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Season 3, Episode 61

Rebounding economy has led to a Golden Age in New York construction

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Guest Name:


Glenn Marek

Guest Website:


laborers157.org

Guest Social Media:


Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Supportive Documents:


Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA) Local 157 President and Assistant Business Manager Glenn Marek joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast and discussed how the rebounding economy created a new “Golden Age” for construction workers, especially in the upstate New York area.

Local 157 represents 550 members from five counties in rural upstate New York.

Since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy has rebounded and, as a result, there are unprecedented work opportunities in the upstate New York area, Marek said. The state is strongly pushing forward with green energy projects in solar, wind and other renewable energy resources. Combined with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, there is a tremendous workload for members of Local 157, he added.

Marek then spoke about efforts to grow Local 157 through expanded apprenticeship programs and member recruitment drives. He expects the Local to add at least an additional 100 members in the next year to help meet the growing workload.

Additionally, he provided an overview of the opportunities for union labor in the renewable energy sector in New York. State laws mandate that any solar project over 5 megawatts offer Prevailing Wage, which has leveled the playing field and made it easier for union contractors to compete, he added.

Listen to the entire 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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