09/13/2021
"Somerville has become ground zero for construction unions battling to gain traction outside of Boston. Until now, project labor agreements for the most part have been missing from major projects in Somerville, unlike in Boston. Such agreements, known as PLAs, all but assure that the lion’s share of work on a project will go to union contractors, sometimes driving up costs but also raising the bar for wages and benefits. Pro-union factions, including Senator Bernie Sanders-aligned Our Revolution Somerville, have gained political influence, backing candidates who won a majority of seats on the City Council in 2017 and at times providing a counterpoint to Curtatone’s pro-development agenda."
and
"The next administration will likely be far more amenable to union interests; Cassesso, Mbah, and Ballantyne all say they’d like to see PLAs for major projects in the city. Mbah, considered the most left-leaning of the three, says these agreements support good-paying union jobs and ensure the highest quality of construction work. Ballantyne offers similar reasons, saying PLAs represent an important way for Somerville to uphold progressive values, such as the fair treatment of workers."
and
"Union organizers such as Rand Wilson fully expect one of the progressives to win, and the City Council to swing even further to the left. Wilson sees Somerville as becoming a more union-oriented community, both in construction and in broad support for unions as a way to address economic inequities in the city. PLAs could soon become a matter of course, as they are in Boston, and the affordable-housing requirements could increase."
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With the longtime Mayor Joe Curtatone about to head off to lead the Northeast Clean Energy Council, developers are getting anxious they may soon no longer have such a good friend in City Hall.
