Cambridge Employment Plan Ordinance

Section 2.66.00A Article I. Cambridge Employment Plan

Section 2.66.010 Established.
The Cambridge Employment Plan, as set forth in this article is established.

(Ord. 1005 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 24 § 24-1)

Section 2.66.020 Definitions for Article I.
The following words as used in this article, shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the following meanings:

A. "Applicable areas" means and includes those areas in which the Cambridge Employment Plan is in effect, namely, the following major commercial and industrial zoning districts of the City: Office 2, Office 3, Office 3A, all business districts except Business A and A1, all industrial districts, all PUD districts, the MXD district and all Commercial Area Revitalization districts. Additional applicable areas may be designated by the City Manager.

B. "Cambridge resident" means any person for whom the principal place where that person normally eats and sleeps and maintains his or her normal personal and household effects is within the City of Cambridge.

C. "Developer" means the person, corporation, partnership or other business entity which is the proponent of the project.

D. "Employment and training agency" means a Massachusetts nonprofit corporation which is designated by the City Manager to carry out the employment and training program as defined in this article.

E. "Minority person" means and includes those persons who are Black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American or Cape Verdean.

F. "Project" means a project covered by Article I of this chapter, namely, new construction, expansion or alteration of a building occupied by a principal use which is listed in the following subsections of the Table of Use Regulations (Section 4.30) in the Cambridge Zoning Ordinance:

14.31(i)(2) (hotel or motel)
4.34 (office and laboratory)
4.35 (retail business and consumer service)
4.36 (drive-in retail and service)
4.37 (light industry, wholesale business and storage)
4.38 (heavy industry)

(Ord. 1053 (part), 1987: Ord. 1005 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 24 § 24-2)

Section 2.66.030 Objectives.
The Cambridge Employment Plan has the following objectives:

A. To ensure that local resources are wisely invested in those applicable areas where there is maximum promise that the benefits that accrue, including employment opportunities, will be made available to City residents;

B. To maintain and to increase, whenever possible, the current percentage of City jobs held by City residents (twenty-five percent), by promoting the hiring of qualified unemployed and underemployed City residents;

C. To promote the hiring of qualified unemployed and underemployed women and minorities who are City residents;

D. To provide employers with a central location for disseminating and receiving information on all facets of employment and training resources in the City.

E. To provide employment information, opportunities and training for unemployed and underemployed youth who are City residents.

(Ord. 1103 (part), 1990; Ord. 1005 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 24 § 24-3)

Section 2.66.040 Developer's responsibilities.
In any applicable area, the Cambridge Inspectional Services Department shall not issue a building permit for any project until the developer signs an agreement with the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager to achieve the objectives set forth in Section 2.66.030 of this article. In such agreement the developer shall agree to:

A. Notify the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager of all job opportunities of which it has knowledge or over which it has hiring control. Jobs include, but are not limited to, construction, manufacturing, clerical, technician, maintenance and security jobs;

B. Place appropriate job announcements in the City news media prior to placing such announcements outside the City;

C. Notify businesses which occupy the project building of the services available through the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager and the Cambridge Community Development Department;

D. Inform each such business about the objectives and goals of the Cambridge Employment Plan;

E. Provide the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager with the names of all new businesses moving into the project building and the names of their contact persons;

F. Set goals and indicate procedures whereby City residents would obtain jobs with the developer;

G. Report periodically, in writing, to the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager, the number of City residents hired under the agreement, together with whatever other information the agreement requires;

H. Include in every lease a provision requiring the tenant to sign an agreement as provided in subsections A through G of this section with the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager.

(Ord. 1005 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 24 § 24-4)

Section 2.66.050 City's responsibilities.

A. Recognizing the City's obligation to provide assistance to the private sector under the Cambridge Employment Plan and its commitment to the employment of City residents, the City, acting through its Community Development Department, agrees to:

1. Provide an attractive overall environment to encourage private investment by properly planning and administering economic and urban design improvement strategies in applicable areas;

2. Assist in financing of commercial, industrial and housing development.

B. The City, acting through its job training organization (the Employment and Training Agency designated by the City Manager), agrees to:

1. Establish a central clearinghouse where developers and new firms can provide job information for dissemination to appropriate agencies and receive a wide array of information on tax credits, training programs and other services pertaining to training and employment needs;

2. Maintain a readily accessible job recruitment and listing system so that eligible City residents can be quickly placed in available jobs;

3. Commit the necessary resources in the development of appropriate job training programs consisting primarily of "on-the-job" and "tailored classroom" training.

C. The City, acting through its Department of Human Services, agrees to:

1. Provide organizational support and technical expertise in the establishment and administration of a centralized City-wide youth employment center.

(Ord. 1103 (part), 1990; Ord. 1005 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 24 § 24-5)

Section 2.66.059A Article II. Construction Projects

Section 2.66.060 Construction projects--Worker qualifications.

