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Find-a-Contractor Masonry Buyer's Guide
Mark Kemp (left) presents the MCAA Freedom and Prosperity Award to Representative Tim Walberg (R-MI)
June 2015

Busy on ‘The Hill’ for you

Chairman’s Message

By

May was a very busy month for the MCAA, starting with a meeting held to set up a MCAA chapter in upstate New York.

Then, later in the month, Jeff and I headed to South Carolina to build an alliance with another chapter. I will have more to report on this in my next news article, but the point is that the MCAA’s membership is on a steady rise. I urge all of our existing members to take advantage of all the great things the MCAA has to offer.

During May 12 – 14, we had our Legislative Fly-In, and it was very well attended by our membership. We made progress on things like the Check-Off Program, the proposed silica rule, pension reform, immigration, and misclassification of employees. The Check-Off Program is picking up steam, and several sponsors signed on while we were at the Fly-In. So far, there are 90 co-sponsors covering 31 states. We are hopeful to add another 30 to 50 from the Fly-In.

We also attended several fundraisers and handed out four Freedom and Prosperity Awards to our friends in Congress and the Senate. We had a meeting with OSHA and walked away with a joint effort to run some additional safety seminars. Unfortunately, they also informed us that they are in the process on writing their final silica rule, and the administration is pushing to have this in effect before the end of the current term.

We also had a meeting with the Department of Labor on the misclassification of employees and how we could possibly work together to put an end to it. Our voice is being heard loud and clear on pension reform. I thank all of you who took time from your busy schedules to assure your voices were heard in D.C. I am sure everyone walked away knowing they made a difference. A special thanks again to The Keelen Group, who continue to do an outstanding job for us.

At the end of April, we held our annual MCAA Online Auction. Thank you to all who donated items to make this year’s auction the best ever and to those who opened their wallets to make it a success. All the money earned goes to support our association and the many programs it runs for you. If you missed out this year, make sure to follow it next year.

Also at the end of April, our officers attended the BIM Conference in St. Louis. I am pleased to say this project is moving along and should have plug-ins available late this year for contractors and vendors to see firsthand what this will do for our industry and you as a contractor. We all walked away very impressed with the direction and progress of this project. At the end of the BIM meeting, we had a Masonry Summit meeting with the MCAA, NCMA, IMI and BAC. We all agreed it is important for us to work together and share not only our ideas, but where appropriate, our resources.

Some of the key things we decided to work on together are increasing masonry programs at universities and colleges; promoting the fire resistance of masonry; the energy efficiency of masonry; increasing the education on cost-effective structural masonry; and working together on workforce development.

We attended the Canadians Contractors Association convention in Chicago. Again, we discussed what each of us does and how we could work together. It is these coordinated efforts by those in the masonry industry that excite me and, hopefully, you.

The Masonry Foundation continues to push toward its first phase goal. Our goal is to roll out Phase II by our Midyear Meeting in Key West, Fla. Thank you to all the contractors who have made and returned your pledge forms. You have made an investment not only in your companies, but also the masonry industry. We are working on a special event for the Foundation at our Midyear Meeting to be held in Key West.

I will end by saying you must get involved to have an impact. No one is impressed with the won-loss record of the referee, so get in the game and get involved.

Chairman’s Message Archive

The American Dream

August 2019
The American Dream

Doing Our Part

May 2019
Doing Our Part

Preparing for D.C.

April 2019
Preparing for D.C.

Recent Updates

September 2018
Recent Updates

Masonry’s Future

August 2018
Masonry’s Future

Worthwhile Work

June 2018
Worthwhile Work

A New Beginning

February 2018
A New Beginning

Givers Gain

January 2018
Givers Gain

Things to Remember

March 2017
Things to Remember

Looking Forward

February 2017
Looking Forward

A Fresh Start

January 2017
A Fresh Start

Who Moved My Cheese?

September 2016
Who Moved My Cheese?

Giving back

December 2015
Giving back

An exciting year ahead

February 2015
An exciting year ahead

Defining success

December 2014
Defining success

Staying busy for you

August 2014
Staying busy for you

Ready for action

February 2014
Ready for action

Thanks

January 2014
Thanks

Happy holidays

December 2013
Happy holidays

MCAA Midyear update

November 2013
MCAA Midyear update

The MCAA in D.C.

August 2013
The MCAA in D.C.

A Lot Happening

July 2013
A Lot Happening

Eye opening

June 2013
Eye opening

Positive movement

March 2013
Positive movement

Headed to Vegas

February 2013
Headed to Vegas

New beginning

January 2013
New beginning

It’s finally over

December 2012
It’s finally over

My trip to the Rockies

November 2012
My trip to the Rockies

The 2012 election

October 2012
The 2012 election

Stay involved

September 2012
Stay involved

Networking

August 2012
Networking

Summer time

July 2012
Summer time

Exciting time

June 2012
Exciting time

Working for you

May 2012
Working for you

New beginnings

March 2012
New beginnings

Farewell!

February 2012
Farewell!

One more to go!

January 2012
One more to go!

Join us in Vegas

November 2011
Join us in Vegas

As the world turns

August 2011
As the world turns

A Bright Future

May 2011
A Bright Future

Tidbits From MCAA

March 2011
Tidbits From MCAA

Time Flies By

February 2011
Time Flies By

The End of the Year

December 2010
The End of the Year

Busy Times!

November 2010
Busy Times!

South of 40

October 2010
South of 40

What Are We Doing?

August 2010
What Are We Doing?

Moving Forward

March 2010
Moving Forward

A Fond Farewell

February 2010
A Fond Farewell

A New Year

January 2010
A New Year

Start the Year Strong

December 2009
Start the Year Strong

MCAA in D.C.

September 2009
MCAA in D.C.

Brick Voids

August 2009
Brick Voids

Vision 2020

February 2009
Vision 2020

State of the Association

February 2009
State of the Association

The Silver Lining

January 2009
The Silver Lining

Impact on the Hill

June 2008
Impact on the Hill

New Horizons

February 2008
New Horizons

Wrapping up Another Year

December 2007
Wrapping up Another Year

Greetings From Italy!

November 2007
Greetings From Italy!

We Need Your Help!

January 2005
We Need Your Help!

The Strength of Unity

November 2003
The Strength of Unity

Changing of the Guard

February 2002
Changing of the Guard

“I recommend that all mason contractors become a member of the MCAA.”

Bobby Gladu
Artisan Masonry, Inc.
MCAA member since 2017

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