Option 1: Build something that sets aside all new units for lower-income residents.For anything over a certain size, developers have two options: They also have to abide by higher labor standards. In exchange, they must set aside at least 10% of the new units for low-income residents. The goal of the 2017 state law, also written by Wiener, was to let developers in housing-strapped sections of the state side-step some of the early bureaucratic hurdles that often delay, curtail or stifle budding projects. “This is definitely a big move.” Few housing projects use union-only labor Two new trade unions backing the bill “sends a strong, strong message,” Wiener said. Supporters of Wiener’s bill hope the crack in the trades’ coalition could help allay some of those concerns. Hearings earlier this year, in which trades members rhetorically sparred with carpenters and other housing supporters, left many members of the Legislature feeling uneasy and frustrated. “We represent our affiliates and our affiliates as a whole still remain opposed to the bill,” said Beverly Yu, a lobbyist for the building trades.ĭemocrats in the Legislature pride themselves on being on the side of unions. That has not been the line from the council, nor many of their union allies, who have decried Wiener’s bill as a reversal of hard-fought labor protections. Scott Wiener, they described the proposal “ a step in the right direction” and one that will “ ultimately lead to more affordable housing…(for) our membership and those in need.” But in separate letters of support for the bill, shared on Twitter by its author San Francisco Democratic Sen. The executives of both unions refused to discuss the shift with CalMatters. “It’s an organizing opportunity and we’ll produce housing at all income levels. “We say, represent and raise all workers up,” said Jay Bradshaw, executive secretary of the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council, in an interview last month. The carpenters argue that a union hiring rule isn’t workable, as there aren’t enough unionized construction workers to build all the new housing California requires. The breakaways - the California Council of Laborers and the state Conference of Operating Engineers - join California’s unionized carpenters, which have been battling with the larger trades council over mandatory labor standards for housing projects fast-tracked under state law. Desperately.” Jay Bradshaw, executive secretary of the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council But it scraps a provision that mandates the hiring of union members for some projects. Under the reauthorization proposal, developers who make use of the law would be required to pay union-level wages - a standard that some in the building industry say still makes construction untenably expensive in many parts of the state. The bill in question would make permanent a 2017 state law that expedites affordable housing construction in many parts of the state. It’s a surprising and surprisingly public break that could help shift the political balance long defining California housing policy. Two affiliates of the trades council defected, throwing their weight behind a housing bill that the parent organization had been fighting for months. Last week, a few fissures appeared on that unified front. It’s also because they turn out motivated members, rarely shy away from a bare-knuckle political fight and reliably present a unified front against bills they aim to quash. That’s not just because the trades are reliable campaign contributors to California’s ruling Democrats - though they are. The State Building and Construction Trades Council, an umbrella group representing hundreds of thousands of bricklaying, pipefitting, bulldozing and foundation-laying union members across the state, has stood as a formidable political force that even governors have been forced to contend with. For more stories on inequality in California, sign up for Inequality Insights, a weekly must-read on one of California's most pressing issues.įor nearly a decade, lawmakers hoping to tackle the state’s housing crisis have faced a choice: win the support of the coalition that represents California’s construction unions - or watch those legislative aspirations sputter and die.