Increase Free Markets

A thriving private sector unrestrained by a bloated government is a key to a healthy marketplace. The destructive policies of project labor agreements and prevailing wage coupled with a lack of ‘Right to Work’ laws has hampered Kentucky’s ability to attract new business investment.

These labor policies must be reformed if Kentucky is to be competitive with its neighboring states. Union membership in Kentucky has been on the decline for the past decade however Kentucky business owners and workers continue to be subject to polices that favor labor unions.

Government enforced PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENTS hinder business in Kentucky by forcing contractors who want to win federal contracts to

• Recognize unions as the representatives of their employees on a job site

• Pay into union pension and benefit plans regardless of the contractors own plans

• Obey restrictive and inefficient union work rules

The inefficient policy of PREVAILING WAGE requires that private contractors on public projects pay workers the “prevailing wage” of the area the project is taking place. Most often these wages are union scale rates. The prevailing wage policy:

• inflates worker wages and benefits beyond the average rate

• restrict competition in the marketplace

• only apply to taxpayer funded projects