Feral Jundi

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Industry Talk: Can The Government Force Contractors To Unionize?

Filed under: Industry Talk,Legal News — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 2:26 AM

   It’s a basic question, and I have not a clue about how this would pertain to government contracts in the war.  I am sure there is some clause for overseas contingency operations that do not allow labor unions with wartime contracts.  I could be wrong, and this is an area that is way out of my lane. (any legal eagles want to step in, or maybe even the folks at IPOA)

   Plus, with how globalized contracting has become with DoD and DoS contracts, I just don’t see how you could force some Sri Lankan working at the DEFAC for KBR to pay the dues for some union.  There are just so many pieces to this, and I really have never explored this area.

   Now I have heard of numerous discussions amongst contractors while working out there, revolving around organizing. Most of the times, it was all talk born from poor labor practices of companies.  There have even been some attempts at creating unions for this industry, but nothing with any teeth or longevity. I could be wrong, and there might be some solid stuff out there that I am not aware of.  I know for CONUS, there are security related unions.  But for OCONUS, I have yet to see it.

   For fun though, what would happen if we were forced to be unionize?  Would that be a good thing, or a bad thing? –Matt

—————————————————————–

Can the Government Force Contractors to Unionize?

By Jim Garrettson

March 29, 2010

Executive order 13502 [1]from February 2009 garnered relatively little attention when it was issued.   It reads, “in order to promote the efficient administration and completion of Federal construction projects,” executive agencies are allowed to require contractors working on federal construction projects to implement “Project Labor Agreements.”

This order applies to any construction, renovation or rehabilitation project that costs over $25 million, and encompasses all agencies but the GAO.  The order also rescinded Bush’s Executive Order 13202 [2]from February, 2001, which prohibits the government from requiring contractors to abide by these agreements, or discriminating against contractors for “refusing to become or remain signatories or otherwise to adhere to agreements with one or more labor organizations, on the same or other related construction project(s).”

Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) [3] require all employees working on a specific project to abide by the same collective bargaining agreement.  This enables the hiring of non-unionized contractors, but typically requires them to pay into multi-employer union pension plans, putting non-union contractors at a financial disadvantage because they must pay for the union plan and for their existing company plan, according to the Associated Builders and Contractors [4].  Another problem for contractors is that many union pension funds are underwater, according to this recent article in the Washington Times [5].  Employers bound to collectively bargained agreements are forced to cover costs for underfunded union pensions when other contractors drop out.

(more…)

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Haiti: Kidnappings And Sexual Assaults On The Rise, And How ‘Shock Doctrine’ Fear Mongering Is Hurting Haitians

Filed under: Disaster Response,Haiti,Kidnap And Ransom — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 2:10 AM

   Thanks to Matt for sending me this.  My question on all of this, is where is the Main Stream Media? I mean they were all over Haiti when it was cool and made for great coverage. Disaster relief is a marathon, not a short race, and there are stories that are just not getting the coverage they need.  Like the thousands of prisoners that escaped, and the slow and steady increase of crime or assaults. By now, we should have had any deficiencies in security corrected–either with more UN or Haitian police, or with private security.  There is plenty of money for such things, and there is absolutely no excuse for not implementing effective security solutions for the Haiti.

   I also think that this stupid book on ‘disaster capitalism’  called Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein, is actually making things worse for the Haitians. Aid companies now think that contracting security or private industry is somehow a bad thing, and that paying for such things is ‘disaster capitalism’.

    Meanwhile, their employees on the ground are getting kidnapped or sexually assaulted, all because they are afraid that contracting security would offend their donors.  How totally irresponsible and pathetic is that? I also think it is irresponsible of those in the media who have promoted such things, because now you are helping the criminals of Haiti with your reportage. And what really kills me is that none of these aid organizations or main stream media groups get the label of disaster capitalists?

    To me, their entire existence depends upon disasters, and they certainly need them in order to get donations or viewership.  Make another dollar off the suffering of Haitians…. and you guys label my industry as disaster capitalists?  Pfffft.  At least my industry does something other than making media spectacles out of that suffering, or begging for money to support massive aid organizations.

   Below, I also posted the excellent commentary by the IPOA in regards to this ‘Shock Doctrine’ fear mongering that the Juice Box Commandos out there have been spewing. Bravo to JJ Messner and company for calling it the way they see it. The ideas of Naomi are contributing to more suffering in Haiti, and it needs to be put in check. Maybe I should start a Facebook page called ‘The Shock Doctrine Fear Mongering Club–Support Crime And Instability In Haiti!!’. –Matt

————————————————–

UN: Kidnappers release Belgian taken in Haiti

By MIKE MELIA

Fri Mar 26, 2010

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Kidnappers have released a Belgian businessman who was grabbed as he drove through Haiti’s capital, a U.N. police official said Friday.

