Minimum wage policy for contracts: posted for action 3/24

[Greg Casar]

Colleagues:

I want to advise you that we will be posted at our next Council meeting to deliberate on our minimum wage policies for city contracts.

As you all know, we passed a resolution almost a year ago asking the staff to analyze our current minimum wage practices on city contracts. Currently, by formal loophole, subcontractors working with City contractors are not subject to our minimum wage rules, nor are many construction contractors. Furthermore, our staff has recommended several clarifications to our existing “Living Wage Program.” I hope you’ll vote with me to expand and clarify our minimum wage policies for all these contracts, through two separate items that will be posted on the March 24th agenda.

First: At our December meeting, the Economic Opportunity Committee voted to update our Purchasing rules related to non-construction contractors. We voted to support staff’s policy recommendations, and we directed the staff to post this item for action at an early date in February. I know we were very busy last month, and my understanding is that we will finally be posted for action next week. Staff’s policy recommendations for minimum wage policies related to our non-construction contractors and subcontractors is available here: http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=245585

Second: At that same December Economic Opportunity meeting, the committee did not include a recommendation related to construction contractors. Instead, we chose to have an executive session at the full Council level. Since we recently had that executive session, Mayor Pro Tem Tovo, Council Member Kitchen, and Council Member Garza have co-sponsored an item along with me that will apply our minimum wage policy, along with existing state and federal regulations as they relate to wages, to our construction contracts. This item will also be posted for action at our meeting next week. I’ve included the language of that item at the bottom of this message.

I believe that expanding and clarifying our minimum wage policies will ensure the highest-quality work in our city contracts, will expand economic opportunity, will reward businesses with high-road practices, and will incentivize training and workforce development in our community.

Yours,
Greg


AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 030508-31 REGARDING ADOPTED WAGES TO BE PAID ON CITY PROJECTS.
[[[Note, the only part of the ordinance that is amended is included in brackets like these. The rest of the original ordinance, that is currently in force, remains un-amended.]]]

Part 3 of Ordinance No. 030508-31 is amended to read as follows:
All laborers, workers and mechanics employed in connection with a City of Austin public improvement project shall be paid not less than the general prevailing rate of per diem wages adopted under this ordinance, including the applicable rate of per diem wages established for work performed on legal holidays and overtime work; [[[and in all instances, for contracts subject to this ordinance, all laborers, workers and mechanics employed in connection with a City of Austin public improvement project shall be paid no less than the City’s minimum wage for its own full-time regular hourly employees in effect at the time the City issues the solicitation for the project, except as may be preempted by federal law.

Except as expressly amended herein, Ordinance No. 030508-31 shall remain in full force and effect.]]]