The Labor-Management Council of Greater Kansas City

Congratulations to former LMC Board Consultant and Rockhurst University Helzberg School of Management Dean Cheryl McConnell on being named president of St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia.

Services for Mike Burke will be Wednesday, March 15, 5-8 p.m. visitation and funeral 10 a.m. March 16 at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, 2552 Gillham Road, KCMO.

Construction Committee Welcomes Oropeza, Discusses Key Projects

Construction Industry Steering Team Summary of Minutes

 8 a.m., Thursday, March 9, 2023, Mark One Electric Co., Inc.

Attending: Manny Abarca, Sam Alpert, Brian Deitz, Shawn Delgado, Dustin Himes, Dominic Klobe, Valerie Johnson, Gabe Jones, Chuck Martin, Damon Miles, Bo. Moreno, Ralph Oropeza, Chuck Roseburrough, Tony Roberts, Chris Stanton, Bob Jacobi.

•Thanks to Rosana Privitera-Biondo and Mark One Electric Co., Inc. for hosting.

•Session #18 of the Construction Summit:  Efforts continue and will accelerate after the results of the November elections, particularly working with the Fair Contracting Alliance.

•The Committee welcomes and congratulates Ralph Oropeza, newly elected business manager of the Greater Kansas City Building and Construction Trades Council, and thanks Alise Martiny for her years of service to the Building Trades, the committee, the LMC and the community as she becomes an International Representative for the Operative Plasterers and Cement Masons.

•The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority has engaged its partnership with the LMC to provide prevailing wage interviewers on ATA projects.  One project has begun and another starts soon.  The LMC seeks volunteer monitors which could be retirees, business agents and contractor employees who can be available to conduct interviews with workers for prevailing wage enforcement.  Interviewers can only talk to workers from a different craft than their own and cannot conduct union business on the site.  A description of the program and schedule for the ATA projects was distributed.  Interviewer contact information can be sent to Bob Jacobi; minimal training will be done before interviewers are sent out.

•Committee members were congratulated for their key roles in the construction of the new KCI, which opened ahead of schedule and on budget.

•Missouri SB 21, to change unemployment benefits, has been filibustered in the Senate with compromise talks underway.  HJR 43, to make it more difficult for initiative petitions amending the constitution to pass, was voted out by the House and is in the Senate.  A rally has been set supporting Kansas Medicaid expansion for March 13, 1:15 p.m. in the State Capitol.  HB 2348 has been filed to restore local option prevailing wage restoration in Kansas.

•Concerns were expressed on trends that eliminate the option to use fossil fuels during the transition to renewables.  BOMA’s Decarbonization Committee is visiting Washington next week.

•Jackson County is looking at several upcoming projects:  4250 million for the downtown courthouse, at least $350 million for the correctional center now in talks with KCMO on partnering, emergency repairs on the historic Independence courthouse, $25 million for other county buildings in Independence and $50 million to alter Arrowhead Stadium for the World Cubby 2026.  A close watch was suggested on particularly the emergency expenditures.  The downtown baseball stadium has narrowed sites to 3-4, including one in Clay County.

•Kansas City Public Schools is considering a bond issue for next year in the $200-250 million range, though additional school building closings are likely.  The new superintendent, Jennifer Collier, is expected to be a strong successor to Mark Bedell.  Two school board positions are open and unopposed; one spot has no filed candidates though there are write-in candidates.  Manny Abarca’s open seat will be elected in June.

•School board seats and bonds are on the ballot April 4 in addition to KCMO mayor and council.  Members were urged to continue recruiting candidates who understand the industry.  Former committee member Laura Wagner is running in North Kansas City.

•The American Royal project is in design phase and should begin this year.  JE Dunn is the general contractor.

•A meeting on the Panasonic plant project is taking place this morning.  Turner Construction is on the project.  Dave Coleman is attending the meeting.

•NICE seeks judges for its Crayons to CAD Middle School Design Contest culminating at the iBuild Showcase April 28.  Booth reservations are also available.

