County to focus on hiring local workers
New MLK Hospital
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—The Board of Supervisors have agreed to back mandatory hiring of local workers to help build the new Martin Luther King Jr. Medical Center.
The deal approved by the board requires at least 30 percent of the project's construction labor hours be worked by local residents.
First preference will be given to qualified workers who live within five miles of the Willowbrook-area hospital. Next in line will be county residents who live in any Zip code with unemployment more than 1.5 times the county rate.
Nearly a third of all county-administered welfare goes to residents within five miles of the hospital in unincorporated South Los Angeles, according to a study done for the board.
Under the hiring plan, a third of the locals employed must also qualify as "disadvantaged,'' based on their lack of a high school diploma, history of incarceration, long-term unemployment, receipt of social services, homelessness or status as a single parent.
Dozens of speakers, including local residents, trade union representatives, religious and community leaders, appeared before the board to support the hiring program.
A small business outreach program also was approved for the project today.
Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas proposed that a Project Labor Agreement be negotiated with various trade unions, to govern labor relations for the project and override unions' collective bargaining agreements. He said that such an agreement would help drive the local hiring process.
But his colleagues were reluctant to move forward with the PLA without knowing more, and voted to have the CEO return in two weeks to explain the benefits and costs.
In a letter to the board, county CEO William Fujioka said that the PLA would take about four months to negotiate, require the hiring of a consultant and increase project costs by about $1 million.
But during the meeting, Fujioka said the PLA might also save money.
"A PLA, properly constructed, can actually save money and, more importantly, result in a better quality project,'' said Fujioka.
PLAs have been implemented for major construction projects by other local agencies, including the city of Los Angeles, Exposition Light Rail Construction Authority, Los Angeles Unified School District, Los Angeles Community College District and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern
California, according to Fujioka.
President Barack Obama issued an order encouraging federal agencies to use PLAs for all construction projects with a cost of $25 million or more, overturning a ban on the practice instituted by former President George W. Bush in 2001.
In San Diego County on Nov. 2, however, voters will decide a charter amendment that would do away with PLAs.
Supervisor Gloria Molina urged the CEO to make clear "how will it benefit not only us ..., but how will it benefit the community.''
Supervisor Michael Antonovich raised concerns about the timing.
"Every day that we delay is an increase in cost'' and in getting the community the facility it needs, said Antonovich.
By Elizabeth Macellino | City News Service
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 today to take direct control of the child welfare and probation departments, which had been run on a temporary basis by county CEO William Fujioka.
Although it seemed a foregone conclusion after last week's 3-2 vote to approve the ordinance underlying the shift, Supervisor Don Knabe made another effort to postpone the decision today.
He argued that the CEO was given control of the departments in 2007 so they could be run more efficiently.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Los Angeles County Supervisors went on record as being opposed to any effort to undo the president's national healthcare plan.
Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas proposed that the board direct its legislative advocates to "take immediate and necessary action to preserve the Affordable Care Act of 2010,'' saying that the move was a "matter of (the county's) self interest.''
Black students in Los Angeles are struggling to improve their academic achievement, and there are a number of efforts under way to provide the resources needed to help them succeed.
One such effort is being pushed by Los Angeles Unified School Director Board of Education member Marguerite LaMotte and the others comes from the Coalition for Black Student Equity and the African American Education Alliance.
LOS ANGELES - UCLA, USC, Kaiser Permanente and other organizations announced that a collaboration would take place to overhaul the leadership of Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in the Watts-Willowbrook area.
"This is a timely and critical development for the health, productivity, and well-being of the residents of South Los Angeles,'' Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Two African Americans are among the seven people—including healthcare and business experts and an attorney—recently approved by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to serve on the board of directors of the nonprofit entity being created to oversee operation of the new Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Hospital in Willowbrook. The prospective panelists last week were jointly nominated by Los Angeles County Chief Executive Officer William T. Fujioka and Dr. John D.
