participation and budget overruns. Hager detailed a specific instance where a local minority-owned contractor was passed over for a $16 million terrazzo job in favor of an out-of-state, non-minority firm. This decision could result in millions of dollars in wages leaving the local economy, highlighting the need for greater emphasis on local and diverse contractor participation.

Listen to the full episode for more from Hager on Central Ohio's construction industry developments.


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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