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Did L&I intercede in messy union dispute? (UPDATED)
It sounds like your typical Philly union story, albeit with more blatant tactics than usual, but now the developers are saying that L&I has wandered right into the middle of it.
Did L&I intercede in messy union dispute? (UPDATED)
Michael and Matt Pestronk, the owners of the development company Post Brothers, have been squaring off against Philly's powerful unions for the past several months -- and things have escalated to the point that they sought and received a temporary injunction against union protesters a few weeks ago. Tomorrow, they have a hearing to make that injunction permanent, following what they say have been weeks of intimidation, threats, violence, vandalism and personal attacks both near the work sites and at their places of residence. Deliveries were blocked from the site of Post's Goldtex construction project at 12th and Callowhill, as well as from a second site, the rehab of two residential towers known as Rittenhouse Hill in Germantown.
Union conflicts aren't uncommon in Philly, but now the developers are saying that L&I has wandered right into the middle of it. L&I reportedly issued a stop-order on work at the site yesterday, for reasons that the developer says don't match typical protocol. Post was told the order was issued because copies of all subcontractors' business licenses were not immediately available; but L&I officials later told Post that's not an appropriate reason to issue a stop-work order. The timing seems suspicious to the developers, but mayoral spokesman Mark McDonald said the L&I investigation was part of a routine spot-checking system to ensure all licenses are in place. At the site, the inspector found that multiple subcontractors had neither contractor's licenses (which ensures the city that proper insurance/bonding is in place) nor business priviledge licenses. He said provided that everything else is in place, subcontractors could probably get back to work in short order.
The back-story here: Post closed on Goldtex in 2010 and, as its own general contractor, bid out the work on the site, awarding contracts to 40 percent union shops and 40 percent non-union subcontractors. The unions, says Michael Pestronk, told the company it was all-or-nothing. "The union official told me it had to be a union job, or they would do everything in their power to stop the job." Work went ahead, with workers Pestronk says are skilled and licensed, and paid above prevailing wages. The unions, meanwhile began a months-long picketing effort about a year ago, including fliers with slurs about Matt Pestronk's wife, signs reading "shame on Post Brothers" at high-traffic corners far from the site, and picketers at Goldtex and Rittenhouse Hill, which just closed on $52 million in private investments.
The injunction -- which Post must pay $2,000 per day to the Sheriff's Office to enforce -- has tamed things a bit, though Pestronk says he has video footage of violent attacks on workers at the site, as well as vandalism such as pouring a 10-gallon drum of oil on the site. Calls to the Pennsylvania Building and Construction Trades Council and the Philadelphia local of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners went unreturned this morning.
According to Mike Pestronk:
"Yesterday, an L&I official came to the site and asked to see the Philadelphia contractor's licenses for all sub contractors working on the site. This is not a typical request from L&I; we had previously been advised by L&I that only the general contractor, and all subcontractors named on all the permits need to provide license copies to the city. This was previously done by us at the time we obtained permits.
When we questioned the L&I official as to why he wanted this, he said he was unsure, he left and then came back with an official from the department of revenue, who asked to see the Business Privilege Licenses of all subcontractors working on the site.
We do not keep copies of every sub contractor's business privilege license on the site. Because we could not produce them on the spot, a stop work order was issued.
We then called an L&I official this morning who told us that a stop work order cannot be issued for lack of business privilege licenses for all sub contractors. It can only be issued for unsafe working conditions, lack of a building permit (which we have, and had to show proof of contractors licenses and business privilege licenses to get in the first place), etc.
We have provided the various licenses requested today. We then called the L&I inspector who issued the stop work order to ask if we could go back to work. He said that was a question for his boss. We then asked who his boss was and he said "I don't know".
Needless to say we are upset about the conflicting information and complete lack of transparency from the city and enforcement of rules that do not exist.
We have been promised a letter from L&I today as to exactly what the stop work order was for and what we need to do to comply with any rules they think we did not abide by.
To be clear, everyone working at the site has the proper licenses."
Unions bully tactics, and strong arming of free enterprise developers, are the reason that a lot of developers avoid the city!!! Why bother putting a job out to bid, when the union's get under bidded, they force their workers into the job by these tatics!!! And Councilman Kenney, must've got the call from Johnny"Doc", to insert the political screws to the site, you should be ashamed!!!
— Dadair1- Unions bully tactics, and strong arming of free enterprise developers, are the reason that a lot of developers avoid the city!!! Why bother putting a job out to bid, when the union's get under bidded, they force their workers into the job by these tatics!!! And Councilman Kenney, must've got the call from Johnny"Doc", to insert the political screws to the site, you should be ashamed!!!
— Dadair1
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