Contractors with more than 100 employees are sitting in limbo as the Occupational Health and Safety Administration finalizes its guidance on vaccine mandates. OSHA sent its recommendations to the White House for review last week, and the final approval may be granted as soon as this week.

Once the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) completes its review and publishes the rule in the Federal Register, the rule will go into effect.

President Biden announced the executive order mandating COVID-19 vaccinations or weekly testing for employers with more than 100 employees in early September. Employees of contractors who do business with the federal government must get the vaccine; there is no option for routine testing in place of immunization.

Failure to comply will result in penalties costing $14,000 per violation. Large companies will also need to provide employees paid time off for vaccination as part of the rule. The policies will affect 100 million American workers.

Lagging Vaccination Rate

Vaccine mandates could have dire consequences for the construction industry, which is already plagued by worker shortages. Currently, 53% of the construction labor force is vaccinated, according to data from the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR), a nonprofit founded by building trade unions. Forty-one percent of the construction labor force says it’s hesitant to get the COVID-19 vaccine, CPWR says, with the top barrier being distrust of the government.

Because of the hesitancy to receive the vaccine, contractors with more than 100 employees may face the real threat of workers walking. Those reluctant to get the jab may opt to move to a smaller business that falls outside of the mandate.

Industry Groups Respond

Construction workers were among the first groups eligible to receive the vaccine, and industry associations have encouraged voluntary COVID-19 vaccination for their members and employees from the start. The Associated General Contractors of America and Associated Builders and Contractors say a mandate could put a strain on the industry, as well as the country’s infrastructure needs.

“Many of the challenges affecting contractors are being driven by the pandemic and policy responses to it, instead of typical market conditions,” said Stephen Sandherr, AGC chief executive officer,. “This federal contractor vaccination mandate could further exacerbate the industry’s workforce and significantly increases federal project costs and delays to the detriment of meeting vast federal government infrastructure needs.”

Ben Brubeck, ABC vice president of regulatory, labor and state affairs, echoed that sentiment, stating, “This guidance will result in additional compliance burdens, exacerbate the construction industry’s skilled- workforce shortage and increase costs for federal contractors and taxpayers. ABC is philosophically opposed to federal mandates that undermine the desired policy outcome.”

Conflicting requirements at the state level add to the confusion, with several governors announcing they will ban the vaccine mandate. 

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Engineered as a three-pass match loader for aggregates and other materials, the new Komatsu WA480-8 yard loader can also be used in infrastructure, forestry and non-residential applications where you need to move a lot of material efficiently.

Komatsu added a 1,400-pound counterweight to this version of the WA480-8 to help you fill the generously sized 7.2 cubic yard bucket while also enhancing stability. Low-profile tires add stability while helping to transfer the machine’s 299 horsepower to the ground. For trailering and transportation considerations the WA480-8 weighs between 57,232 and 61,311 pounds.

The shape of the bucket, with a long jaw and decreased strike plane angle, provides smooth material flow and lower resistance while the curved side edges minimize spills. All together these improvements make the WA480-8 suitable for high volume truck loading, carrying, stockpiling and hopper charging applications.

To maximize brake life in long load-and-carry or high-speed operations, the new loader supplements wet-cooled brakes with an air-cooled brake system that has demonstrated cooling improvements of 56-to 58-degrees Fahrenheit. This reduces the risk of overheating the brakes in severe conditions. A sensor on the electric drive pump measures axle temperature and activates the system when needed. A lock-up torque converter improves driveline efficiency and fuel economy during those long hauls.

In the Level 2 ROPS/FOPS cab, the loader offers an optional Komatsu Advanced Joystick Steering System and a heated air suspension seat. The pressurized cab keeps dust on the outside and makes for a more comfortable operating environment.

An auto-shift transmission with a mode selection feature and an automatic digging system with a boom kick out help the operator focus on the work rather than the machine. The hydraulic-drive fan has auto reverse to keep the radiators and cooling system clean and efficient. Large gull-wing type engine doors and large steps on both sides of the frame make engine access easier. Auto-idle shutdown and Komatsu’s Smart Loader Logic help conserve fuel.        

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There are sites that are easy, and then there are sites that are boggy, muddy, steep, swampy, treacherous or covered in snow and ice. For the former, 4WD and diff-locks are usually enough. For the later, you may need a Fat Truck.

We first reported on the Fat Truck 2.8C back in 2019. Now the company has come out with an upgraded amphibious version with pickup truck capabilities. The new Fat Truck pickup version 2.8P from the Canadian firm Zeal Motor is designed to transport people material and tools to the jobsite through just about any conditions.

“Some companies have both people and equipment to move,” says Michele Ashton, Zeal Motor sales manager, speaking with Equipment World at the Utility Expo. “It also has a lower price, with the 2.8P model priced at around $120,000, while the 2.8C comes in at more than $140,000.”

The pickup model of the Fat Truck is designed with utility contractors in mind. It can be outfitted with a variety of options including a high-speed capstan, vegetation control spraying unit, water tank, firefighting foam kit and small service crane for equipment and material recovery after heavy rains or storms.

“It has the same bottom, motors, engine, hydraulics and hydrostatic drive as our other model, but the frame is different,” Ashton says. Additional options include front winch and rear hitch, roof rack, rear ladder, rear ROPS, electronic inclinometer, tow package, storage box, tow package, transportation trailer and an extra battery. The company is also working with Provectus Robotics to offer an autonomous version.

