Day: November 9, 2021

Construction Management

Breaking: UAW Members Say No To Deere’s Second Offer

David Oliver

Striking UAW members at 12 facilities in Illinois, Iowa and Kansas turned down the second Deere/UAW contract offer, sending both the company and the union back to the negotiating table and increasing the prospects of the strike lingering into the holidays. 

But there was progress toward an agreement: with the first offer, a resounding 90% of union members said no. This time, 55% checked the no box.

“The strike against John Deere and Company will continue as we discuss next steps with the company,” said a two-paragraph UAW statement this morning. “Pickets will continue, and any updates will be provided through the local union.”

Deere issued this statement last night: “Through the agreements reached with the UAW, John Deere would have invested an additional $3.5 billion in our employees, and by extension, our communities, to significantly enhance wages and benefits that were already the best and most comprehensive in our industries,” said Marc A. Howze, group president, lifecycle solutions and chief administrative officer for Deere. “This investment was the right one for Deere, our employees, and everyone we serve together. Even though it would have created greater competitive challenges within our industries, we had faith in our employees’ ability to sharpen our competitive edge. With the rejection of the agreement covering our Midwest facilities, we will execute the next phase of our Customer Service Continuation Plan.”

Under this plan, “employees and others will be entering our factories daily to keep our operations running,” said Deere at the beginning of the strike. “Our immediate concern is meeting the needs of our customers, who work in time-sensitive and critical industries such as agriculture and construction.”

As previously reported, the Waterloo, Iowa, Courier said the proposed second contract included a 10% increase in the first year, and 5% raises in the contract’s third and fifth years. In addition, the proposal included a 3% lump sums in years two, four and six of the contract along with cost-of-living adjustments.

The second proposal also had UAW members receiving a ratification bonus of $8,500 and no increase in health insurance costs. New hires would receive coverage after 30 days, and members would receive two weeks of full-paid parental leave, vision and autism care coverage, said the paper, citing the UAW Local 838’s Facebook page.

Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.3555pacific.com/?p=422

Construction Blogs

This Front Dumper Can Zip Around Tight Spaces with Heavy Payloads

David Oliver

It may look small, but Wacker Neuson’s new DW30 wheeled dumper can carry a 3-ton payload.

The DW30’s compact design and articulated pivot point enable you to scoot around tight jobsites and rough terrain that might frustrate or stop bigger loaders. With its 45.3-horsepower Perkins engine, this machine reaches speeds of up to 15.5 mph, and its hydrostatic all-wheel drive eliminates gear changes for easy operation.

A single joystick controls all the DW30’s functions. The toggle auto-stop switch shuts down the engine after five minutes of idling,  which saves fuel during loading and wait times on the jobsite.

The DW30 is available in ROPS (Roll Over Protection System) and enclosed cab versions with construction or turf tires. The ROPS is designed to be quickly folded down for transportation and low-clearance situations. The cab models feature high-performance air conditioning as standard. For safety, additional standard details include high-visibility, red-painted steps and handrails, rearview mirrors, reverse alarm and road lights.

Compared to other types of machines for moving materials, the DW30 gives you an excellent forward view of the load and jobsite. This visibility is particularly useful when loading into a dump truck.

The 180-degree swivel skip enables the load to be precisely placed where needed, a useful feature when backfilling trenches and working along the shoulder of a highway in a single lane of traffic. 

Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.3555pacific.com/?p=419

Construction Services

Vaccine Mandate Halted; Appeals Court to Review

David Oliver

A federal appeals court has halted the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate for businesses that employ 100 or more workers, so the rule can be reviewed.

The court’s stay of the mandate comes two days after the White House announced that employees of companies with 100 or more workers must be fully vaccinated by January 4 or wear a mask in the workplace and show negative Covid tests weekly. The mask requirement for unvaccinated workers was to take effect December 5.

Those filing the petition November 5 for review of the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration’s emergency temporary standard include Trosclair family-owned supermarkets and businesses in Louisiana; the states of Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, South Carolina and Utah; and various other businesses and groups. The Trosclairs are being represented by attorneys from the Liberty Justice Center.

Their petition states that the mandate exceeds OSHA’s and Congress’ authority. It adds that the Louisiana supermarket chains, which include Ralph’s Market, Butcher Boy and Save A Lot, employ about 500 workers. The mandate would adversely effect the company because it already faces a worker shortage, and the mandate “would make it even harder to hire and keep employees,” the petition says. That would also “diminish their ability to provide grocery options to the citizens of Louisiana.”

