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PA Chamber Leads Coalition Letter to Sen. Casey, Challenging “Greedflation” Rhetoric

HARRISBURG – Today, the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, alongside a coalition of leading industry associations across the Commonwealth, sent a joint letter to U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) in response to his recent comments regarding “greedflation” and its alleged impact on rising consumer prices.

“While we share your concerns about the impact of rising costs on families, attributing inflation to ‘greedflation’ distorts a complex economic issue and inappropriately scapegoats the business community and the constituents you represent,” the letter reads.

The letter identifies several factors contributing to inflation – including federal legislation, pandemic-related disruptions, labor costs, and geopolitical events – and urges Casey to refrain from engaging in rhetoric that unfairly targets Pennsylvania employers.

“Inflation is driven by many complex factors… Ignoring these realities and perpetuating a narrative that blames the business community is misleading and inappropriately attacks the character of hardworking Pennsylvanians who create jobs, contribute to our communities, and drive our economy,” the letter continues.

The letter also underscores the importance of constructive dialogue and collaboration between lawmakers and the private sector to address economic challenges.

“We urge you to embrace that approach going forward and move on from this disparaging rhetoric, which undermines our shared efforts to tackle the serious economic difficulties we face and move Pennsylvania forward,” the letter concludes.

Other groups who co-signed the letter include:

  • Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association
  • Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association
  • PennAg Industries Association
  • Broadband Communications Association of Pennsylvania
  • Pennsylvania Bankers Association
  • Manufacturer & Business Association
  • Pennsylvania Restaurant & Lodging Association

The full text of the letter can be accessed here.

PA Chamber Statement on Gov. Shapiro’s PLA Directive

HARRISBURG – Today, PA Chamber Senior Vice President for Government Affairs Alex Halper released the following statement in response to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s recent announcement of a new directive for the use of Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) for state projects.

PLAs typically require private companies to commit to using unionized labor as a prerequisite to be considered for contracts to work on a public construction project.

“We will carefully review the details of this directive and how it’s implemented, and we appreciate the governor stating that bidding processes will be open to both union and non-union contractors,” Halper said. “In our experience, however, PLAs have historically been used to force companies whose employees are not members of a union to either forgo bidding on a project or be forced to replace their own employees with a union. This type of mandate is unfair and it discriminates against a significant portion of private sector workers who opt to not be represented by a union.”

“The Commonwealth ought to consider bids for public projects based on merit and cost effectiveness,” Halper continued. “Project labor agreements, on the other hand, have been shown to raise projects costs with no discernible benefit to safety, or keeping projects on-time and on-budget.”