HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                      Olympia, Washington

Bill Analysis     Bill No.  SSB 5491

Requiring the use of apprentices in large public works projects.

Brief Title                              Hearing Date: 3/31/99

Senators Costa, Roach, and Franklin        Staff: Steve Lundin

Sponsor(s)                          State Government Committee

                                              Phone:  786-7127

BACKGROUND:

1. Public works.

Public works projects are work, construction, alteration, repair, or improvements, other than regular maintenance, that are done for state agencies or local governments.  Depending on a number of factors, public works projects may be performed by public employees or contracted out to be performed.

2. Apprenticeship agreements.

A six-member apprenticeship council is appointed by the director of the Department of Labor and Industries, composed of three members from employer organizations and three members from labor organizations.  Members serve three-year staggered terms of office.  The apprenticeship council establishes standards for apprenticeship agreements, adopts rules related to apprenticeship agreements, and approves apprenticeship agreements.

An apprenticeship agreement may be an individual written agreement between an employer and apprentice, a written agreement between an employer or association of employers and an organization of employees, or a written statement describing conditions of employment for apprentices in a plant where there is no bona fide employee organization.  An apprentice agreement must:

$Indicate the trade or craft that is to be taught and require at least 2000 hours of reasonably continuous employment for completion of the apprenticeship.

$Include a statement of the process in the trade or craft divisions for an apprentice to be taught and the approximate amount of time to be spent in each process.

$Include the number of hours to be spent by an apprentice in related and supplemental instruction, which must be at least 144 hours per year.

$Provide for a progressively increasing scale of wages to be paid to the apprentice.

$Allow an apprentice to transfer to another employer if the employer is unable to fulfill its obligation under the apprenticeship agreement.

SUMMARY:

All contracts for public works that are estimated to cost $1 million or more must require that at least 10 percent of the labor hours be performed by apprentices who are enrolled in apprenticeship training programs approved by the Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council.  Labor hours mean the total hours of workers receiving hourly wages who are directly employed on-site of the public works project, including hours performed by workers employed by the contractor and subcontractors working on the project, but does not include hours worked by foremen, superintendents, owners, or workers who are not subject to prevailing wage requirements.

A contractor who fails to comply with this apprenticeship utilization requirement is deemed to be in breach of the contract for which the state or local government is entitled to all remedies allowed under the law and under the contract.  Failure to comply with this apprenticeship utilization requirement may be considered evidence bearing on a contractor=s qualification for award of future contracts.

FISCAL NOTE:  Not requested.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.