Philippe Van Reybrouck, a longtime Haiti resident, had been in captivity for about 24 hours and was freed in good condition Thursday after a ransom was paid, said Michel Martin, the Canadian chief of the U.N.’s criminal intelligence unit in Haiti.

(more…)

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Industry Talk: Private Sector Eyes Opportunity In Haiti Rebuilding

Filed under: Disaster Response,Haiti,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 4:30 PM

   From what I can gather, the IPOA/GIS conference in Miami is going well.  I also want to emphasize that for you owners of small companies, who want to get involved with opportunities in Haiti, then these are the types of conferences you should be attending.  It is also advisable to go to the conference prepared, meaning you have the licenses and you have your company squared away to actually deliver on promises.  Do not be the schmuck that goes to one of these things, and is not prepared or hasn’t a clue on how to put action to words and get boots on the ground.  All eyes are on you, and if you screw up, it gives the entire industry a black eye.

   What will be cool, is if Doug can give an AAR on this conference, and provide some details that the readership might be interested in.  I think it is noteworthy that they only had three weeks or so to put this together, when normally these events take months to plan.  That to me only highlights the flexibility and speed of what the private industry is capable of if properly organized and mobilized.  I witnessed the same reaction of private industry during the Katrina Hurricanes back in 2005, and it is definitely a strength of the industry.  So the next step after this conference, is to see who goes where, and what they are doing. I will keep a watch on it, and see what pops up. –Matt

——————————————————————

Private Sector Eyes Opportunity in Haiti Rebuilding

By Pascal Fletcher

March 10, 2010

Rebuilding Haiti after its catastrophic earthquake should generate major contracts for private companies specializing in construction, logistics, transport and security, but U.S. executives say they need a clear reconstruction strategy to shape their business plans.

Private sector firms that focus on post-conflict or disaster relief operations gathered at a meeting in Miami this week to consider the business opportunities offered by Haiti’s recovery from the January 12 quake that devastated the capital Port-au-Prince and surrounding towns.

With Haiti’s government saying up to 300,000 people may have died, some economists are calling the Haitian quake the deadliest natural disaster in modern times. Relief experts and business leaders agree the mammoth task of rebuilding what was already the Western Hemisphere’s poorest state will be impossible without private sector participation.

“I don’t think they have any option but to get private companies in to help reconstruct Haiti,” Kevin Lumb, CEO of London-based Global Investment Summits Ltd, which organized the Haiti Reconstruction meeting in Miami, told Reuters.

“I think it opens up a great deal of business opportunities. Most of their infrastructure is destroyed, their roads, communications, buildings, it’s obviously affected water supply, electricity, so that all needs rebuilding,” Lumb said.

The Miami summit was also organized by the International Peace Operations Association, a trade group of companies working in conflict, post-conflict and disaster zones.

(more…)

Friday, February 19, 2010

Haiti: Private Industry To The Rescue!

Filed under: Disaster Response,Haiti — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 1:09 PM

“If Scahill and Klein have the resources, the capabilities, the equipment, to go in and do it themselves then more power to them.” -Doug Brooks, IPOA 

*****

     Your damn right, and good on Doug for calling it like it is. I read through these two articles below, thinking that the authors were actually going to present a convincing argument that what the IPOA and private industry is doing is a bad thing. In fact, I read through both of these articles and thought, ‘ private industry to the rescue’!  So thanks to Anthony Fenton and Jeremy Gantz for actually writing two articles that were inspirational to me, and did the exact opposite of what they intended to do. Critics are funny that way.

   I will explain.  You see all of these critics of the industry continue to complain that private industry is actually doing something about the rebuilding of Haiti.  At face value, that is just ridiculous. Who are they to say that the IPOA or GIS can’t help? Can they help if they are wearing a Che Guevera t-shirt?  Can they only help if they donate their entire savings to the Haitian government, and live on the streets of Vancouver BC begging for money for the rest of their lives?

    To me, the critics have actually taken a pretty immoral stance in my opinion.  If I am the public and reading this stuff, I am thinking ‘where the hell is the money supposed to go anyways’ and ‘who cares if private industry wants to help’?  The public wants action, and they want to make sure that Haiti is getting a good value for the dollar. The donations are supposed to be used for rebuilding and helping Haiti, not for paying aid agency salaries or for aid agency ad campaigns so they can make even more money.  Put that money to work, and lets get going on the rebuild.

   Also, all of these IPOA companies are specialists in rebuilding in the worst kind of disaster zones.  Namely, war.  They provide the specialists, and they also hire local Haitians, and get projects built.  Private industry will be helping government, but they will also be helping other private groups.  Who are the critics to say that private industry cannot participate in that process?  This is how the real world works, and I just shake my head every time I read this stuff.

