July 15, 2003
Historic Victory for Construction Workers
July 14, 2003 was a rude awakening for the state's 105 Charter Cities. The California Appellate Court ruled that they must pay prevailing wages on public works projects, (click here to read the court decision) correcting a 71-year old error by the courts.
Scott Kronland of Altshuler, Berzon, Nussbaum, Rubin & Demain did an incredible job of arguing the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California's (SBCTC) position.
This win was not accidental and involved years of active strategy by the SBCTC to overturn an historical error by the courts in viewing the payment of prevailing wages as just a matter of local concern. The strategy included sponsoring several pieces of legislation which declared the legislative intent that "the payment of prevailing wages was a statewide concern."
The SBCTC intervened in the case of City of Long Beach v. Department of Industrial Relations, No. B159333, (Los Angeles Superior Court, No. BS072516). The court declared that "the two main purposes of the prevailing wage law - ensuring a supply of skilled workers and protecting area wage standards - respond to statewide concerns, not merely local interests."