Working Vermont urges lawmakers to back organizing rights, prevailing wage changes and certified payrolls

David Mickenberg, representing Working Vermont, told the House Committee on General and Housing on Jan. 23 that the statewide labor coalition will press lawmakers this session to advance several measures intended to strengthen organized labor and protect working Vermonters.

Mickenberg said Working Vermont’s 2025 priorities include sending a proposed constitutional amendment—Proposition 3, which would codify the state’s right to organize—to voters; tightening prevailing-wage rules on state-funded construction; steps to reduce worker misclassification; and continued attention to unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation. "We were heartened... Proposition passed 28 to nothing [in the Senate]," Mickenberg said of the previous-year vote, adding that the House vote was “127 to 8.”

Why it matters: Mickenberg framed the agenda as part of a broader effort to increase protections and predictable standards for wages, benefits and workplace rights on public projects and in the private sector. He said the issues matter both for union members and for nonunion working Vermonters whose wages and schedules are affected by labor standards and contracting rules.

Prevailing wage and certified payrolls

Mickenberg described Vermont’s prevailing-wage methodology and a policy change he and others have supported. He said Vermont currently uses Bureau of Labor Statistics data and a state survey to set a base prevailing wage, then adds 42.5% to account for benefits. "We worked collaboratively with the AGC at the time, and the administration to come up with a formula that said it would be the wage plus 42.5 percent," he said.

He told the committee Working Vermont will pursue a bill requiring certified payroll submissions on state construction contracts so awarding entities can verify worker classifications and wages on projects — a practice he said is common in New York and Massachusetts.

Worker misclassification, organizing and other labor protections

Mickenberg emphasized worker misclassification as a continuing problem—where employers classify workers as independent contractors rather than employees to avoid wage and benefit obligations—and said Vermont has used tools such as enhanced Attorney General investigatory authority to address it.

He also reviewed measures passed last year to make organizing easier and to ban employer "captive audience" meetings that are not work-related. "You can still have the meeting, you just can't threaten or fire somebody for not attending the meeting," he said, describing the change enacted last year. Mickenberg said the Legislature also expanded options such as card-check recognition in some sectors to allow faster organizing procedures.

Unemployment insurance and workers' compensation

Mickenberg said Working Vermont will continue work on unemployment insurance and workers' compensation reforms, including ensuring timely access to benefits and updating a workers' compensation statute he described as more than 100 years old. He cited a recent change doubling a dependent benefit from $10 to $20 per week as an example of incremental statutory updates.

Next steps and outreach

Mickenberg said Working Vermont will continue to work with this committee and other legislators on the constitutional amendment (Proposition 3) and on bills related to prevailing wage, certified payrolls, unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation.

Ending note: Mickenberg closed by inviting legislators to propose ideas and noted recurring workplace issues such as reliable scheduling in retail as possible areas for future bills.