If you are looking for work, ENR posted today that the Building Trades Employers Association of New York City has set-up a website for registering for work in rebuilding homes. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a recent press release, “We’ve come up with an innovative and unprecedented way to bring government resources to bear on this recovery effort.”

FEMA registration will also be required, since the program will be funded by FEMA, similar to the World Trade Tower clean-up after 9/11/01. Contractor teams will work their way through neighborhoods, assessing damage and doing repairs. This approach varies significantly from the normal situation in which every home owner and insurance company contracts individually.

I couldn’t tell for sure, but I think this program was open to both union and open shop contractors. So if you’re looking for work, you may want to consider this option.