Trump Continues Assault Against PLAs on Federal Jobs

A new executive order from President Donald Trump targets several Biden-era policies, including those promoting project labor agreements (PLAs), but the full impact remains uncertain. The March 14 order rolls back a September 2024 directive from former President Joe Biden that prioritized federal spending on worker-focused initiatives, such as PLAs.

The order guides federal agencies and rulemaking but doesn’t create immediate changes, said Carol Sigmond, partner at Greenspoon Marder. She expects the impact to become clearer once the obligatory rulemaking and public comment period after deploying a new rule bears out, she said.

PLAs on federal projects now face significant hurdles. In January, Judge Ryan Holte sided with contractors who challenged Biden’s PLA mandate on large federal projects. While the ruling applied to specific contracts, attorneys say it could spur broader legal challenges. One contractor, Hensel Phelps, is pushing for a permanent ban on PLA mandates, according to Bloomberg Law.

In January, the Associated Builders and Contractors and 24 other groups urged Trump to revoke all PLA mandates and preferences. Still, Biden’s executive order appears to remain in effect—though significantly weakened.

“It appears this Trump EO does not eliminate Biden’s pro-PLA EO 14063 and related FAR rule mandating PLAs on direct federal construction projects of $35 million or more that is subject to ongoing litigation,” said Ben Brubeck, ABC’s vice president of regulatory, labor and state affairs.

Chris Bailey, partner at UB Greensfelder, said Trump’s order will likely reduce PLA usage but won’t eliminate them entirely. In heavily unionized regions, federal projects may still use PLAs.

“I suspect with the current administration reversing the Biden executive order, we’re probably going back to what we had pre-Trump’s first term, which was they may be used sparingly,” Bailey told Construction Dive.

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