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The Portland Business Alliance isn’t known as a close ally of organized labor. But documents show its president went to great lengths this spring to protect a labor policy that favors contractors who are on good terms with unions.
Two years ago, the city of Portland required its contractors in specific industries to obtain from a union what’s called a “labor peace agreement”: a mutual pact that a company will not resist labor organizing so long as the employees don’t strike.
But now that policy—approved by all five members of the Portland City Council at the time—is causing plenty of strife.
Last fall, Downtown Portland Clean & Safe, a nonprofit that runs downtown’s enhanced service district, agreed to abide by the city’s new policy. (In an enhanced service district, business owners pay a fee to get extra security and cleaning services.) That agreement caused two local security companies, which did not obtain labor peace agreements, to lose Clean & Safe’s security contract this spring to GardaWorld, an international company based in Montreal (“Insecure,” WW, June 15).
One of those companies, Northwest Enforcement, has since filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Relations Board naming Clean & Safe, its close affiliate the Portland Business Alliance, and Service Employees International Union Local 49, alleging they struck a deal in which the employer agrees to hire only companies friendly to a particular union. SEIU denies the allegations.
But WW has learned the heartburn caused by the policy was avoidable—as was the GardaWorld contract. That’s because the city offered Clean & Safe a waiver this spring to get out of the requirement that it obtain a labor peace agreement.
That offer lasted a mere four hours before Andrew Hoan, president of PBA, intervened and pressured a city employee to revoke the offer, which he eventually did. (That employee’s last day at the city was Aug. 8. It’s unclear whether he was fired or left voluntarily.)
One day after the city clawed the waiver offer back, Clean & Safe sent a letter of intent awarding the security contract to GardaWorld.
Hoan says in a statement to WW: “Clean & Safe testified to City Council in support of the inclusion of sustainable procurement and labor peace as part of the commitments made during the renewal in 2021. We stand by our commitments.”
It remains unclear why Hoan so badly wanted the waiver offer not to go to Clean & Safe’s board of directors.
The offer took place in a May 24 email thread. The correspondence suggests both the sway that the PBA holds over Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office, and the curious hold organized labor appears to have on the PBA.
9:57 am
From Portland enhanced service district coordinator Shawn Campbell to PBA president Hoan and Clean & Safe director Mark Wells
“This email is to inform you that with regards to the Clean & Safe’s Safety program subcontract, the City is willing to waive the Labor Peace portion of its Sustainable Procurement Policy in recognition of the uncertainty created by the ongoing litigation related to this policy…
“The expectation of the City is that the Clean & Safe board of directors be notified of this offer.”
10:00 am
From Hoan to Campbell
“Who requested this waiver? When you say ‘the city,’ have you discussed this with City Council members and their staff?”
10:03 am
From Campbell to Hoan and Wells
“The City chose to explore the offer of a waiver as an option given wider implications to the enhanced service districts program. The offer of waiver was authorized by the Chief Procurement Officer and Mayor’s Office and discussed with the Council offices.”
10:09 am
From Hoan to Campbell
“Are you saying that you told council offices that Clean and Safe requested this waiver? Clean and Safe did not request this waiver. So I am asking why was this requested on behalf of Clean & Safe? The letter you generated was sent to Clean and Safe but yet Clean and Safe did not advance a request for a waiver. I have enormous concerns about this process.”
10:18 am
Campbell to Hoan and Wells
“It was never stated or implied that this request came from Clean & Safe. The request came from the Office of Management and Finance given the uncertainty regarding the Labor Peace policy and how it might affect all enhanced service district programs.”
1:40 pm
Hoan to Campbell
“I personally spoke with Mayor no less than an hour ago at an event he attended at our office. He was joined by the staffer you briefed on this issue yesterday. I also spoke with [mayoral aide] Sam Adams early as well. Neither the Mayor, nor Sam, was aware that this was being contemplated. Both iterated their support for this provision and aspect of the contract and indicated that they would follow up on the matter.
“I would advise that you consider discussing this matter with them directly. It is also my understanding that city is defending this provision and represented by counsel. Based on all the above—are you sure you would like me to inform the board that you sought a waiver today?”
2:24 pm
Campbell to Hoan and Wells
“I have spoken with the Mayor’s office which has notified me that they have elected to reverse course and not move forward with offering the waiver at this time.”
2:34 pm
Hoan to Campbell
“Thank you—And 100% appreciate your work on this and getting it sorted out. I think this was a prudent decision.”
June 27
Mayoral chief of staff Bobby Lee to Hoan and Wells. CC’ed was City Attorney Robert Taylor.
“On or around May 24, 2022, a proposed waiver of the Labor Peace Agreement requirement in the Clean and Safe contract with the City was sent to Clean and Safe without the appropriate City authorization.…The proposed waiver was not authorized by appropriate City officials, including decision¬makers in the Mayor’s Office.”
(City spokeswoman Carrie Belding told WW in a statement that “staff in the mayor’s office initially signed off on a waiver to the labor peace policy. After further consideration, it was reversed at the leadership level within the mayor’s office.”)