Project labor agreements put trained union carpenters to work on the projects communities count on.
Permitted Today. Debated in Dover. Built on a Training Pipeline That Already Exists.
Project labor agreements in Delaware are a live policy question. The state has no statute requiring them, public owners have used PLAs and related community workforce agreements on individual projects, and the General Assembly spent its 2026 session debating whether to require project labor agreements on state-funded school construction. The bill did not reach a final vote before adjournment, so the current framework is the one Delaware has always had: PLAs are permitted, project by project, at the owner’s discretion.
Current Law
Delaware public entities may use a PLA on any public works project when they determine it serves the project. State prevailing wage law already sets wage floors on public work. A PLA adds the rest: benefits, dispute resolution, no-strike guarantees, apprenticeship commitments and scheduling rules. Delaware public owners have used community workforce agreements, a related model, on past projects, and Delaware State University has negotiated a PLA for its planned indoor fieldhouse that university officials say is not expected to increase construction costs. A Delaware public owner considering a PLA is not asking whether the tool is lawful. It is asking whether the project’s size, schedule and labor needs justify it, the same question owners in every neighboring state answer.
The 2026 Legislation
Two bills tested the question this year. Senate Bill 241 would have required a PLA with the Delaware Building and Construction Trades Council on state public works projects of $5 million or more. Its sponsor, Sen. Jack Walsh, then narrowed the proposal to Senate Bill 272, covering state-funded school construction and renovation. The Senate passed SB 272 in May after amendments raised the threshold to $5 million and required at least two union contractors per craft to bid before a PLA would apply. A House committee advanced the bill on June 29, but it did not receive a House floor vote before the session ended. It can be reintroduced when the General Assembly reconvenes in 2027. The debate turned largely on cost and labor availability, which are the two questions the research and the state’s own training capacity answer.
What the Bill Would Have Required
- A PLA on state-funded school construction and renovation projects of $5 million or more
- Guarantees against strikes and lockouts, with binding dispute resolution
- Coverage of on-site work and custom fabrication performed for the project
- An exception when only one bid is received for a craft
- Open bidding, with non-union contractors eligible and workers covered by the PLA only for the project’s duration
Those terms track the PLA statute already in force in neighboring New Jersey and the federal rule for large projects. Nothing in the proposal was untested.
The Workforce Case in Delaware
The strongest argument for PLAs in Delaware is the training pipeline they support. In an op-ed on the legislation, Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters Executive Secretary-Treasurer William C. Sproule pointed to the council’s technical centers in New Castle and Georgetown, which run four-year earn-as-you-learn apprenticeships and partner with the University of Delaware on degree and certificate pathways. PLAs require accredited apprenticeship programs, which is how projects turn into careers. Every hour an apprentice works on a PLA project counts toward a credential that travels across the industry, and every project built under one adds capacity to the pipeline. The council’s 42,000 members across the region include the Delaware carpenters who build the state’s schools, hospitals and public buildings.
READ MORE: Local Hiring on PLAs Keeps Jobs and Dollars in the Community
What Public Owners Can Do Now
Delaware public entities do not need to wait for legislation. A school district, county or state agency can adopt a PLA on a qualifying project today by making the findings any prudent owner would make: project complexity, schedule risk, labor availability and the value of a trained workforce. The ICERES research review compiles the peer-reviewed evidence, and the answer to do PLAs increase costs is no. What a PLA changes is who is trained, how disputes are resolved and whether the schedule holds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Delaware require PLAs on public projects?
No. Delaware has no statute requiring PLAs. Public owners may use them project by project.
Are PLAs legal in Delaware?
Yes. Public entities may include a PLA in a public works contract at their discretion.
What was Senate Bill 272?
A 2026 bill to require PLAs on state-funded school construction projects of $5 million or more. It passed the Senate but did not receive a House floor vote before adjournment.
What was Senate Bill 241?
The original 2026 proposal, covering all state public works projects of $5 million or more. It was replaced by SB 272.
Can non-union contractors bid on Delaware PLA projects?
Yes. Under existing practice and under the 2026 bills, bidding is open to non-union contractors.
Has Delaware used PLAs before?
Yes. Public owners have used PLAs and community workforce agreements on individual projects, and Delaware State University negotiated a PLA for its planned fieldhouse.
Do PLAs raise school construction costs?
No. Peer-reviewed research on more than 1,000 public projects finds no statistically significant cost increase.
Where are union carpenters trained in Delaware?
At the Eastern Atlantic States Carpenters Technical Centers in New Castle and Georgetown.
Will the PLA bill return?
It can be reintroduced when the General Assembly reconvenes in 2027.
