The Minneapolis Building and Construction Trades Council has signed on as the sponsor for the official kick-off event for this year's Minneapolis Aquatennial - the annual downtown block party this Friday. This year's event - Friday, July 18, from 5-11 p.m. - will be called the "Labor Neighborhood Block Party." Nicollet Mall from 3rd St. to 4th St. will be closed to all traffic and will feature food, drink, and free music. The public is welcome. The featured musical acts will be headliner Blues Traveler, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Tim Mahoney.

SGT Marcus Kuboy joined the Minnesota National Guard 3 years ago and since joining has been on active duty for most of that time. In March, 2007, Marcus was wounded in a humvee explosion while serving in Iraq. Now, the Homes for Our Troops program, in conjunction with Minnesota Building Trades unions and Reiling Construction, is building SGT Kuboy a house in Woodbury. Carpenters are needed during the weekend of June 27-29 for the framing, roofing, and windows installation.

Published by ­The Center for Construction Research and Training, "The Construction Chart Book," now in its fourth edition, marks the 10th year since it was first published in 1997. This fourth edition uses updated statistics to characterize the changing construction industry and its workers in the United States, monitor the impact of such changes on worker safety and health, and identify priorities for safety and health interventions in the future. It can ordered as a hard copy for $15, or it can be downloaded for free.

Operating Engineers Local 49, which lost a member in the collapse of the I-35W bridge, is condemning a new TV commercial promoting U.S. Senator Norm Coleman that uses images of the disaster.

For construction worker Jeff Ringate, who fell some 115 feet with the 35W bridge, working on its replacement is something he needs to do. Ringate is a member of Laborers Local 563.

This survey by the Associated General Contractors of Minnesota was conducted August-September 2007. It is intended to provide Minnesota's construction industry opinions and projections for the 2008-2010 time frame. It was drawn from Heavy Construction, Municipal Utilities, Transportation and Building industries. Responses came from both general and specialty contractors, materials suppliers and architect/engineer design professionals.

According to an annual survey conducted by the Sheet Metal Air Conditioning Contractors National Association (SMACNA) open shop, health care and illegal drug use are key challenges facing the signatory contractors.

Tom LucioOn Thursday, October 25th, two IBEW Local 110 members were involved in a jobsite accident. The Journeyman, Roger Lucking, was burned and released from the hospital. Unfortunately the apprentice, Thomas Lucio, was severely burned and passed away on November 7th.

This is a dramatic reading of how the Star Spangled Banner was written by Francis Scott Key during the War of 1812.

The first observance of Labor Day is believed to have been a parade on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, probably organized by Peter J. McGuire, a Carpenters and Joiners Union secretary. By 1893, more than half the states were observing a Labor Day on one day or another, and a bill to establish a federal holiday was passed by Congress in 1894. President Grover Cleveland signed the bill soon afterward, designating the first Monday in September as Labor Day.