The Fat Truck 2.8P carries a payload capacity of 2,200 pounds and can travel up to 25 mph on land and 3 mph on the water. If you’re facing seemingly impossible hills, the truck can climb grades up and down hill on grades 70% and traverse sidehills as steep as 40%.

With its big, high traction tires, the Fat Truck’s footprint is just 1.6 psi, which is five times less than the weight exerted by a human footprint. In addition to great flotation, the low-impact tires tread lightly on sensitive vegetation and won’t crush roots around the drip line of trees clients may wish to preserve.

Dimension-wise, the Fat Truck 2.8P lives up to its name at 103-inches tall, 146.5-inches long, and 100-inches wide with a 20.7-inch ground clearance. It weighs 4,900 pounds.

An automatic tire inflation system ensures you have the optimum inflation for the terrain and load.

The truck runs on a four-cylinder Caterpillar C2.2 turbo diesel that puts out 67 horsepower and 153 pounds of torque. The fuel tank holds 18.5 gallons. Braking is through a hydrostatic transmission with positive deceleration. For safety, the brakes automatically engage anytime you’re not moving.

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Pay big money for a project design only to have it be used incorrectly in the field? A new partnership between CM Labs and Trimble aims to provide operators with realistic training on grade control technology.

Launched at The Utility Expo in Louisville, Kentucky, the excavator simulation integration allows training organizations to provide operators of all experience levels access to technology on the modern job site.

The Trimble Earthworks for Excavators software works in parallel with CM Lab’s Vortex Studio software and runs on a tablet, which the user can connect to the simulator. Visual aids are overlaid onto the existing ground along with cut/fill information, slope data and other customizable reference points to provide the user with a better understanding of the work that needs to be done.

“To a user, this will look exactly like the Trimble application, but it’s going to be fed by what they’re doing in the simulation,” said Yannick Lefebvre, technical sales manager, CM Labs. “They can go into Earthworks, program the depth that they want to work at, and know when they are going over a hidden utility line – all of that comes into play.”

A variety of configurable views makes it easier to obtain the right perspective for maximum training value. The integration allows users to get familiar with technology without making costly errors in the field. “We’d like you to make the mistakes here. We’d like you to play with the design here,” said Gary James, training instructor/SimGuide specialist, CM Labs. “When you go to a job site, you’re ready to go. You understand exactly how to build a design, follow a map and customize offsets.”

But training isn’t the only use for the simulators. The system can also serve as a company’s first line of defense against bad hires. “It’s the fake it until you make it world we’re trying to get rid of,” said James. “We want guys and girls to go home at the end of the night. The money is not worth anybody’s life. It’s all about safety.”

Trimble Earthworks is available as an add-on with CM Labs’ Excavator Training Pack and will be expanded to other earthmoving modules. The software is compatible with all of CM Labs’ Vortex Simulators.

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The industry’s inventory woes may have gotten even more pronounced as Deere & Company’s 10,000 UAW workers declared a strike at midnight Oct. 14th.

It is the first major strike at the company since 1986, says The Courier, based in Waterloo, Iowa, where Deere has several plants including its agricultural tractor and engine works. About 90% of UAW members rejected Deere’s latest offer on Oct. 10th. (UAW provided its members with outlined contract changes on Oct. 7th, shown here.) The 1986 strike lasted more than 5 months. 

“Our members at John Deere strike for the ability to earn a decent living, retire with dignity and establish fair work rules,” says Chuck Browning, vice president and director of the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America’s (UAW) Agricultural Implement Department. “We stay committed to bargaining until our members’ goals are achieved.”

“John Deere is committed to a favorable outcome for our employees, our communities and everyone involved,” says Brad Morris, Deere’s vice president for labor relations. “We are determined to reach an agreement with the UAW that would put every employee in a better economic position and continue to make them the highest paid employees in the agriculture and construction industries.”

Morris adds: “We will keep working day and night to understand our employees’ priorities and resolve this strike, while also keeping our operations running for the benefit of all those we serve.”

good time to strike?

Unions know they are in a good position to press for favorable changes in today’s tight labor market and in the face of increasing demand.

In its Q3 earnings report, John Stone, president of Deere’s Construction & Forestry Division said, “Demand for earthmoving and compact construction equipment will exceed our production for the year, resulting in low inventory levels as we exit the fiscal year,”

UAW President Ray Curry notes that “UAW John Deere members have worked through the pandemic after the company deemed them essential, to produce the equipment that feeds America, builds America and powers the American economy. These essential UAW workers are showing us all that through the power of a strong united union voice on the picket line they can make a difference for working families here and throughout the country.”

Picket lines have been set up outside Deere plants in Iowa, Illinois and Kansas. Deere says it has activated its “Customer Service Continuation Plan,” in which “employees and others will be entering our factories daily to keep our operations running. Our immediate concern is meeting the needs of our customers, who work in time-sensitive and critical industries such as agriculture and construction.”

The Courier says Deere’s six-year offer would have raised wages by 20% over the life of the contract and also increased some benefits. The Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, where the company’s massive Dubuque Works is located, reported that Deere’s offer would have raised a typical production employees salary from $33 an hour to nearly $40 an hour over the six-year contract.

Other OEMs likely are paying close attention to strike outcome. CNH Industrial and UAW negotiated their current six-year agreement in 2016. The current Caterpillar/UAW contract runs through 2023.

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