[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 75 (Wednesday, May 7, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E835-E836]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 TRIBUTE TO THE SAN MATEO COUNTY BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION TRADES COUNCIL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 7, 2008

  Ms. ESHOO. Madam Speaker, it is a privilege to celebrate the 100th 
anniversary of the San Mateo County Building & Construction Trades 
Council and its contributions to San Mateo County with my friend 
Congresswoman Jackie Speier.
  On April 10, 1908, the San Mateo County Building & Construction 
Trades Council received its first charter from the California State 
Building Trades Council. Today it is comprised of 24 local construction 
unions and has a membership of over 16,000 of the highest skilled 
crafts women and men in the construction industry. They are plumbers, 
pipefitters, electricians, carpenters, roofers, ironworkers, cement 
masons, elevator constructors, heavy equipment operators (Operating 
Engineers), painters, truck drivers (Teamsters), lathers, sheet metal 
workers, plasterers, brick and tile layers, boilermakers, pile drivers, 
glaziers, carpet and soft tile layers, fIre sprinklerfitters, 
insulation and asbestos workers, laborers, hod carriers, sign painters, 
millwright workers, laborers, cabinetmakers, steamfitters, and hardwood 
floor layers. While their jobs may be different, what links them 
together is their dedication to perform with high skill and great 
pride.
  In 1908, San Mateo County was young and growing, and through the hard 
work of another generation, the county was shaped into what it is 
today. The single biggest accomplishment was the construction of San 
Francisco International Airport and more recently, a new terminal at 
the airport.
  The mission of the San Mateo County Building & Construction Trades 
Council has always

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been to improve the quality of life for all construction workers, 
promote the value of highly skilled union crafts women and men, and to 
increase the union market share in the construction industry.
  The San Mateo County Building & Construction Trades Council has also 
understood the importance of not only developing a strong foundation of 
skilled crafts persons through apprenticeship programs, but also the 
need to reach out to developers, public agencies, and elected officials 
to explain why it makes good business sense to use union contractors 
and union workers. The San Mateo County Building & Construction Trades 
Council's active approach in voicing the need for construction workers 
to be paid decent wages with pension and health benefIts so they and 
their families can afford to live in the community illustrates its 
commitment to every single worker.
  Madam Speaker, we ask our colleagues to join us in honoring the San 
Mateo County Building & Construction Trades Council as it celebrates a 
century of building and serving San Mateo County. We salute Bill Nack, 
the council's business manager and every single member of the council. 
The work of generations has shaped and built San Mateo County as we 
know it today, and contributed to the building of our country as well.
  May the next century be marked by the excellence and achievements of 
the first 100 years of the Building and Construction Trades Council of 
San Mateo County.

                          ____________________