York Man Walks to DC to Protest PLAs

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89 Miles for Freedom | 89milesforfreedom.com

CONTACTS:
Amy Mongiovi, Churchill Strategies, 724.967.1323 | [email protected]
Bethany Bartkowiak, Churchill Strategies, 717.695.6531| [email protected]

York Man Walking 89 Miles to Capitol
to Protest Project Labor Agreements

YORK, PA – John Falk is tired, but he’s not sitting down.

Falk, a 59-year-old glass worker from York, Pa., is tired of losing potential jobs because of Project Labor Agreements in place under the Obama and Rendell administrations. So the 13-year employee of Debra’s Glass in York is walking the 89 miles from the York County Courthouse to the U.S. Capitol with petitions in hand to let Washington, D.C., know that PLAs are discriminatory and that American workers should have a chance to bid on federal projects, even if they are not unionized.

"Legal job discrimination is hurting hundreds of thousands of families like mine," Falk says. "When the Obama Administration, Governor Rendell or the local school district decides to add a PLA to a government-funded job, they’re not only hurting the taxpayer’s wallet, but they’re taking bread off the tables of good, hardworking, American families."

Falk is taking the message to Washington that job discrimination—whether because of a worker’s color, religious affiliation or union membership—is wrong.

Once the government ends discrimination through PLAs, Falk says, taxpayers would get the best possible work for the best price on federal projects. And no contractor, big or small, would be excluded from bidding on a taxpayer-funded project because of their affiliation, or lack thereof, with a labor union.

The Bills

Two bills—one federal and one state—are currently in the House of Representatives: HR 983 (The Government Neutrality in Contracting Act) would preserve open competition and federal government neutrality toward labor relations on federally funded construction projects. Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) is the prime sponsor.

A similar Pennsylvania state bill, HB 2010 (The Endangered Jobs Protection Act) would prevent the union litmus test in the bidding process for taxpayer-funded state construction projects. The prime sponsor is Rep. John Bear (R-Lancaster County).

John Falk’s Route

Falk will depart from the York County Courthouse at 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 17 and follow the Heritage Rail Trail until approximately 6 p.m., when he arrives at the Jackson House Bed & Breakfast, 6 E. Main St., Railroad, PA 17355, in southern York County.

Then at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 18, Falk will follow the Rail Trail again to Ashland, Md., arriving at approximately 7 p.m. at the Hunt Valley Chase Suite Hotel, 10710 Beaver Dam Road, Cockeysville, MD 21030.

At 9 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, Falk will start his walk along Route 45 to Lansdowne to arrive by approximately 6 p.m. That evening, he will stay at the Sleep Inn & Suites at the Baltimore Airport, 6055 Belle Grove Road, Baltimore, MD 21225.

On Monday, Sept. 20, Falk will depart at 9 a.m. to follow Route 1 and arrive by 6 p.m. at the Clarion Inn College Park, 8601 Baltimore Ave., College Park, MD 20740.

Finally, on Tuesday, Sept. 21, Falk will depart at 10:30 a.m., arriving at approximately 4 p.m. on the steps of the nation’s Capitol, where he will be greeted by members of Congress supporting his initiatives, as well as members of the Association of Builders and Contractors.

Info for Media

Those wishing to arrange an interview with John Falk may do so through two contacts:

Amy Mongiovi, Churchill Strategies, 724.967.1323 | [email protected]
Bethany Bartkowiak, Churchill Strategies, 717.695.6531| [email protected]

Falk will also set aside press time once he arrives at his overnight accommodations each day. Those times and locations are:

6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 17
Jackson House Bed & Breakfast, 6 E. Main St., Railroad, PA 17355

7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 18
Hunt Valley Chase Suite Hotel, 10710 Beaver Dam Road, Cockeysville, MD 21030

6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19
Sleep Inn & Suites at the Baltimore Airport, 6055 Belle Grove Road, Baltimore, MD 21225

6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 20
Clarion Inn College Park, 8601 Baltimore Ave., College Park, MD 20740

4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 21
U.S. Capitol Steps, Washington, D.C.

On the Web

For more information, visit these links:

http://89milesforfreedom.com

http://www.abc.org

http://www.visitthecapitol.gov

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