Resources & Links

What makes the New England Regional Council of Carpenters effective is its ability to work with various groups from construction sites to communities to the highest levels of government. We achieve results by bringing people together, understanding their issues and their motivations and building partnerships that generate results.

There is no substitute for personal interaction when it comes to identifying questions and proper answers. But the following sites have information which we have found extremely helpful and invite you to use them as resources.

Carpenter Organizations and Related Services

Best Practices in Health Care Construction (NERCC)
Although construction is a dirty job, it should never endanger the health and safety of your facility's occupants. The Best Practices training program teaches professional craftworkers how to work in the unique environment of occupied facilities.

Best Practices in Health Care Construction (UBC) 
The United Brotherhood of Carpenters, through the Carpenters International Training Fund (CITF), now offers this training and qualification program, which delivers comprehensive skill-sets to contain pathogens, protect patients and perform work without disrupting operations.

Connecticut Carpenters Benefits Funds 
Benefits and their provisions are established through collective bargaining between representatives from the union and management and are administered by Trustees representing both sides. For every hour a carpenter works, employers contribute a designated amount to cover the cost for health and retirement benefits.

First Trade Union Bank 
Provides banking services designed for working people from many different union organizations. Our mission is to deliver common sense financial solutions unique to union organizations and their members, working families, and small businesses.

Helmets to Hardhats
Helmets to Hardhats is the fastest way for Military, Reservists, and Guardsmen to transition from active duty to a career in the construction industry.

INSTALL Floor Covering Program
INSTALL provides the most modern, comprehensive flooring installation training for the best-trained floor covering installation professionals in our region.

New England Carpenters Benefits Funds 
From a comprehensive health benefits plan to employer-paid pension and annuity plans, the New England Carpenters benefits package rivals any in the industry.

New England Carpenters Apprenticeship and Training Fund 
Become skilled in a trade, and get paid to do it. Learn more about the New England Regional Council of Carpenters apprenticeship program.

United Brotherhood of Carpenters
The United Brotherhood of Carpenters is one of North America’s largest building-trades unions, with nearly a half-million members in the construction and wood-products industries.

Rhode Island Benefits Fund
Benefits and their provisions are established through collective bargaining between representatives from the union and management and are administered by Trustees representing both sides.

Sisters in the Brotherhood
Sisters in the Brotherhood is a group dedicated to strengthening the UBC by promoting activism and diversity and by increasing the number of women members.

Wentworth Institute of Technology
The New England Regional Council of Carpenters has launched a program with Wentworth Institute of Technology that will give college credit for completing a four-year apprenticeship, providing union carpenters with a pathway to management positions within the construction industry. The program is also available for journey level workers who did not complete an apprenticeship.

Contractor Associations:

Associated General Contractors of America (AGC)

Building Trades Employer Association (BTEA) 

Construction Industries of Massachusetts (CIM)

Member Assistance

State-by-state assistance
NERCC has developed state-specific Resource Lists of agencies and programs that can help members who are experiencing long-term unemployment and may require emergency assistance.The lists include services such as food, housing, employment, health care, counseling, fuel assistance and more.

Click on the links below to find a list of resources for your state:

 Connecticut
Maine
 Massachusetts
 New Hampshire
 Rhode Island
 Vermont

211.org
The United Way has set up a phone service in all states that helps connect people in need with appropriate services, including help with food, housing, employment, health care, and counseling.
  

Workers’ Rights

General Information about Workers’ Rights.

Get up to speed with the key facts about employer payroll fraud: What is it? Why should you care? What are the costs? Who pays? Most important, how can you help to stop it?

Attorney General Offices – Each state attorney general is the chief legal advisor to the state government and the state's chief law enforcement officer.

Connecticut
New Hampshire
Massachusetts
Maine
Rhode Island
Vermont

Connecticut Joint Enforcement Commission for Worker Misclassification

If you or a carpenter you know is having problems with their employer, we can help. The New England Carpenters Labor Management Program works with carpenters to connect with federal and state agencies that may be able to investigate and prosecute. Fill out this form for help.

workers Rights

IRS Forms/Publications:

 IRS Pub. 15A: Employers Tax Guide: Employee or Independent Contractor?
 IRS Form 8919: Filing for Employees Treated as Independent Contractors 
 IRS Form SS-8: Determination of Worker Status

Massachusetts Joint Task Force on the Underground Economy and Employee Misclassification

National Employment Law Project
A national advocacy organization for employment rights of lower-wage workers. Contains news, policy papers, and "know your rights" publications. This group promotes policies and programs that create good jobs, strengthen upward mobility, enforce hard-won worker rights, and help unemployed workers regain their economic footing through improved benefits and services.

National Labor Relations Act
Congress enacted the National Labor Relations Act ("NLRA") in 1935 to protect the rights of employees and employers, to encourage collective bargaining, and to curtail certain private sector labor and management practices, which can harm the general welfare of workers, businesses and the U.S. economy.

New Hampshire Task Force for the Misclassification of Workers

Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA)
OSHA is the main federal agency charged with the enforcement of safety and health legislation.

U.S. Department of Labor
The Department of Labor offers information for workers and employers including; news, regulations, laws, job initiatives, statistics and contacts.

Connecticut
New Hampshire
Massachusetts
Maine
Rhode Island
Vermont

U.S. Department of Labor Employee Misclassification Initiative
The Department’s Misclassification Initiative, launched under the auspices of Vice President Biden’s Middle Class Task Force, is making great strides in combating this pervasive issue and to restoring these rights to those denied them.

U.S. Department of Labor The DOL Wage and Hour Division (WHD)
Responsible for enforcing some of our nation’s most comprehensive federal labor laws on topics, including the minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, child labor and special employment, family and medical leave, migrant workers, worker protections in certain temporary worker programs, and the prevailing wages for government service and construction contracts.

English: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Complaint Form 
Spanish: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Complaint Form