Building Trades, FOP call for closure of historic Public Ledger Building until owner properly remediates asbestos
A crowd gathers outside of the Public Ledger Building in Philadelphia on February 12, 2020.
Kate Frese/for PhillyVoice
by Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades
Content sponsored by
A dangerous asbestos situation affecting the city’s historic Public Ledger
Building was the focus of a press conference held outside the building this
morning by the leadership of the Philadelphia Building and Construction
Trades Council, the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5, Councilmember Bobby
Henon and more than 500 union workers. The speakers each demanded the
shutdown of ongoing construction taking place within the building until the
asbestos is properly remediated.
Kate Frese/for PhillyVoiceLocal IBEW 98 workers gather behind a podium outside of the Public Ledger Building in Philadelphia, where they protest the hiring of non-union workers inside of the building working unprotected to remove asbestos. Building Trades Business Manager John J. Dougherty, Laborers District
Council President Ryan Boyer, City Councilperson Bobby Henon, FOP
Lodge 5 Vice President Steve Weller and Plumbers Local 690 Business Agent
George Pegram took turns assailing the building's owner - Heights Advisors
of Brooklyn, NY - for cutting safety corners in attempting to remove the
dangerous asbestos and putting its workers and others in harm's way. Kate Frese/for PhillyVoiceBuisiness Manager of Philadelphia Building Trades, John J. Dougherty, speaks at a demonstration about the unlicensed, non-union work being done inside the building. Exposure to asbestos can lead to deadly diseases, including mesothelioma,
whose symptoms often don't manifest until years after the initial exposure
to asbestos fibers. As evidenced by the rash of recent Philadelphia Public
School building closings, asbestos continues to be a significant public
health crisis in the city as a result of Philadelphia's aged
infrastructure.
"This isn't a union vs. non-union issue. This is a union vs. non-human
issue," said Building Trades Business Manager John J. Dougherty. "They're
exposing their own workers and others to this poisonous asbestos and they
don't care. They come in here from out-of-town and figure they can do
whatever the hell they want. It's all about their greed. We're not going to
stand for it. We're going to call them out every single time they try to
get away with using unlicensed, unqualified contractors to do this
dangerous work. We will continue to work with the city to expose these bad
actors in the construction industry's Underground Economy and hold them
accountable."
Councilmember Bobby Henon, who chairs the Council Committee on Licenses and
Inspections, echoed Dougherty's sentiments.
Kate Frese/for PhillyVoiceCity Councilperson Bobby Henon speaks outside of the Public Ledger Building in Philadelphia about the unlicensed, non-union workers inside removing asbestos. "This owner is trying to remediate the asbestos on the cheap. The
disastrous results culminated in a number of violations issued against him
by the Health Department," said Henon. "This dangerous situation at the
Public Ledger Building typifies the Underground Economy in our construction
industry, an issue that I am making a cornerstone of my City Council
agenda. They think they can scam the system because oversight and
enforcement are lax as a result of too few L & I Inspectors. They also
know the fines and penalties for cheating the system amount to a slap on
the wrist. They'll gladly pay the cheap fines in order to continue to cheat
the system to maximize their already obscene profits. It's my intent to
procure more resources for L & I and to raise the amount of fines to
both deter contractors from cheating and help fund the additional revenue L
& I needs."
In furtherance of that goal, Henon is convening a public hearing with L
& I officials on Friday, February 21 at City Hall in which Henon and
other Council Committee members will ask hard questions of city officials
responsible for oversight and enforcement of City Building Codes. It's
another step in the efforts to bring an end to the dangerous Underground
Economy in the City of Philadelphia.