State talks with unions over work on prisons ending, adviser says

IOWA CITY - Negotiations likely will be completed this weekend on project labor agreements for two large-scale prison construction plans, an adviser to Gov. Chet Culver said Saturday.

The governor signed an executive order in February directing state agencies to consider using project labor agreements on construction projects of $25 million or more “to provide structure and stability, promote efficient, on-time completion and ensure the high standards and reasonable costs.”

James Larew, the governor's legal counsel, said negotiations with unions on the PLAs for more than $200 million worth of work at Fort Madison and Mitchellville correctional facilities would be complete today. Larew, who practiced law in Iowa City before joining the governor's staff, spoke to the Johnson County Democratic Party convention Saturday.

The agreements with the Central Iowa Building Trades Council and Southeast Iowa Building Trades Council “will set a model for future agreements,” Larew said, and predicted they will set a model for other states looking to use PLAs.

Iowa is a right-to-work state “and that's not likely to change anytime soon,” he said. However, the PLA means “fair and decent” wages will be negotiated locally with building trades councils and construction workers, although they don't have to be union members, will be hired through union hiring halls.

In return, workers will agree to not strike during the course of the project, which increases the likelihood work will be completed on time and on budget, Larew said.

Both the Fort Madison and Mitchellville projects are scheduled to start this construction season. The $139 million project at Fort Madison will replace a Civil War-era prison that houses more than 500 inmates with a maximum-security facility that can house more than 700 inmates, lawmakers have said.

At Mitchellville, plans call for a $68 million expansion of the women's prison.

Both projects will be paid through the prison infrastructure fund.