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Item No. 4 (continued) poorly trained workers should not be taken advantage of for larger profits; political process should address specific needs of citizens including welfare of workers; and distributed letters, PW Ex -1. Tom Adams, Attorney representing the Building Trades Council of San Mateo, 1875 South Grant, San Mateo, spoke in favor of a prevailing wage policy citing: impact of prevailing wages on local economies, citing PW Ex -2 illustrating out -of -local area workers increase burden on schools, medical care systems and increase crime; non - unions historically discriminate against women and minorities; unions in this area support affirmative action programs; there are 1100 residents of San Mateo who are members of the Building Trades who represent $50 Million /year spending power in this area; and prevailing wages protect local incomes and economies. Gary Sanders, Business Manager of Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 467, 837 Seminole Way, Redwood City spoke in favor of prevailing wages for all projects of $1,000,000 or more citing: early workers had to travel from job to job and could not become part of social fabric; prevailing wage policies provided stability, apprenticeships, lifetime careers, medical and pension benefits; unskilled, underpaid transported workers are taken advantage of and live as gypsies; deregulation of other industries has caused higher prices, fewer companies and competitoon has decreased; prevailing wages insure skilled, quality workers, affirmative action programs; cost of living in this County demands prevailing wages to keep workers here; between 1982 and 1988 construction workers wages have increased 2.1% per year, California as a whole 2.7% and cited Lakeshore Project as paying non - prevailing wages. Norm Nutcher, Business Representative of Sheet Metals Workers Local 104, and apprentice committee, spoke in favor of prevailing wages policy citing: these laws are designed to protect local workers and local economies; impact goes beyond wages for construction workers to all support services of project and businesses where wages are spent; local contractors use local suppliers and maintenance providers; reasonable to expect contractors who must pay prevailing wages to hire the best skilled workers in the area; when job is over the out -of -state workers who do not support local tax base and have no vested interests in project leave the area and all responsibility to the work they leave behind. Kevin Holden, President of Peninsula Builders Exchange, 735 Industrial Road, San Carlos, presented speakers in opposition to this policy. Mark Thierman, 601 California Street, San Francisco representing Associated Builders and Contractors spoke in opposition to prevailing wages polices citing: History of Davis Bacon Act shows it to be a Jim Crow statute, anti - black, antiminority designed to keep poor people from migrating from the South to the North to take away jobs, let the haves in the area keep all others out; The Geyser Project in Lower Lake in Napa used prevailing wages and imported all their labor; the Homestake which did not pay prevailing wages hired as many local workers as possible which was 55% and trained workers with skills they would have all their life; Redwood City Redevelopment Agency adopted prevailing wage policy and Trammel Crow, one of the worlds largest residential builders, pulled out because they felt they couldn't affort to build a project using prevailing wages; if prevailing wages were really prevailing we wouldn't even be having this discussion; prevailing wages don't insure quality, they are subsidies for unions; Reg.Mtg. 2/27/89 MINUTE BOOK NO. 48 Page 4 Page No. 303