During the recent Labor Day weekend, I thought a lot about how grateful I am for the skilled union labor that made me a successful contractor. I’ve spent 56 years in the construction industry, but my connection to ironwork goes back even further. I’m a third-generation ironworker, and my family’s company has been in the business since 1909, when my grandfather — also an ironworker — started it.

I began my career with tools in hand. I spent my first 15 years in the field, learning what could be built, what couldn’t, and how to get the job done right. That experience has stayed with me throughout my life. Later, when I led our family business, Ben Hur Construction in St. Louis, and now in my role with Ideal Contracting in Detroit, I’ve always known that the greatest asset we have is our uni

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