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Back in spring 2025, SMART Local 435 and organized labor announced a landmark victory in Jacksonville, Florida. Thanks to the unrelenting advocacy of Local 435 and the North Florida Building and Construction Trades Council, in a campaign led by Business Manager Lance Fout, the $1.4 billion Jacksonville Jaguars stadium renovation project included mandatory apprenticeship and local hiring requirements for the stadium and future city-funded developments.

“This is a first in Jacksonville, and hopefully a trend we can continue,” Fout said at the time.

Lance Fout, Local 435 and building trades workers lobbied for pro-worker provisions on the new Jaguars stadium.

Members mobilize in support of local careers

The campaign started when the stadium project was first announced. Fout, Local 435 and the building trades maintained a constant presence in the halls of power, working to ensure public investment by the city of Jacksonville benefited the local community. 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. Members continued to mobilize for future meetings.

This visible show of solidarity and direct engagement with city officials successfully moved the needle from simple interest to legislative action, with the inclusion of the apprenticeship and local hire requirements in the final stadium deal.

But the work didn’t stop there. To implement those requirements, Local 435 led the charge in securing a commitment for up to $675,000 in funding to support union apprenticeship programs in Jacksonville. These robust training programs do more than staff a jobsite; they will transform temporary construction roles into decades-long, middle-class careers for the residents of Duval County.

Construction of the stadium has since started, with union sheet metal contractors already awarded the critical HVAC ductwork and exterior architectural applications. Now, as the project scales toward its 2027 peak intensity and 2028 completion, it serves as a blueprint for how organized labor can secure the future of cities across the United States. Enormous projects can work for the communities in which those projects are built — as long as they create good, well-paying jobs for local community members.   

Fout put it simply when he testified to the Jacksonville City Council: “When we drive by these major projects, we want to see Duval County license plates. Apprenticeship changes lives.”

Thanks to the work of Local 435 and the North Florida labor movement, union apprenticeships will change more and more lives in the county as the “Stadium of the Future” comes to fruition.

Great work, brothers and sisters!

Success Summary:

  • Policy Victory: Established mandatory apprenticeship and local hiring requirements for city-funded projects.
  • ​Training Investment: Secured a commitment for up to $675,000 to expand and support union apprenticeship programs in Jacksonville.
  • ​Collective Mobilization: Maintained a consistent presence of 50+ building trades members (primarily Local 435) at public meetings.
  • ​Secured Work Scope: Union contractors officially awarded the HVAC ductwork and exterior architectural metal contracts.
  • ​Project Timeline: Construction is underway, peaking in 2027 with a scheduled completion in 2028.

Florida is a so-called “right-to-work” state, where unions consistently weather anti-worker attacks from corporate-beholden lawmakers seeking to weaken our collective bargaining power. But that hasn’t stopped SMART Local 435 (Jacksonville, Fla.) from organizing. And in June, Local 435 successfully signed PreCast Florida, a concrete manufacturing company that works alongside sheet metal shops, to a fabrication contract.

“All workers should have representation and benefits,” said Local 435 Business Manager Lance Fout when announcing the new signatory.

Local 435 Business Manager Lance Fout, standing, third from left, with PreCast Florida workers.

The signatory campaign at PreCast emerged from Local 435’s relationship with another one of its union contractors, Southern State Duct Masters, which signed with the local in 2022.

“Southern State has been very satisfied, and the company has been growing,” Fout explained. “Since they signed, they’ve got a new laser machine, a spiral machine, a new building; they’ve been thriving.”

Southern State owner Ashley Moore’s brother and sister-in-law purchased a concrete precast company shortly after, renaming it PreCast Florida. Despite the ownership and name change, PreCast had major problems with employee recruitment and retention, Fout explained, primarily due to a lack of benefits.

That’s when Moore suggested that PreCast contact Local 435.

“They weren’t sure what that would look like, but they were open to the idea,” Fout recalled.

Local 435 took the initiative, meeting with management and workers and explaining the benefits of working union. (The employees were shocked by what they stood to gain, Fout said.) From there, the process was simple: Local 435 wrote up a production agreement that included healthcare, a 401(k) plan, vacation and holiday pay, and the company gave all its employees a pay raise to cover the cost of union dues.

PreCast Florida officially signed with the local on June 1, and the union advantage is already making itself felt for workers at the shop.

“They’re ready to start making doctor’s appointments, I know that,” Fout said.

