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Fresno review finds local‑hire goals unmet under city's project labor agreement; staff to renegotiate
Summary
A two‑year review of Fresno's Project Labor Agreement (PLA) shows the city fell short of its local‑hire and new‑apprentice targets. City staff will meet with union partners to explore changes, and council members proposed an expedited renegotiation and changes to the threshold of projects covered by the PLA.
City staff told the Fresno City Council on Jan. 30 that the first two years of the city's Project Labor Agreement produced more than two dozen covered construction projects but failed to meet the PLA's local‑hire and new‑apprentice goals.
The PLA review, presented by Joshua Rhodes, assistant director of construction management, and Kelly Yost, the city's construction manager, showed 26 PLA projects identified in the first two years with approximately $86 million in completed PLA work. "As you can see, none of the goals were met," Yost said, summarizing the report.
The agreement sets targets of 50% journey‑level hours and 55% apprentice hours performed by Fresno residents, and it calls for at least 30% of apprenticeship hours to be from newly enrolled local apprentices. The two‑year implementation data showed far lower results: new local apprentice hours translated to roughly two full‑time equivalents across the period.
City staff said the shortfalls triggered the PLA's follow‑up process. "When we got to the 2‑year point, we reached out to the trades and put them on notice that the goals that were in the agreement were not being met," Rhodes said. Staff recommended meeting and conferring with the trades council to propose feasible modifications ahead of the PLA's third‑year report.
Council members pressed for stronger accountability and more transparent data. Council Member Richardson asked whether the PLA includes any financial or contractual penalties for failing to meet "utmost effort" commitments; staff said the agreement does not include monetary sanctions and instead relies on the notice-and-meet process. Several council members asked staff to compile comparative data showing local hiring on non‑PLA city projects so the council could assess whether PLA projects are delivering relatively better local economic benefit.
City Manager (statement) encouraged continued engagement and proposed convening an annual briefing to give union affiliates advance notice of major upcoming projects so training programs and recruitment pipelines can align with demand. Council Vice President Arias asked to begin renegotiation discussions sooner than the PLA's automatic reopener, and indicated willingness to convene an ad hoc group to lead talks.
Next steps in staff slides show a year‑three report due in March 2025 covering Feb. 1, 2024 through Jan. 31, 2025; if targets remain unmet the city will issue written notice and seek meet-and-confer sessions with the trades council. Staff also flagged a possible policy change under discussion: raising the dollar threshold that triggers the PLA to reduce administrative burden but preserve coverage for major works.
The council did not adopt changes at the meeting; instead members directed staff to pursue the meet‑and‑confer process and return with clearer options and comparative data.
The PLA review identified the specific shortfalls and the city's planned process to remedy them. It did not impose new contractual penalties. Council members on both sides said they want local hires prioritized and asked staff to return with targeted remedies and improved reporting.
City staff will report back with the third‑year PLA implementation numbers and with recommended modifications after meeting with union representatives.