•Dominic Kolbe from Onsite Logic explained the company’s services available to unions for cyber security and IT.  Currently the US Department of Labor has guidelines for unions to follow to protect their data but those eventually may become requirements.  Threats to data are increasing as are the ways to access data.

•The BOMA International Convention in June is expected to draw 2500-3000 leaders to KC, the first time for many.  KC is generating much attention with the Chiefs’ success, NFL draft, KCI opening and other events.

•The North Kansas City Snake Saturday Parade is this Saturday, March 11 meeting near the Builders’ Training Center.  The Painters and other trades will have a presence in the parade.

•An Open House recognizing Alise Martiny will be held Wednesday, March 15, 4-8 p.m. at Sheet Metal Workers Local 2.

•Mike Burke, longtime development attorney and former KCMO councilman and mayoral candidate, died Sunday.  His services will be 5-8 p.m. Wednesday, March 15, and funeral Mass March 16 at Our Lady of Sorrows church on Gillham.  Mike was a friend to the industry, the LMC and its mission.

•The LMC’s 44th Anniversary Celebration will be April 13.  No keynote speaker has been announced; several folks will be honored.

•The Mid-America Labor/Management Conference July 9-12 will feature two international union presidents from Kansas City (both former LMC Co-Chairs):  Jim Hadel, Roofers, and Kevin Sexton, Operative Plasterers’ & Cement Masons, as well as Joe Reardon, GKC Chamber of Commerce president and his counterpart in St. Louis. 

•Upcoming events:

*Midwest Construction Safety Conference March 9-10 at Adams Pointe Conference Center

*Medicaid Expansion Rally March 13, 1:15 p.m., Kansas State Capitol, 2nd Floor

*Open House Event Recognizing Alise Martiny, March 15, 4-8 p.m., Sheet Metal Local 2

*Services for Mike Burke March 15 visitation 5-8 .m. Mass of Christian burial 10 a.m. March 16, Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church

*Graduation Ceremony for Missouri Apprentice Ready Program, March 16, noon, IBEW Local 53

*March 20 Missouri legislative spring break

*Construction Working Minds Summit March 27-29, Westin Crown Center

*DBIA Next Gen Executive Roundtable, March 28

•Election Day, April 4, 2023

*DBIA Regional Conference, April 12, Lenexa Convention Center

*Seven Days Kindness Businesss Breakfast April 5; Walk April 16; Church of the Ressurection

*LMC Anniversary Celebration and Awards Dinner, April 13, Argosy Casino

*Working Families Friend Texas Hold’em Tournament April 21 at Pipefitters Local 533

*CREW KC luncheon, April 25

*iBuild Reception, April 27, 2023

*iBuild Showcase, April 28, 2023

*Missouri legislative session ends May 12

*KCMO City General Election June 20

*BOMA International Convention June 23, 2023

*Mid-America Labor/Management Conference, July 9-12, 2023, Camden on the Lake

*LMC Craig Whitaker Memorial Golf Tournament, July 25, Eagles Landing Golf Club

*LMC Sporting Clay Shoot Sept. 21, Saddle & Sirloin

*LMC Public Officials Reception Oct. 12, Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts

*NICE Annual Luncheon Oct. 17, 2023, Bartle Hall

•Next Meeting: 8 a.m., Thursday, April 13, 2023, Mark One Electric Co., Inc.

•M/S/C to adjourn at 9 :15 a.m.

The mission of the Labor-Management Council of Greater Kansas City is to enhance collaboration by solidifying trust and communication between labor and management in the community.

The LMC is sad to report the death of Mike Burke. Mike, a former KCMO Councilman and longtime development attorney and civic leader, died Sunday at his home. Mike was a strong friend of the LMC and our mission, and played a key role in many issues including the development of the Loews Hotel downtown. We will share funeral information as soon as it is available. Mike will be missed.

The LMC is sad to report the death of J.D. Foster, who served as the second labor co-chair in the 1980s. J.D. was a longtime business manager of Sheet Metal Workers Local 2, and a prominent leader in labor and in the community. A few years after his retirement he moved to LaFeria, TX. A private service was held with immediate family upon his death. A time for service and celebration of life have not yet been determined. The family requests that any donations in his honor be made to the Shiner’s Hospital for Children, 815 Market Street, Galveston, Texas 77550.