   Klein is classic though.  The biggest disaster capitalists on this planet, are the media and aid agencies, and yet private industry is the bad guy here?  Pfffft. If anything, Klein lacks the courage to criticize the media or aid agencies, partly because most of her cheerleaders come from those two groups. Not to mention that the media and aid agencies both depend upon my industry to go on their little disaster crusades around the world.

    Naomi is also living in a fairy tale if she thinks that private industry can’t help, or that their ‘cookie cutter’ responses in Iraq or Afghanistan are not helpful to Haiti.  I am still trying to figure out what she means by cookie cutter response, because I have yet to see anything of the sort from any of the companies over in Iraq or Afghanistan.  Actually, they all do things quite differently and approach problems based on their personal experience and capability.  Most are pretty innovative and can certainly get things done.  They have to, if they want to survive in a war zone and be competitive in this market.

   Any way, I wanted to give kudos to the IPOA and GIS for putting the critics in their place, and for all the hard work they have done.  I also want to thank these two journalists for providing examples of what happens when criticism backfires. Especially when they are trying to attack those that are taking action to help Haiti. –Matt

————————————————————–

HAITI:Private Contractors ‘Like Vultures Coming to Grab the Loot’ 

Anthony Fenton

VANCOUVER, Canada, Feb 19 (IPS) – Critics are concerned that private military contractors are positioning themselves at the centre of an emerging “shock doctrine” for earthquake-ravaged Haiti.

Next month, a prominent umbrella organisation for private military and logistic corporations, the International Peace Operations Association (IPOA), is co-organising a “Haiti summit” which aims to bring together “leading officials” for “private consultations with attending contractors and investors” in Miami, Florida.

(more…)

Industry Talk: IPOA/GIS Conference On Haiti– Resources For Reconstruction And Humanitarian Assistance

Filed under: Afghanistan,Haiti,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 11:34 AM

   A couple things on this particular conference.  It sounds like past conferences have been extremely successful in matching private industry with the various government needs of countries around the world. Their last conference was on Afghanistan, and it was so successful that they have decided to do more of them.  And usually these things take a little time to put together, but because Haiti just popped up on the scene, they have decided to put together a special conference just for that disaster.

   They are also donating the proceeds made at the conference to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, and that is awesome.  Bravo guys and I hope the conference is a success.  I know Haiti needs action and not just words, and when the dust settles and all of the media and celebrities have packed up and gone home, there will still be a Haiti that needs to rebuild.  And because most of the companies that the IPOA deals with, have extensive experience in rebuilding in that other disaster called ‘war’, I think Haiti will be well served. Haiti also has all the power right now.  They can pick and choose what they want, and they can fire who they don’t want helping them.  The big one here is that they have some operating capital, thanks to all the donations world wide, and they will have plenty of assistance on how to properly spend that money to get the most bang for the buck.

    Private industry will answer the call, and the IPOA and GIS will be an excellent catalyst for that process. –Matt

—————————————————————–

 

 

Global Investment Summits

The United Nations has labelled the devastating January 2010 Haiti earthquake and its aftermath as one of the world’s ‘worst humanitarian crises in decades’.

International organisations, aid agencies and governments mobilised a massive emergency relief effort in its aftermath, bringing immediate assistance to millions of victims. The critical emergency relief phase now remains to be followed by a second phase of recovery and rebuilding, the outcomes of which will be essential to assuring the long-term infrastructural and economic rehabilitation of the country and the wellbeing of millions of Haitians. World leaders and international bodies have envisioned the need for a minimum 10-year reconstruction period. The UN and other organisations such as the World Bank will carry out post-disaster needs assessments to gauge the extent of the damage and needs in all fields in the following weeks.

The private sector will play a pivotal role in long term reconstruction projects in Haiti. The significance of including the private sector in reconstruction operations has been acknowledged by the Reconstruction Principles set out at the recent international summit on Haiti in Montreal, Canada. The private sector is undoubtedly essential to ensure that maximum amounts of aid can be delivered and distributed and that reconstruction projects operate successfully and beneficially.

This not-for-profit event constitutes a partnership between Global Investment Summits and the IPOA. Jointly, we plan to bring relevant international organisations and aid agencies together with key players from the private sector. The discussion and meeting-oriented format of the summit will allow the parties involved to begin addressing the vast efforts required to reconstruct Haitian infrastructure and rehabilitate the country’s economy and society. Most significantly, all profits from the event will be donated to leading Haitian relief funds.

(more…)

« Newer Posts — Older Posts »

Powered by WordPress