Despite Nevada Governor Gibbon's veto of a bill to allow the use of Collectively Bargained Workers Compensation (CBWC) Programs, labor and management representatives rallied to lobby a two-thirds vote, overriding the Governor's veto on May 31, 2009. The new legislation takes effect on July 1, 2009.

Wage and benefit settlements reported to the Construction Labor Research Council (CLRC) so far in 2009 have resulted in an average first year increase of $1.49 or 3.1 percent. This is down considerably from the average $2.30 or 4.9 percent reported for the comparable period a year earlier. Second and third years settlements are also lower, but by lesser amounts.

PRIDE of St. Louis Inc. announced that it will recognize John Mulligan, Rick Post, Joseph Hunt and the late I.E. Millstone at its second annual awards ceremony in August.

Developed by IMPACT, the Ironworker Foreman Pocket Guide contains 460 pages of information, tables, charts, diagrams, safety checklists, and other content for all areas of the ironworking trade. The major sections of the Ironworker Foreman Pocket Guide (which fits into a back pocket) include:

Construction of the Ironworkers Walk of Fame, a memorial honoring the union ironworkers who built the Mackinac Bridge, and all those across the United States and Canada, has officially begun in Mackinaw City. The Ironworkers Walk of Fame is designed to recognize the Union Ironworker, and Mackinac Bridge Bridgman of North America, by incorporating the brick paver concept currently used throughout the village of Mackinaw City, Michigan.

The Ironworkers have had a relationship with the National Labor College (NLC) for many years. Over the years a number of ironworker members have graduated with a Bachelor's Degree from the NLC (including Executive Assistant to the Ironworkers' General President Bill Tweet). In an effort to meet the education needs of the Ironworkers' membership, IMPACT staff members work closely with the NLC.

In five weeks, 15 ironworkers built the three-story steel frame of Campbell Soup's new world headquarters in Camden, New Jersey.

This year celebrates the 25th Annual Ironworker Instructor Training Program, which takes place July 19-24, 2009 at the University of San Diego. Last year, the training program included over 700 participants and guests from across the United States and Canada. This year's program is shaping up to promise just as substantial of a turnout.

Construction contractors can expect various business benefits from a relationship with Union Ironworkers throughout Kentucky. Among the expectations is a well-trained, drug-free and safe work force in the Kentucky industrial manufacturing and construction market. More than 160 industrial projects totaling nearly $14 billion have been scheduled to begin as contractors prepare for the upcoming construction season based on estimates by Industrial Information Resources, a marketing information service specializing in industrial process, energy and financial related markets.

Union Ironworkers are in full support of the recently released study titled Project Labor Agreements in New York State: In the Public Interest by Fred B. Kotler, the Associate Director of the Construction Industry Program at the Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations. Union Ironworkers stand behind the results of the independent study affirming that a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) as an effective construction management tool for quality construction.