Construction companies added 20,000 employees in November and continued to raise wages for hourly workers more steeply than other sectors as the industry’s unemployment rate tumbled, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new government data. Association officials said the data shows that firms would have added significantly more workers if they could find more people to hire.

AGC CEO Stephen Sandherr and members of AGC’s Government Affairs staff met with US Department of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh on November 10 to discuss top industry priorities including, among other things, addressing the workforce shortage through skills training and attracting individuals to the construction industry as well as the importance of job site safety.

The FAR Council’s new proposed rule creates two new categories for federal contractors – significant contractors and major contractors – which trigger significant reporting requirements related to greenhouse gas emissions.

AGC of America’s (AGC) advocacy fund is proactively seeking to improve general contractors’ business environment by participating in a case before the Supreme Court of Tennessee. AGC and the AGC of Tennessee jointly submitted an amicus (or friend of the court) brief to preserve a general contractor’s right not to be sued for the damages twice under different legal theories by its contracting partner seeking to receive a double recovery.

Tuesday, December 6, 3:00-4:00 PM EASTERN

AGC warns the IRS to look before it leaps into quickly rolling out prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements—for which it has no internal expertise or experience—tied to new private development tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act.

AGC of America and seven fellow employer groups jointly submitted an amicus brief at the U.S. Supreme Court on November 8 urging the Court to reverse a Washington Supreme Court decision that prevents a company from recovering damages from a union that sanctioned the destruction of company property.