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House bucks Baker, votes to override veto of Soldiers’ Home labor clause >Wreaths, signs and flags are part of a memorial at the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke, May 12, 2020. GAZETTE FILE PHOTO
Published: 6/30/2021 8:38:03 PM
House Democrats ignored the warnings of Gov. Charlie Baker and overrode his veto Wednesday of legislation requiring a new Holyoke Soldiers’ Home to be built under a project labor agreement, a move designed to ensure that union labor will be used for the construction of the $400 million facility.
Baker urged legislators not to require a PLA on the project, arguing it would drive up the overall project cost possibly imperiling federal funds for the project and also discourage businesses owned by minorities, women and veterans from bidding on contracts.
The unusual stipulation, proposed by state Senator Paul R. Feeney and overwhelmingly adopted in the chamber, injected a new dimension to the debate over plans for the state’s new $400 million veterans home in Holyoke.
Select Page Building Trades Rattled Over Labor Agreement in Holyoke Home Bill By State House News Service | Apr 16, 2021 | Reprints | Print
Non-union contractors are continuing their push to strike a requirement that the new $400 million Holyoke Soldiers’ Home be built using a project labor agreement, cautioning lawmakers that the directive is unnecessary, costly and discriminatory toward minority- and women-owned contractors.
House Democrats on Thursday are expected to approve legislation (H 3701) that includes the language, which they added to a bill filed by Gov. Charlie Baker. But opponents of the measure are appealing to House progressives and members of the Black and Latino Caucus to remove the stricture.