Apply by Wednesday, October 25, 2023!

Construction contracts provide a foundation for project success or, if done wrong, project failure. Updating your contracts is essential. You should evaluate and update your contracts based on the latest technology trends, legal developments, and the insurance market. ConsensusDocs updates its documents more frequently than the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The ConsensusDocs Contract Content Drafting Council (Council) solicits and reviews industry feedback to keep the ConsensusDocs ahead of the curve in identifying and establishing industry best practices. UPDATE: On September 20th, ConsensusDocs published comprehensive revisions to its most used prime and subcontract agreements that address design-bid-build.

Delegated design is when the lead design professional, an architect or engineer, delegates a portion of design responsibility to the builder. Standard construction documents have traditionally addressed this issue in a rudimentary fashion. The updated ConsensusDocs now provide more details and procedures for design development, approval, and design coordination with the overall project design to better address delegated design.

Partnering Agreements No Longer Required for the Now-Named Marvin M. Black Excellence in Partnering & Collaboration Awards

AGC to offer an educational webinar on July 27 to help contractors prepare for what to expect from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs in upcoming audits and if they become involved in your Mega Projects.

In April 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued the first national emphasis program (NEP) addressing outdoor and indoor heat-related hazards. AGC worked with the agency to issue a series of frequently asked questions (FAQs) clarifying contractors’ obligations under the NEP to better assist members with effectively protecting workers from hazards related to heat, while also avoiding citations during any enforcement proceedings. The FAQs offer clearer guidance regarding program elements and policies that OSHA will deem effective at protecting workers from heat related hazards. Issues addressed include availability and access to water, measures for providing shade, effective training methods and topics covered, among others.

In its unanimous June 29 decision in Groff v. DeJoy, the U.S Supreme Court disrupted decades of precedent in ruling that, under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, an employer that rejects a religious accommodation request on the basis of “undue hardship” must prove a burden well beyond a “de minimis cost.” The employer must establish that the rejected accommodation requires “substantial increased costs in relation to the conduct of [the employer’s] particular business.” The Court further clarified that a negative impact on co-workers resulting from the requested accommodation does not automatically qualify the accommodation as an “undue hardship.” The new test must be satisfied whether the “substantial increased costs” result from an impact on co-workers or otherwise.