The petition also includes Texas workers of CaptiveAire Systems, which has 1,500 employees. They will be adversely affected because the mandate “will force them, against their will, to show their employer proof of Covid-19 vaccination or risk losing their jobs and livelihoods if they choose not to.” The testing and mask alternative would also be especially unfair and illegal for some of the employees who work mostly alone on roofs “and are highly unlikely to spread Covid-19” to coworkers and customers.

“Therefore, OSHA’s claimed authority over their private lives and vaccine status is an egregious government overreach,” the petition says.

The petition asks for the court’s review and to grant an emergency stay.

On November 6, the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, based in New Orleans, granted the stay.

“Because the petitions give cause to believe there are grave statutory and constitutional issues with the mandate, the mandate is hereby stayed pending further action by this court,” the court’s order says.

The vaccine rules were issued November 4. Along with the vaccine or mask and testing rules, it requires employers to provide paid time off for workers to get vaccinated and recover from any side effects from the shots. It does not, however, require them to pay for workers’ weekly Covid testing.

For that reason, the Biden administration argues that workers have a choice on whether they get vaccinated and that “there have been no ‘mass firings’ and worker shortages because of vaccination requirements.”

In a statement, Biden said vaccines have long been required in the U.S. “We’ve been living with them throughout our lives for all sorts of diseases. Safety rules in the workplace are nothing new either. We require hard hats in construction sites and safety goggles in labs. And with today’s actions, we now have requirements to protect people from something that has taken the lives of 750,000 Americans.”

Meanwhile, construction associations have come out in opposition to the mandate.

Ben Brubeck, vice president of regulatory, labor and state affairs for the Associated Builders and Contractors, says it “is likely to increase compliance costs and cause regulatory burdens that will exacerbate several headwinds facing the construction industry – which is currently facing a workforce shortage of 430,000, escalating materials prices and supply chain bottlenecks – and the American economy.”

The mandate also creates confusion within the construction industry and will lead to workers at larger construction firms quitting to work for companies with fewer than 100 workers to get around the mandate, according to Stephen Sandherr, CEO of the Associated General Constractors. “This is something many workers will easily be able to do in a labor market where nearly 90 percent of construction firms are having a hard time finding workers to hire,” he says.

Sandherr says AGC has advocated vaccinations, and instead of mandates, the administration should focus on “providing additional resources and support to encourage workers to do the right thing.”

The federal government has until 5 p.m. November 8 to respond to the petition, and the petitioners have until 5 p.m. November 9 to file any reply, according to the Appeals Court.

 

 

Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.3555pacific.com/?p=416

Construction Blogs

Volvo’s Autonomous Wheel Loader Concept Inspired by LEGO Set (Video)

David Oliver

What started as LEGO Technic model is now a real machine. Volvo recently unveiled a fully autonomous, battery-electric prototype, the LX03.

Formerly referred to as ZEUX, the in-development machine is the first real-world example of a self-learning concept wheel loader with the “brains” to make decisions, perform tasks and interact with humans.

The collaborative effort between Volvo and LEGO began in 2018, as the companies set to explore the potential future for construction. “Our two companies have enjoyed an extremely successful partnership over the years in which we have collaborated on several LEGO Technic models,” LEGO Group’s head of product for LEGO Technic, Niels Henrik Horsted, says. “But this is the first time we are making a real machine based on a model and not the other way around – and that is what makes this a truly unique project.” Even more remarkable – many of the original design elements were dreamed up by a team of kids.

Borrowing from Volvo’s already robust EV offering, the 5-ton LX03 shares its driveline with the L25 electric wheel loader. The zero-emission, low-noise machine offers up to eight hours of runtime, depending on the application. It can be programmed to complete heavy, repetitive or dangerous tasks, reducing the need for a human on site.

“We need to transform the construction industry with smart and more sustainable solutions that will have an impact on a global scale,” Volvo CE President Milker Jernberg says. “The unveiling of the LX03 prototype today represents just that – and is testament to the incredible expertise of our engineers and our united commitment towards positive change. Together with the LEGO Group, we are pushing the boundaries of both technology and imagination,  and the result is beyond anything the world has seen before.”

While the machine won’t be commercially available anytime soon, or maybe ever, it sets the stage for future concept machines for Volvo.

Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.3555pacific.com/?p=413