Maryland Bucks Trend, Expands Prevailing Wage Law

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)While other states are passing anti-union laws, Maryland passed the largest expansion of the prevailing wage law in the state’s history. A bill introduced by Delegate Tom Hucker (D-Montgomery) and recently passed by the General Assembly expanded the prevailing wage requirement to the massive suburban Maryland water utility (WSSC) just as it is embarking on $2-3 billion in work over the next five years under the terms of a consent decree with the EPA. "For too long, WSSC has spent ratepayers' money on low-wage contractors from outside our area” said Hucker. “I'm so proud our landmark expansion of the Maryland prevailing wage law will mean hundreds of millions of dollars of new work for local contractors and thousands of new union construction jobs." The bill "ensures that folks working on these projects will get paid a fair wage and benefits... we're happy about that" says Washington Building and Construction Trades’ Mark Coles. Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley will sign the bill on Thursday, May 16 and Hucker, a longtime labor ally and founding Executive Director of Progressive Maryland, invites supporters to join him at a celebratory event followed by the bill-signing ceremony at the State House; contact Hucker at 410-841-3474 for more information.