Due to the Chiefs' great victory yesterday, Rockhurst University is joining many other area schools and closing on Wednesday, Feb. 15. Therefore we will be postponing Wednesday's Mid-Level Leadership Program session and extending the program to March 22. Hopefully this will make it easier for those who want to join the celebration and those who will have additional work because of the parade.

Congrats to the Kansas City Chiefs on their exciting Super Bowl victory!

The Super Bowl involves labor-management cooperation at all levels--players, stadium personnel, broadcast crews and more. And we are excited at the attention the win brings to KC along with the opening of the new KCI and the upcoming NFL draft, and the economic potential those achievements of local workers, companies and public officials are making possible.

Due to unexpected weather conditions, the LMC is canceling today's Construction Industry Committee meeting. Please be safe!

Congrats to Brandy McCombs, IBC Inc., for becoming the first woman board president of the Builders' Association. A past LMC honoree for leadership in labor-management cooperation, Brandy has been a trailblazer in the industry and community.

The LMC Construction Industry Committee meets Thursday, Feb. 9, 8 a.m. at Mark One Electric Co., Inc.

LMC Sets Public Issues Agenda for 2023

Labor-Management Council of Greater Kansas City 2023 Issues Agenda

The LMC Board of Directors unanimously approved the following Issues Agenda for 2023 in furtherance of its mission to enhance collaboration by solidifying trust and communication between labor and management in the community.

Federal

•Any future stimulus funds include significant vertical construction projects.

•Support continuation of Davis-Bacon in any new federal infrastructure program.

•Oppose federal “right-to-work.”

Watch:  Multiemployer benefit fund reform implementation

Missouri

•The LMC supports reasonable and effective economic development incentives.  While the LMC supports ensuring that tax credits and other incentives are cost effective, we want to preserve those tax credits crucial to economic development such as the historic tax credit, tax increment financing and enact an angel tax credit and data center incentives.

•The LMC opposes legislation to impose “right-to-work.”

•The LMC supports maintaining and increasing Medicaid eligibility and adequate provider reimbursement.

•The LMC supports state funding for a comprehensive transportation plan.

•The LMC supports Prevailing Wage.

•The LMC supports development of a statutory framework for public employee collective bargaining in Missouri to reduce uncertainty for workers and for public employers.

•The LMC opposes legislation that discriminates against transgendered persons.

•The LMC opposes legislation that prohibits employers from requiring workers to be vaccinated (except for religious and health exemptions).

•The LMC opposes changes in unemployment compensation contained in 2022 SB 665 and HB 1860 that reduce benefits based on the statewide unemployment rate.

•The LMC supports state of Missouri matching funding for the Health Sciences Development District. 

Watch:  Unemployment Insurance, Workers Compensation, Utility Rates & Energy Capacity, Education/Kansas City School District, Prompt Pay and Retainage on Construction Projects, Initiative Petition Process Changes.

Kansas

•The LMC supports reasonable and effective economic development incentives.

•The LMC supports continued funding for the comprehensive transportation plan.

•The LMC opposes immigration reform proposals that would put the burden of I-9 verification on contractors for subcontractors.  Verification responsibility should fall only on the direct employer of those workers.

•The LMC supports reinstatement of a local option for prevailing wage in Kansas.

•The LMC supports maintaining and increasing Medicaid eligibility and adequate provider reimbursement. 

•The LMC opposes legislation that discriminates against transgendered persons.

•The LMC opposes legislation that prohibits employers from requiring workers to be vaccinated (except for religious and health exemptions).

Local

•The LMC opposes elimination of the Kansas City, Mo. city earnings tax until an alternative is in place. 

•The LMC supports prevailing wage on projects with economic development incentives.

•The LMC supports modernization of the Kansas City International Airport. 

Watch:  Possible Kansas City, Mo., Public Safety Sales Tax increase, Energy Codes