Expiring contracts could halt work at area building projects

Negotiations between trade unions and contractors are under way to prevent work stoppages at area projects next week.

"There's several of the trades that are in negotiations right now," said Scott Smith, president of the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City Building Trades Council.

Smith said seven trade contracts covering about 1,000 workers expire midnight Saturday. He said those crafts will meet today and through the weekend so members can vote on either new contract proposals or whether to continue work as the current agreements expire.

"If they haven't come to an agreement, they can continue working," said Smith. "It just depends on the situation. That's matter for each of the individual locals, craft by craft."

Failure to reach agreement could shut down work at the new federal courthouse in Cedar Rapids.

“A stoppage of work could happen next Tuesday if an agreement isn't reached before then,” said Charlie Cook, spokesman for the General Services Administration in Kansas City, Mo. “Our project team is starting to develop a contingency plan.”

Work will continue on Linn County's flood-recovery projects, which are governed by project labor agreements.

"All the PLAs have no-job-action clauses, no work stoppages," Smith said. "That's one of the pluses on the project agreements - that  that can't happen."

Smith, a member of the painters' union, said that trade has reached agreement on a new contract.

"We have come to agreement and members have voted and accepted the proposals from the contractors," he said. "We will carry on business as usual."

Negotiations are also under way on contracts that expire at the end of May, Smith said.