HARRISBURG – The Pennsylvania Senate’s leadership team, including Policy Chairman Dave Argall (R-Berks/Schuylkill) has asked the Governor to immediately reclassify residential construction employers as an essential business. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security released an advisory memo on March 28th detailing which industries and workers were critical to maintaining our infrastructure. Residential construction was one industry that was classified as essential.
“Maintaining our infrastructure must be a priority as we continue to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Argall. “Allowing construction employees to begin their work again, in accordance with social distancing guidelines, is critical to ensuring public health and safety in the short term, and will help Pennsylvania bounce back from this crisis stronger than ever.”
Since Governor Wolf announced his order for employers to close, many construction projects have been left unfinished and exposed to the elements. Senator Argall has been at the forefront of calls to allow construction workers to resume operations. Many companies have applied through the waiver process to remain open. To date, over 25,000 companies throughout Pennsylvania have applied. Of those, 4,000 have been granted a waiver, 4,400 have been rejected, and 16,000 are still waiting to be evaluated.
Contact: Christine Verdier
570-773-0891