A. On any construction project which is funded in whole or in part by City, State or federal funds, or funds which, in accordance with a federal grant, the City expends or administers, or in which the City is a signatory to the construction contract, the worker hours shall be performed as follows:

1. No less than twenty-five percent of the total employee worker hours shall be performed by bona fide Cambridge residents.

2. No less than twenty-five percent of the total employee worker hours shall be performed by minority persons.

3. No less than ten percent of the total employee worker hours shall be performed by women.

B. This section shall not apply to housing rehabilitation projects including eight or fewer.

(Ord. 1053 (part), 1987: prior code § 24-6)

2.66.070 Compliance, enforcement, sanctions.

A. All contractors entering into construction contracts covered by Article II of this chapter shall:

1. Certify that they know of the provisions of said Article and that they intend to comply with them;

2. List all job openings with the Employment and Training Agency or Agencies and keep accurate records as to action taken on referrals from these agencies;

3. Maintain personnel records listing the names, addresses, sex and race of their employees; and require their subcontractors to do likewise.

B. The Cambridge Community Development Department shall develop, in consultation with the Employment Training Agency or Agencies, good-faith measures by which to judge the affirmative actions of contractors operating under the provisions of this Article II. All records required to be maintained by this section shall be made available on request to representatives of said Department. All such records shall be maintained for the duration of the construction project and for one year thereafter.

C. Should a contractor be deemed not to have complied with the provisions of this Article II, nor to have made a good-faith effort to do so, it shall not be actively considered for future public construction contracts in Cambridge.

(Ord. 1053 (part), 1987: prior code § 24-7)

Section 2.66.080 Contractor qualifications and sanctions.

A. All bidders and all subcontractors under the bidder for projects subject to G.L. c. 149, §44A(2) and G.L.c 30 §39M shall, as a condition for bidding, agree in writing that they shall comply with the following obligations:

1. The bidder and all subcontractors under the bidder shall comply with the Cambridge Employment Plan as it currently exists and as it may, from time to time, be amended, and specifically shall comply with the worker hours requirements of Section 2.66.060(A).

2. The bidder and all subcontractors under the bidder must comply with the obligations established under G.L. c. 149 and G.L. c 30 §39M to pay the appropriate lawful prevailing wage rates to their employees.

3. The bidder and all subcontractors under the bidder must maintain or participate in a bona fide apprentice training program as defined by c. 23, §§11H and 11I for each apprenticeable trade or occupation represented in their workforce that is approved by the Division of Apprentice Training of the Department of Labor and Industries and must abide by the apprentice to journeymen ratio for each trade prescribed therein in the performance of the contract.

4. The bidder and all subcontractors under the bidder must furnish, at their expense, hospitalization and medical benefits for all their employees employed on the project and/or coverage at least comparable in value to the hospitalization and medical benefits provided by the health and welfare plans in the applicable craft recognized by G.L. c. 149, §26 and G.L. c30 §39M in establishing minimum wage rates.

5. The bidder and all subcontractors under the bidder must maintain appropriate industrial accident insurance coverage for all the employees employed on the project in accordance with G.L. c. 152.

6. The bidder and all subcontractors under the bidder must properly classify employees as employees rather than independent contractors and treat them accordingly for purposes of workers' compensation insurance coverage, unemployment taxes, social security taxes and income tax withholding. G.L. c. 149, §148B and G.L. c 30 §39M.

B. All bidders and subcontractors under the bidder who are awarded or who otherwise obtain contracts on projects subject to G.L. c. 149, §44A(2) and G.L. c 30 §39M shall comply with the obligations numbered 1 through 6 as set forth in subsection A of this section for the entire duration of their work on the project, and an officer of each such bidder or subcontractor under the bidder shall certify under oath and in writing on a weekly basis that they are in compliance with such obligations.

C. Any bidder or subcontractor under the bidder who fails to comply with any one of obligations 1 through 6 as set forth in subsection A of this section for any period of time shall be, at the sole discretion of the City Manager, subject to one or more of the following sanctions: (1) cessation of work on the project until compliance is obtained; (2) withholding of payment due under any contract or subcontract until compliance is obtained; (3) permanent removal from any further work on the project; (4) liquidated damages payable to the City in the amount of five percent of the dollar value of the contract.

D. In addition to the sanctions outlined in subsection C of this section, a general bidder or contractor shall be equally liable for the violations of its subcontractor with the exception of violations arising from work performed pursuant to subcontracts that are subject to G.L. c. 149, §44F and G.L. c 30 §39M. Any contractor or subcontractor who has been determined to have violated any of the obligations set forth in subsections A and B of this section shall be barred from performing any work on any future projects for six months for a first violation, for three years for a second violation, and permanently for a third violation.

E. The provisions of this section shall not apply to construction projects for which the low general bid was less than one hundred thousand dollars or to work performed pursuant to subcontracts that are subject to G.L. c. 149, §44F and G.L. c 30 §39M and that were bid for less than twenty-five thousand dollars, or to re-bids for construction projects for which the City receives fewer than three qualified general contract bidders in the original bid.

(Ord. 1162, 1995; Ord. 1260, 2002)

(1260, Amended, 09/09/2002)