Local 435’s newest production members manufacture concrete light poles, picnic tables, construction castings and ornamental structures, displaying the same craftsmanship and artistry as their brothers and sisters working directly with sheet metal. Moreover, Fout said, the Local 435 members at Southern State Duct Masters are fabricating some of the metal forms that PreCast workers will use for their concrete molds, creating more work hours for members at both shops.

“It’s slightly outside the normal scope of work, but we’ve got a good relationship with the employer, a strong contract, and the employees are happy,” he concluded.

The Local 435 (Northern Fla.) JATC hosted the SMART Region III Apprenticeship Contest at its JATC on March 22–23, bringing together 27 contestants from nine local unions for a prestigious competition spanning two full days. The event showcased the talent and skills of appren­tices from Locals 85 (Atlanta, Ga.), 435, 5 (East Tenn.), 441 (Mobile, Ala.), 177 (Nashville, Tenn.), 15 (Central Fla.), 32 (Southern Fla.), 4 (Memphis, Tenn.) and 399 (South Carolina), with a particular focus on core knowledge, reading plans and specifications using Procore, hand sketching and a shop project.

The apprentices were divided into different categories based on their level of training, with second-, third- and fourth-year participants representing their respective local unions. Each portion of the competition provided a unique challenge, testing the apprentices’ abilities in different aspects of sheet metal work.

The core knowledge test gauged the members’ understanding of funda­mental principles and concepts in the field, ensuring they have a strong grasp of the basics. Reading plans and specifications using Procore required the apprentices to prove their proficiency in interpreting technical drawings and specifications — a crucial skill in the industry.

The hand sketch portion of the competition tested the apprentices’ creativity and ability to translate ideas onto paper, allowing them to display their design skills and attention to detail. Finally, the shop project segment challenged the apprentices to put their training into practice by completing a hands-on task, highlighting their practical skills and craftsmanship.

“Overall, the Region III Apprenticeship Contest was a valuable oppor­tunity for apprentices to demonstrate their talents, learn from one another and gain recognition for their hard work and dedication to the sheet metal trade,” concluded Local 435 Business Manager Lance Fout.

Florida is a so-called “right-to-work” state, where unions consistently weather anti-worker attacks from corporate-beholden lawmakers seeking to weaken our collective bargaining power. But that hasn’t stopped SMART Local 435 (Jacksonville, Fla.) from organizing. And in June, Local 435 successfully signed PreCast Florida, a concrete manufacturing company that works alongside sheet metal shops, to a fabrication contract.

“All workers should have representation and benefits,” said Local 435 Business Manager Lance Fout when announcing the new signatory.

Local 435 Business Manager Lance Fout, standing, third from left, with PreCast Florida workers.

The signatory campaign at PreCast emerged from Local 435’s relationship with another one of its union contractors, Southern State Duct Masters, which signed with the local in 2022.

“Southern State has been very satisfied, and the company has been growing,” Fout explained. “Since they signed, they’ve got a new laser machine, a spiral machine, a new building; they’ve been thriving.”

Southern State owner Ashley Moore’s brother and sister-in-law purchased a concrete precast company shortly after, renaming it PreCast Florida. Despite the ownership and name change, PreCast had major problems with employee recruitment and retention, Fout explained, primarily due to a lack of benefits.

That’s when Moore suggested that PreCast contact Local 435.

“They weren’t sure what that would look like, but they were open to the idea,” Fout recalled.

Local 435 took the initiative, meeting with management and workers and explaining the benefits of working union. (The employees were shocked by what they stood to gain, Fout said.) From there, the process was simple: Local 435 wrote up a production agreement that included healthcare, a 401(k) plan, vacation and holiday pay, and the company gave all its employees a pay raise to cover the cost of union dues.

PreCast Florida officially signed with the local on June 1, and the union advantage is already making itself felt for workers at the shop.

“They’re ready to start making doctor’s appointments, I know that,” Fout said.

Local 435’s newest production members manufacture concrete light poles, picnic tables, construction castings and ornamental structures, displaying the same craftsmanship and artistry as their brothers and sisters working directly with sheet metal. Moreover, Fout said, the Local 435 members at Southern State Duct Masters are fabricating some of the metal forms that PreCast workers will use for their concrete molds, creating more work hours for members at both shops.

“It’s slightly outside the normal scope of work, but we’ve got a good relationship with the employer, a strong contract, and the employees are happy,” he concluded.