Here’s a story even rarer than man-bites-dog: A New York government agency stood up for the taxpayer over Big Labor.
The agency is the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. It arranged a $34 million deal to have replacement steel for the Verrazano Bridge made in China. That’s sparked gripes from the United Steelworkers union and the state chapter of the AFL-CIO.
In a letter to the agency, USW boss Leo Gerard asked officials to reconsider their decision “on behalf of the 850,000 members of the United Steelworkers” and other struggling American workers. The AFL-CIO’s Mario Cilento likewise called the move “irresponsible.”
The MTA says it would prefer to give Americans the jobs, all other things being equal. But government agencies are not employment programs for unions. They’re supposed to provide services that give the public the best value for their dollars.
In this case, anyway, all other things are not equal. The agency wants to extend the Verrazano’s life by replacing its heavy upper roadway with special steel plates that are lighter and more wind-resistant. No one here makes such steel, the MTA says, because the technology was developed after most big US bridges were built.
The Chinese, on the other hand, have been on a bridge-building spree, so they’ve been making the fancy new steel for their bridges for some time. They have the expertise and can do the job for a fair price.
The alternative was to wait the extra year or two for a US firm to learn the process, become a guinea pig for the new steel — and watch its $34 million price tag quadruple, to $134 million.
Of course, if some American company does gain the expertise and asks a fair price for its work, well . . .the MTA can cross that bridge when it comes to it.