Thanks to the advocacy of SMART Local 435 and the North Florida Building and Construction Trades Council, locally hired apprentices will help build the new Jacksonville Jaguars stadium — a more than $1-billion project.
“Jacksonville has not seen a project this size in decades,” Local 435 wrote on Facebook in June 2024. “There will be over 10,000 construction workers on this stadium renovation. We thank Mayor Donna Deegan, the Jacksonville City Council and the Jacksonville Jaguars for working with us on passing amendments to ensure local contractors and registered apprentices will help build the Stadium of the Future.”
The Jaguars and the city of Jacksonville will split the cost of the stadium project, which includes a $300 million community benefits agreement along with the stadium renovation costs. Crucially, that funding includes workforce development money that will put SMART apprentices and local union members on the job.
Originally, the stadium legislation didn’t include language guaranteeing the hiring of local workers or apprentices. Local 435 Business Manager Lance Fout highlighted that fact in a June 2024 interview with Action News Jacksonville.
“You know, when we drive by some of these big major projects we see a lot of out-of-town license plates. We want to see Florida license plates. We want to see Duval County license plates,” he said.
Together with fellow union building trades workers, Fout and Local 435 held several rallies, urging the city council to include apprenticeship and local hire requirements in the stadium deal, and turned out more than 100 union members to attend a town hall meeting with Mayor Deegan and Jaguars President Mark Lamping. Their actions paid off: Local hire and apprenticeship guarantees are in the final deal.
It’s another demonstration of the importance of SMART solidarity and collective action at the local level.
“This is a first in Jacksonville, and hopefully a trend we can continue,” Fout concluded.
Related News
- STATEMENT: SMART-TD Condemns Unprecedented Removal of STB Member Robert Primus
- Automation Protection Headlines New Contract for Local 1707
- What Website Resources Are Most Important to You? Send Us Your Suggestions
- Report: Department of Energy delays funding for energy efficiency work in public schools
- Local 1258 Earns an “A” for Inaugural Backpack Drive
- SMART General President Michael Coleman’s statement on ICE detaining Kilmar Abrego Garcia
- SMART General President Michael Coleman’s statement on reports that Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been released to his family
- Local 1741 Ratifies Trio of Strong Agreements
- Cheaper to Burn Bridges than Inspect Them: Documentary Reveals Railroad Negligence
- Union Pacific Deemed “Serial Violator” of FRSA, OSHA Slaps Railroad with Hefty Penalty