UPDATE! 12/29/04:  Vacancy rates in Boston hit 20%. Why does this matter to us?  Two stories by Scott Van Voorhis ran in today's BOSTON HERALD. When vacancy rates rise, the need for new buildings decrease in a relatively proportionate manner. When the need for new buildings decrease, the people who are trained to build these buildings - our members, as well as the other skilled and trained members of the larger building trades' community - suffer the inevitable consequences. It's important that we remain ever-mindful of how our ability to work is enhanced or diminished by the decisions made in so many other sectors of society, and by the politicians or political appointees who craft legislation on a variety of levels.

HERE IS ONE QUOTE THAT WE SHOULD PAY HEED TO. WHEN WE RECOMMEND POLITICAL CANDIDATES, WE LOOK AT THEIR RECORDS AND ESPOUSED POLICIES ON TRADE PRACTICES. HERE IS AN INDICATION OF HOW OUTSOURCING OF WORK, WHICH MANY OF OUR MEMBERS STILL FEEL HAS NO BEARING ON THEM, ACTUALLY HAS A SERIOUS IMPACT.  
(Quote from Story #2) "...One thing to think about. Armed with new technology, companies in Boston and across the country are working smarter as they use fewer workers to do the same tasks - or shipping jobs out of the country altogether to such lower-wage destinations as India...."

Editor's note: Our job is to recognize that there is a marked difference between FAIR TRADE & FREE TRADE. Also, this story is a reflection on Boston's real estate market, but the problem actually encompasses every market in the district council, as well as the country.