WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ-01), the only electrician in Congress and a 40-year veteran of the labor movement, released the following statement regarding President Joe Biden’s Executive Order to improve the timeliness, lower costs, and increase quality in federal construction projects. The Order affects these benefits by requiring the use of project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal construction projects over $35 million.

“President Biden’s latest Executive Order shows what the American worker has to gain by having a pro-labor president in the White House. Requiring PLAs on federal construction projects will improve job quality for nearly 200,000 workers on federal construction contracts. PLAs also help ensure the responsible stewardship of tax dollars by pre-negotiating wages and benefits for federal construction projects – meaning workers can spend more time working and less time haggling over work conditions. Additionally, workers under a PLA are more likely to have health care – a benefit that has always been important in demanding construction jobs but even more so during the pandemic. This Executive Order is a win for workers and the American taxpayer.”