Tag Archives: Contractors

State orders halt to contractor to halt mining, restore Jasmine Slope land

Oregon authorities have ordered a contractor to restore rural acreage north of Ontario that he had been preparing for gravel mining. And the owner of the property in an area known as Jasmine Slope was found guilty of illegal mining. The developments are the latest in a years-long confrontation between families living near the property […]
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Oregon’s contract labor system leaves farmworkers vulnerable

Lourdes Cortes has worked in agriculture most of her life, save a two-year stint cleaning houses. The 42-year-old thought 10-12 hour days and safety risks were par for the course in agricultural work. Then she met Zach Ramirez.Ramirez owns Willamette Farm Labor Contracting. In the larger contracting landscape, he is considered one of the good […]
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BLM seeks contractors to help reduce fuels in Oregon, Washington

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is seeking contractors to help reduce wildfire fuels on the landscape — and thereby reduce wildfire danger — in Oregon and Washington. The agency on Thursday posted 10 project opportunities for targeted fuel removal across the Pacific Northwest. Source: BLM seeks contractors to help reduce fuels in Oregon, Washington […]
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Contractors Say a City Policy to Boost Workers’ Rights is Benefiting an Embattled, Out-of-Town Security Giant

In March 2020, the Portland City Council voted unanimously to change the rules for city contractors. The upshot: To get a contract with the city, companies had to obtain a “labor peace agreement” with a union. In such an agreement, companies pledge to remain neutral in any union negotiations and not to block labor organizing. […]
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Oregon using alternatives to facial recognition software to verify unemployment benefits

The Oregon Employment Department is defending its use of a contractor that relies on facial technology to verify the identities of people claiming benefits. However, acting Employment Department Director David Gerstenfeld said the agency began use of alternatives to the technology in the fall, when it found that some people faced special difficulties in the […]
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The public-defense system is an unconstitutional mess

A series of reports details the depressing state of Oregon’s public-defenders system and makes clear that change is necessary. Oregon Chief Justice Martha Walters has made a request to every lawyer regardless of practice: accept public defense cases. Her plea, sent by email January 27, follows a crisis that has been brewing for 20 years: […]
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Vaccine mandates create conflict with defiant workers

Josh “Chevy” Chevalier is a third-generation shipbuilder who hasn’t missed a day of work during the pandemic in his job as a welder constructing Navy warships on the Maine coast. But he’s ready to walk away from his job because of an impending mandate from President Joe Biden that federal contractors and all U.S. businesses […]
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ODOT begins removal of U.S. 97 on-ramp campsites

Nate Maze sat in a camping chair, strumming his guitar while he watched state contractors pick apart his neighbor’s tent Monday. Maze, 43, grew up in Bend and has been homeless for 12 years after a stretch spent in California. His campsite, nestled against a fence on a plot of land between U.S. Highway 97 […]
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Air Force officers, Secret Service agent among those challenging vaccine mandate

State Library Ed. Note: If you cannot access this story via the link below, state employees can access this Washington Post story HERE via the State Library’s subscription to the US Newsstream database. Alternatively, state employees can contact us for access: LibraryHelp.SLO@slo.oregon.gov or 503-378-8800. Military officers, a Secret Service agent and others cite religious and medical objections and a “usurpation” of […]
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Opinion: Loggers are firefighting heroes

There is nothing more disheartening than being called a hero during fire season and then slandered in the media or overregulated outside of fire emergencies. Firefighters are not just 20-person handcrews, hotshots and smokejumpers. They are also loggers, ranchers, road builders and much more. Source: Opinion: Loggers are firefighting heroes