CLRC Releases Report on Year to Date Collective Bargaining Settlements

In its latest Settlements Report, the AGC-supported Construction Labor Research Council (CLRC) advises that construction-industry collective bargaining agreements settled from January through June of 2024 provide an average increase in wages, fringe benefits and other employer payments for union craft workers in the construction industry of 4.6 percent.

From 2020 to 2023, increases rose sharply-by 1.9 percent-going from 2.8 to 4.7 percent in just three years, reports CLRC. However, in the first half of 2024, the size of increases declined from the prior year. CLRC notes that the surge in inflation in 2021 and 2022 appears to have had a strong effect on compensation. "Although inflation has significantly influenced union craft increases, there is a lag effect," CLRC states in the report. "This is because the vast majority of negotiated union agreements are multiyear (most are three years in length) and are not always negotiated in real time with major economic changes."

CLRC further noted that, while the high average increase of 4.6 indicates a continued response to high inflation, the trend of quickly rising increases appears to have ended, as increases begin to level off. CLRC projects first-year increases to remain stable in 2025 and 2026 because most settlements will reflect the earlier spike in inflation by then.

The report further breaks down the data by region and by craft for comparison purposes. AGC members can access the full report in the Labor & HR Topical Resources area of AGC's website under the main category "Collective Bargaining" and subcategory "Collective Bargaining Agreement Data." (Be sure to first login as an AGC member in the top left corner of the webpage.)

The report is the first of three Settlements Reports planned for publication based 2023 data. CLRC expects to publish the second one in early October for the first three quarters of the year and the third in January 2023 for the full year data.

Collective bargaining chapters are reminded to please send new contract data directly to CLRC promptly upon settlement of collective bargaining negotiations. Chapters and members are also reminded that CLRC offers consulting and custom research services on local matters at a discount to AGC affiliates. This includes market share analysis, union/nonunion wage and fringe benefit comparisons, collective bargaining agreement language cost analysis, workforce/labor analysist and projections, and more.