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ABC Responds to Buffalo News Letter: “PLAs Actually Serve Local Workers”

Normally we wouldn’t take the time to respond to a piece like this. We could point out that the “recent study” he cites is just an update to a 2008 presentation given at a union conference, so it’s essentially a 15-year-old union-funded study. We could respond with an actual recent independent study (Click Here) that disproves almost everything he claims, but we will take the high road.

However, we took particular issue with this statement he made “It should be noted that 35% of non-union construction families receive some sort of public assistance.”

  1. This number is pulled out of thin air, and he gives no sources. That’s because it’s a lie.
  2. More importantly, we find this attempt to shame people who may need public assistance classless. There are currently 110 social programs in NYS, these range from benefits for veterans, services to aid immigrants, to SNAP and many things in between. We would never attempt to shame someone for applying to and receiving any kind of public assistance benefit.

To Mr. Stone, at ABC, we don’t need to lie to support our points, and we certainly wouldn’t attempt to put people down for needing or wanting the benefits and services that they are rightly entitled to receive. That would include many people from the immigrant community that, for some reason, can never get an opportunity in your union or others.

The study we provided won’t support your narrative, but we encourage you to read it and maybe learn something new. Also, maybe take a good look in the mirror and figure out why you have a problem with people receiving public assistance because you never know what’s going on in someone’s personal life.