The Building Tradesman Newspaper

WASHINGTON (PAI) – Now it’s official, as far as the labor-backed Economic Policy Institute is concerned: The current U.S. economic slump “has become the longest and deepest economic downturn since the Great Depression.” ..

An economic bellwether and one of the hardest-hit industries during this recession, the construction industry is a very sick patient that isn’t getting better, ..

Throughout this decade, Michigan has had the dubious distinction of being well ahead of the economic curve: our march toward economic calamity has been years ahead of other states – and we’re still ahead of the pack. ..

ANN ARBOR – Taking care of sick people is the job of medical staff at the University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers. ..

WASHINGTON (PAI) – Minnesota’s new Democratic U.S. Senator, Al Franken, marked his first day in office on July 7 by signing on as a co-sponsor to a bill for the first time: The Employee Free Choice Act. ..

Action last month by OSHA indicates that silica has moved high on the agency’s regulatory agenda. OSHA requested a “quick turn-around” of the peer review of the draft silica standard’s health effects document, a request that will accelerate the adoption process. In addition, it issued Controlling Silica Exposures in Construction, a guidance document that mirrors the draft standard’s approach to hazard mitigation. ..