Passaic County OKs major deal with labor unions through 2025. Here's what it means

Passaic County officials have approved a major deal for local construction unions, agreeing to a blanket labor agreement on public works projects of more than $5 million through 2025.

The agreement negotiated with local union reps and the Passaic County Building and Construction Trades Council stipulates wages and benefits, apprentice ratios and safety requirements among other details. It also preempts work stoppages, strikes and other disruptive activity, while requiring contractors to hire through union halls, ahead of the planned redevelopment of the county jail site in Paterson.

Tom Kelly, president of the Passaic County Central Labor Council, said the agreement should help ensure quality construction for county projects and quality jobs for county residents now and into the future.

This spring, members of local unions criticized the County Board of Commissioners for putting the project to demolish and clear the Passaic County Jail site out to bid without project labor agreements in place to ensure workers were qualified and local. In a subsequent statement, County Commissioner Nicolino Gallo, the board's lone Republican, said a project labor agreement should have been considered, given the scale, location and complex nature of the project.

Project labor agreements can help reduce project inefficiencies and inconsistencies, leading to better results in less time and at lower costs, Gallo said. By ensuring most of the labor comes from a trained local workforce, they can also boost the local economy, he said.

"[Project labor agreements] help prevent unscrupulous contractors from misclassifying their workers and ensure that the workforce is qualified, credentialed, and have a local stake in the project and its impact on the community of Paterson and the county at large," Gallo said.

Proponents say these pre-hire collective bargaining agreements can benefit both workers and taxpayers by negotiating pay and working conditions in advance in exchange for more streamlined project management and contract terms that prohibit strikes and other work disruptions. Opponents of these agreements have criticized them for restricting qualified bidders and giving union contractors an advantage in the bidding process.

Representatives from the Associated General Contractors of America have advocated for open competition on all public projects, saying the agreements effectively shrink contractor pools, increase costs, disrupt local collective bargaining and impede contractor efficiency and flexibility. Agreement mandates can be costly and impractical for contractors and workers, they said. Moreover, reports from the Congressional Research Service and the Government Accountability Office have found it difficult to document the alleged advantages in terms of safety and economics.

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The blanket project labor agreement approved by county officials eliminates the need for different rules for every large project. It has been a long-term goal for many area union workers and reps, according to Brian Jackson, the president of the Passaic County Building and Construction Trades Council, who said he was thrilled to get the deal finalized with county officials.

The agreement was dovetailed with another board resolution establishing a responsible contractor and sub-contractor policy for Passaic County construction projects. The policy requires bidders on public construction contracts over $250,000 to show proper registration and authorization for the work, including compliance with New Jersey's departments of finance, labor, safety, training and licensing requirements.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Passaic County NJ signs deal with labor unions. What it means