The Labor-Management Council of Greater Kansas City

The LMC sends strong wishes for a recovery to BZ Parscale, who resigned for health reasons as IBEW Local 124 financial secretary. BZ has been a great supporter of the LMC.

The 21st annual LMC Craig Whitaker Memorial Golf Tournament is taking reservations for sponsorships and players. Contact [email protected] for a reservation form and with questions.

Applications for the 2019-20 Mid-Level Leadership Program will soon be available. The first of 16 sessions is Sept. 18 at Rockhurst Unversity.

Kansas City, Mo., voters agreed with the LMC and overwhelmingly voted down Kansas City Question 1 yesterday. Many LMC members supported the No on KC Question 1 campaign, led by Richard Martin, JE Dunn Construction Co., and past LMC executive director Phil Scaglia.

We congratulate new Mayor-Elect Quinton Lucas. He has attended LMC events, spoken to our Construction Committee several times and shown an interest in our mission. We look forward to working with him to help take the city to the next level. We also congratulate those elected to the next Council: Kevin O'Neill, Heather Hall, Teresa Loar, Dan Fowler, Brandon Ellington, Melissa Robinson, Katheryn Shields, Eric Bunch, Lee Barnes, Ryana Parks-Shaw, Andrea Bough and Kevin McManus.

Thanks again for your support on Question 1 and we hope it leads to productive discussion on a greatly improved process for awarding incentives for KCMO projects.

The LMC reminds all Kansas City, Mo. registered voters to cast you ballots today. We recommend a No vote on Kansas City Question 1.

Construction Committee Hears from Bough and Does State Legislative Wrap-Up

Construction Industry Steering Team Summary of Minutes

 8 a.m., Thursday, June 13, 2019, Mark One Electric Co., Inc.

Attending:  Sam Alpert, Andrea Bough, Willis Bowers, Jay Campbell, Greg Chastain, Kevin Gard, Jason Harrison, Kevin King, Bill Livingston, Joe Mabin, Alise Martiny, Chuck Tarpley, Bob Jacobi.

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

•Presentation from and discussion with Kansas City, Mo. Council Candidate Andrea Bough.   Candidate Bough has experience with development projects as an attorney.  Her emphasis is on making KCMO a safe place to raise a family.  She supports prevailing wage applying to incentive-granting agencies as well as MBE/WBE requirements.  A creative approach is needed for affordable housing, including LITC and nonprofit involvement.  She opposes KC Question 1 and agrees that the incentive agencies need reform.

A key element of affordable housing is that rents are too low to attract investment, yet are too high for some residents to afford as a result of increasing wealth disparities.  Encouragement of local banks to use Community Reinvestment Act resources could also help.

•Discussion of Kansas City Question 1.  Being on the ballot indicates the city’s incentive polices need reform.  Voters are urged to vote no on June 18.

•MODLIR will assign a KC-area experienced investigator to prevailing wage after the new state budget takes effect July 1.  He will also have enforcement duties for other regulations as well.  One person will be working out of Cape Girardeau also with prevailing wage and other enforcement duties.

•The list of bills passed by both Missouri and Kansas that we tracked is small.  Several issues likely will be get more focus next year.  Recently released regulations implementing the changes to Missouri's Historic Tax Credit make the credits very difficult to access.  HTCs have been vital to much of the area’s redevelopment in recent years.

•The Unified Government is considering responsible bidder requirements since the local option for prevailing wage did not succeed in the legislature this year.

•The U.S. House Education and Labor Committee passed out HR 397, the Rehabilitation for Multiemployers Act creating a loan program for failing pension plans.  House Ways & Means will take the bill up this summer.

•The KCI project is beginning demolition.  The training program will hopefully be a model for future projects, impacting 100-200 persons over the life of the project.  The partnership wit the KCATA is critical to helping new workers get transportation to the project.  Transportation to job sites is a significant barrier for many entry-level workers from disadvantaged areas.

•Barriers to MBE/WBE startups are considerable in construction particularly for those coming out of the field.  Some crafts have had programs to assist.  Gaining certification in KCMO is a challenge.

•NICE will hold its annual fundraising luncheon Oct. 29; the program will be focused on workforce development with details to be announced soon.

•There will be no July meeting of the committee so members can attend the Mid-America Labor/Management Conference.

•Upcoming Events:

*Working Families Friend Golf Tournament, June 17, Loch Lloyd

*KCMO General Election, June 18

*ReNew 124 Casino Night, June 22, 7 p.m., IBEW Local 124

*Rockhurst University Joseph Freeman Golf Tournament, June 24, Loch Lloyd

*Mid-America Labor/Management Conference, July 7-10, 2019, Camden on the Lake

*LMC Golf Tournament, July 15, 2019, Oakwood Country Club

*LMC Board Meeting, July 24, 8:30 a.m., Rockhurst University Conway 320

*GKC AFL-CIO Car & Bike Event, Aug. 24, 9 a.m.-12 p.m., Providence Ampitheater, Bonner

  Springs.  Open to all but only American-made cars & motorcycles can be displayed

*UAW Region 5 Golf Tournament, Aug. 25, Sunflower Hills

*Builders’ Expo, Sept. 18, Bartle Hall

*Roofers Local 20 100th Anniversary Celebration, Sept. 20

*Working Families Friend Picnic & BBQ Cookoff, Sept. 26, Pipefitters Local 533 Hall

*NICE Annual Awards Luncheon, Oct. 29, Muehlbach.

*iBuild Reception, April 15, 2020

*iBuild 2020, April 16, 2020

*Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service Future @ Work National Conference, Aug. 18-20,

  2020, Chicago

  For details on the above events, please contact the sponsoring group or the LMC

•Next Meeting: 8 a.m., Thursday, Aug. 8, 2019, Mark One Electric Co., Inc. (Note: no July meeting)

•M/S/C to adjourn at 10 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 hopes all had a great Father's Day weekend.

Now back to work: Tomorrow, Tuesday June 18, is Election Day in Kansas City, Mo. In addition to urging all eligible to vote, the LMC urges a NO vote on Kansas City Question 1, which would limit city-conferred economic incentives to 50 percent of their potential value with no exceptions.

The LMC Board of Directors voted unanimously to adopt a recommendation of its Construction Industry Committee to oppose the issue. Comprised of one-half representatives of labor and one-half from management, the Board requires 75 percent of both groups to agree to a position.

"The LMC has long worked for reasonable, competitive economic incentive programs and policies, and strongly agrees that KCMO's needs reforms. However, the 50% cap with no exceptions would essentially stop most development not already underway within the city, and likely harm the economic development image of the entire metro area. So the Board urges a no vote with continued advocacy for effective reforms" said Bob Jacobi, LMC executive director.

Whether the issue passes or fails, Jacobi said that "we look forward to helping any way we can to achieve an economic incentive process that promotes quality development, jobs for area workers and contractors and does not burden schools and other governments. But clearly Question 1 would kill jobs and ultimately reduce revenues to schools and local government so a no vote is essential June 18."

Feel free to contact Bob with questions.

The LMC thanks Cheryl McConnell, associate provost for academic affairs and dean of the Rockhurst University College of Business, Influence Information and Analysis (including the Helzberg School of Management), for her service as an LMC consultant and support over many years. Cheryl is leaving this week to become Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia. While we will miss her leadership we wish her a great experience in Philadelphia. For the next year, Myles Gartland will serve as interim dean and an LMC advisor.