MCAA Regional Report, Region G
Words: Michael Sutter
| Arizona - Glenn Hottmann |
Utah - Boyd Child |
| Colorado - No State Chair |
Wyoming - Jim Thompson |
| New Mexico - No State Chair |
ECONOMIC CLIMATE AND MARKET EXPANSION
Arizona
Our Economic Climate within Arizona continues to be strong with contractors very, very busy, even to the point that some are turning down work. New homes continue to be built at a record pace and the commercial sector has been very good as well. This has put an unexpected strain on our resources and it is often difficult to get materials including 8"x8"x16" CMU's. We expect this growth to continue for the foreseeable future.
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
Arizona
The Arizona Masonry Contractors Association has 47 apprentices between the first, second, and third year classes, which is our most ever. We have hired two additional instructors to accommodate our rapidly growing program.
The AMCA Apprenticeship Committee continues to be very active in local career days, having already participated in two this school year, and we have been asked to participate in a dozen more. At the smaller high school career days, our booth is always one of the most popular due to our hands-on demonstration that allows each student to lay a brick.
OSHA & SAFETY
Arizona
Our Arizona Masonry Contractors Association Safety Committee continues to meet quarterly, print safety articles in our newsletters and host safety seminars, such as Scaffold Safety, OSHA Updates and Wall Bracing.
A recent ruling by the Arizona Supreme Court has affected our workers' compensation insurance dramatically. They decided that Arizona statutes denying workers' compensation benefits based on positive results of an illegal drug or alcohol test are unconstitutional. The Arizona Constitution states that benefits must be paid if the employment all or in part contributed to the accident. Therefore, benefits must be paid regardless of the outcome of any drug testing. The AMCA is working with SCF of Arizona, the state's largest carrier of workers' compensation insurance, and other associations to get a constitutional amendment added to next year's general election ballot. In addition, we are lobbying the state legislature to pass provisional legislation that would reinstate the statutes should the amendment pass.
MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Arizona
The AMCA chapter has 10 MCAA Members and 4 MCAA Members at large. We are continuing to promote MCAA involvement and membership enrollment at all our functions and meetings, and have included MCAA seminars such as Wallbracing and the Foreman Development Course in our certification curriculum.