Walker is new prez at Michigan Building Trades

Zane Walker, a Flint-area business agent with Iron Workers Local 25, will succeed Patrick “Shorty” Gleason as President of the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council. Gleason is retiring effective Aug. 1.

The Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council Executive Board appointed Walker in a vote taken on July 14. He will serve out the remaining three years of Gleason’s four-year term.

Walker, 44, also currently serves as President of the Flint Area Building Trades Council. He has served as the Iron Workers Local 25’s political director for the last five years.

“I know this job will have a  lot of work in governmental affairs, and with my background , I’m comfortable with that,” Walker said. “I have big shoes to fill with Shorty leaving, but I look forward to the challenge,” Walker said.

Walker has been a business agent with Local 25 since 2003, and before that, he was a local organizer for two years.

“Zane has the ideal background for Michigan Building Trades President, and  I know he’ll do a great job,” said Michigan Building Trades Secretary-Treasurer Patrick Devlin.  “At the same time, we’re really going to miss Shorty’s knowledge and experience.

Ouch – big hurt put on construction wages

Construction industry wage and benefit settlements have taken a big fall so far in 2010, reports the Construction Labor Research Council. Average first year contract increases in the U.S. were 55 cents, or 1.1 percent through June.

That modest increase was down from an average of $1.49 or 3.1 percent reported for a comparable period a year ago. Percentage increases are also lower than a year ago for second and third years of contract settlements, but the drops aren’t as great.

“Small or no increases were widespread,” said the CLRC. “Almost a quarter of new agreements were freezes or reductions and about two-thirds were less than 2 percent. Similarly, about two-thirds of the first-year increases were less than one dollar. Almost all second and third-year increases were under 3 percent.”

However, the best news was in the East North Central Region, which includes Michigan. Average first-year settlements in our region were almost double the national average, at $1.11 or 2.0 percent. Even so, those numbers are more moderate than last year’s $1.69 or 3.1 percent increase.