ICE President Proud to Provide Jobs that Build Communities

In his address to the 2022 BAC Special Convention, Michael Schmerbeck, President of the International Council of Employers of BAC (ICE), discussed challenges and opportunities facing the union masonry industry – from material design trends to the need for skilled workers and how to compete against open shop contractors.

Schmerbeck talked about his pride in being a union contractor and providing good, safe jobs with health care and retirement benefits to his employees. “I saw firsthand what the union did for my family,” said Schmerbeck, whose father was a longstanding BAC member. “When I was a young kid, we never worried about health care. I saw my father retire, and how he did so with a little bit of dignity and comfort.”

In New York and New Jersey where Schmerbeck’s company Back Brook Masonry operates, glass and curtain wall projects are taking a backseat to brick veneer projects and high-rises built with block backup. 

On those and all construction projects, the speed of installation, quality, and most importantly, safety, determine the success of a project, according to Schmerbeck. Non-union contractors cannot compete on quality or safety, and they only keep up on speed by undercutting employee wages, he notes.
Schmerbeck urged his labor partners to seize the current wave of union favorability sweeping the country, and to continue their important work in growing BAC’s apprenticeship programs to build BAC’s market share.