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Association & Industry News
.jpg) The Robert A. Garbini Chairman’s Award was given to Bob Garbini during the 2022 NRMCA Annual Convention held last week in San Antonio, TX. Each year this prestigious honor has been bestowed upon individuals who have displayed an exceptional commitment to moving NRMCA and the industry as a whole forward. “As I considered candidates who have given greatly of themselves in the service of our industry and our members, one highly deserving person who has not yet been added to the pantheon of distinguished recipients is the man who is the standard for the award itself. Bob was welcoming, encouraging and supportive as I learned the workings of the Association and how members could best engage and benefit from NRMCA. He was always generous with his time and ever willing to turn his boundless energy toward the next mission,” said Abbott Lawrence, NRMCA’s 2021-22 chairman during the presentation ceremony. Pictured here, from left to right, are past Board chairmen Rodney Grogan, Ric Suzio, Allen Hamblen and Abbott Lawrence, NRMCA President Mike Philipps, Robert Garbini and past Board chairmen John Holliday, Scott Parson and John Carew. 
SEO
Last week, the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas reinstated the independent contractor rule promulgated during the Trump Administration. The Trump-era rule, which aimed to clarify and loosen the definition of an independent contractor versus a direct employee and which was supported by NRMCA, was withdrawn by the Biden Administration last year. Following the withdrawal in 2021, a number of business-oriented groups challenged the ability of the Department of Labor (DOL) to vacate the rule, suggesting DOL had not followed proper procedure. Judge Marcia Crone of the district court in Texas agreed and reinstated the rule, concluding that the Biden Administration violated the Administrative Procedure Act when vacating the rule. Currently, the Trump-era independent contractor rule remains in effect. While this development is welcomed by NRMCA, DOL has not yet stated how it plans to respond. DOL may choose to appeal the ruling or start over by trying to withdraw the rule. The National Labor Relations Board has also stated its plans to review the independent contractor rule as it relates to unfair labor practices. NRMCA will continue to monitor the rule for developments and advocate for beneficial industry outcomes. For more information, contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org. 
Buildings
On Thursday, April 7, from noon to 1 p.m. Eastern time, Build With Strength, the New York Construction Materials Association and the New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects will host their third and final concrete-related webinar, Insulating Concrete Forms for Multifamily Residential Construction. NRMCA Senior Director, Building Innovations, Doug O’Neill will be joined by Amvic Building Systems' Paul Camozzi, ICF contractor Ellie Davey with Alpha ICF Construction and Eileen Renaud with the NY Construction Materials Association to present the basics of ICF construction and how it naturally fits with multifamily residential construction. The two previous webinars, The Top 10 Ways to Reduce Concrete’s Carbon Footprint and A New Generation of Tilt-Up Concrete Icons generated tremendous interest throughout the state and beyond; this final webinar is sure to generate a similar strong response. “We are thrilled to have professionals like Paul Camozzi and Ellie Davey to provide their industry expertise of how these systems work and go together,” said O’Neill. Click here to register. After registering, you will receive a confirmation e-mail containing information about joining the webinar. For more information, contact Doug O’Neill at doneill@nrmca.org.
Please note the following Plant Manager Certification courses are available for registration:
The 4-day course is industry-specific and concentrates on issues that challenge plant managers all across the country. The intense learning course includes the latest on product knowledge and technical standards, safety culture and OSHA-based regulations, operational and maintenance skills, current environmental issues and regulations from EPA as well as labor law issues and the challenges of supervision and training of industry personnel. The NRMCA Plant Manager Certification is required for all Army Corps of Engineer jobs and is considered the industry gold standard of training for all ready mixed concrete plant managers. Click here for more information and to register. The staff contact is Eileen Dickson, edickson@nrmca.org. 
This year, the week of August 15 - 21 is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Safe + Sound Week, a program that encourages the creation and use of workplace safety and health programs. As an official supporter of the Safe + Sound Program, NRMCA joins OSHA in highlighting the importance of workplace safety through NRMCA’s Think First safety program. Both programs aim to increase the level of participation among all levels of workplace management and employees to improve workplace safety. Safe + Sound also provides resources to help employers create and bolster their own safety programs and connect with other likeminded organizations. Click here for more information on OSHA’s Safe + Sound Program and here for more information on NRMCA’s Think First Safety Program. The staff contacts are Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org and Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org. Government Affairs
Participation in NRMCA’s Performance Benchmarking Survey and Compensation Survey is open to NRMCA members. Distribution of these surveys is limited to participating NRMCA members; they provide detailed and personalized benchmarking data, allowing you to benchmark your company’s performance against national, regional and, in many cases, state performance data. The information included in your company’s response is completely confidential and anonymous outside the third-party CPA firm that processes the responses. No NRMCA staff or member will see your company’s response. Click here, then click on the link to download the reply form and then send your submission to the contact listed within the form. For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org. Have you always wanted to know what was in the Performance Benchmarking Survey (PBS) and why you should participate? You’re in luck because on Thursday, March 24, at 3 p.m. Eastern time, Pierre Villere of Allen-Villere Partners will present on last year’s PBS. The presentation will walk you through the 2020 data and showcase the valuable insights that every PBS participant can glean from each year. Distribution of the PBS is limited to NRMCA members that participate in the survey, so this is your opportunity to see up close what you miss by not taking part and how you can use the data to improve your operations. Click here to register for this insightful presentation. You can participate in the PBS and other NRMCA surveys by visiting NRMCA’s Surveys and Benchmarking webpage. The FPI Group’s newly formed IT task group, the Digital Transformation and Process Improvement Task Group, is soliciting responses to its confidential IT survey. This survey will give NRMCA insight into the IT practices, capabilities and challenges of the ready mixed concrete industry. The results of the survey will be shared at the task group’s next meeting. Please note that no company’s individual results will be shared with any party. Click here to participate. For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org. 
Learning & Development
During last week's Annual Convention, the Workforce Development Committee advised NRMCA members with relevant industry news, including the development of a national image campaign to build awareness of the mixer driver job shortage, ongoing revision of the Concrete Delivery Professional certification program to support driver retention and the status of the JOBS Act, Drive Safe Act, FMCSA’s Entry Level Driver Training regulation, DOL overtime proposal regarding minimum wage levels, the National Labor Relations Board moving in a more friendly directions regarding the Davis Bacon Act of 1931 (prevailing wages on public works projects) and micro-unions. For more information, contact committee liaison Eileen Dickson at edickson@nrmca.org. Calendar
Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site. April 4 - 8, Online Course April 5 - 6, Las Vegas, NV April 6, Online Webinar April 19 - 21, Smyrna, TN April 19 - 21, Online Course May 3 - 6, Milwaukee September 29 - October 3, Aurora, CO November 8 - 10, Louisville, KY November 15 - 17, Phoenix December 13 - 16, Kansas City, MO 
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