Recently Amgen Inc. embarked upon an ad campaign touting FDA approval for the company to produce ENBREL®, its breakthrough treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, at its West Greenwich "Phase A" manufacturing facility. Although there was no formal agreement, this facility was completely constructed by union contractors. Soon after Amgen (at the time Immunex) announced its BioNext expansion (now estimated to exceed $500 million), representatives of the company and its construction managers (ADP Marshall and Turner Construction Co.), the building trades and the 21st Century Labor Management Partnership negotiated a project labor agreement for the project's construction. Although this agreement is between private entities, Rhode Islanders may want to know about the agreement and its benefits to our state.

According to the Arthritis Sourcebook, authored by Earl J. Brewer, M.D. and Kathy Cochran, R.A. is one of the most common forms of arthritis. It affects over two million Americans and can be debilitating to those afflicted. Building this facility as soon as possible will enable those in need the ability to receive prompt treatment. Also, having the largest biotech company in the world producing its most sought after treatment for a condition that affects millions will have enormous positive implications to our state.

BioNext's construction and Amgen's expanded staffing once the facility is complete will be a significant boast to our local economy. The construction phase alone will create several hundred jobs for the better part of a year, which could swell to as many as 1,000 workers at its peak. After construction is complete, Amgen staff expansion will create hundreds of well-paying jobs for many Rhode Islanders. While not speaking for Amgen, the company's presence could also play a significant role in our state in several other respects. Its presence and technology could help but be an asset to local hospitals, Brown University, and the State's Slater Center for Biomedical Technology. It could also assist URI in effectively utilizing the $6 million federal grant the university received to develop a statewide network of biomedical researchers to compete for National Institutes of Health grants.

So why would Amgen voluntarily let its construction managers enter into a PLA and thereby limit the construction work on such an important project to union contractors and workers?

The answer is simple: it is in their best business interest to do so. In fact, the combination of access to the finest skilled available craftsmen and women, standardized work conditions, no work stoppage covenants, expedited arbitration and grievance procedures for any disputes, establishment of a labor/management cooperative committee, a track history of success with PLAs - locally and nationally, and the successful completion of Phase A by union workers and contractors makes the decision rather easy.

The contractors working at BioNext will have access to an ample number appropriately skilled craftsmen and women in order to complete the job as soon as possible and as safe as possible: ample because the unions' workforce is mobile, moving from job to job, contractor to contractor, and when needed, state to state without any loss of employment, benefits or skills; skilled because of the unions' and their contractors' unmatched investment in training: for every hour any one of the union craftsmen or women work, the unions and their contractors contribute to funds dedicated exclusively to training and re-training their workforce. Further, the unions' apprenticeship training requirements are in many instances more stringent than state law requirements. Having access to an ample number of workers who are appropriately trained will insure that the project is timely and safely. No work stoppage covenants, expedited arbitration and grievance procedures and a labor/management cooperative committee will insure that the project is completed without interruption.

In Rhode Island and across our nation PLAs have a track history of success. Nationally, from 2000-2001 alone PLAs were utilized on at least $16.9 billion worth of construction projects. Locally, project agreements have been successfully utilized on over forty private and public projects. Lastly, and most importantly, the company would clearly not have allowed its construction managers to voluntarily enter into such an agreement if they were not satisfied with the quality of work in the first phase, which has enabled Amgen to get timely approval from the FDA to produce ENBREL®.

Completing this facility as soon as possible and as safe as possible will allow Amgen to produce ENBREL® in a timely fashion in order to treat those in need, provide our citizens with timely access to hundreds of new well-paying jobs, and enhance Amgen's view of our state. That is why the company and its construction managers decided to implement an all-union contractor and worker agreement with the unions of the building trades and their contractors for construction of this facility, that is why the agreement benefits our state, and that is why Rhode Islanders may want to know about it.

Gregory A. Mancini, a lawyer, is executive director of the 21st Century Labor Management Partnership, an equal partnership between the unions of the building trades and their contractors; he participated in the negotiations on behalf of the partnership.