Wages, from Alan Millhone
I ran into a pipeline contractor I have known for years and we were chatting and I asked about his jobs. He said things are slow and jobs he bid he got beaten badly by others at bid openings. All the jobs he bids are union/prevailing wage that with all benefits included comes out per hour per worker at a staggering 52.00 !! The stimulus is geared towards roads and bridges etc that mandates that wage per hour. The little average contractor will never see a penny of the stimulus money. If I built homes and paid that high wage you could never sell it as the total price you would final out including land and all materials.