History & Mission
Our History
The Associated Roofing Contractors of the Bay Area Counties, Inc. filed Articles of Incorporation with the California Secretary of State on June 13, 1950, but our history actually goes back quite a bit further. The 1950 incorporation was the result of a merger between two well-established organizations: the Associated Roofing Contractors of the East Bay Counties and the Roofing Contractors Association of San Francisco. The East Bay Association had incorporated in 1937. It is difficult to precisely date the origin of the San Francisco group because it never formally incorporated, but it is believed to have been established within a few years of the Great Earthquake of 1906.
In its current incarnation, the Association was staffed on a part-time basis from 1950 until 1969, when John T. Banister became its first full-time Executive Director. Under Banister’s leadership, the Association grew from an organization with strictly local concerns into one with statewide interests and influence, particularly in regulatory affairs. Mr. Banister retired at the end of 1995 and was succeeded as Executive Director by Dr. William T. Callahan, Jr. Bill Callahan maintained the Association’s presence in the halls of government, while overseeing the expansion of its core labor relations functions and the variety of services that are offered to members. Dr. Callahan retired in 2022 and was succeeded by Manuel De Santiago, III as its current Executive Director, since 2018.
Significant recent milestones in Association history include: becoming the recognized collective bargaining agent for union roofing and waterproofing contractors in the San Jose area; adding a full-time Safety Director to the Association staff; and, in cooperation with Locals 27, 40, 81 and 95 of the Roofers Union, establishing an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) workers’ compensation insurance program for signatory roofing and waterproofing contractors in Northern California. The Association has also been instrumental in creating a Bay Area-wide Labor Management Trust, through which the three existing Joint Apprenticeship Training Committees (JATCs) have pooled their resources in order to purchase a regional training facility.
Our Association Members are fully licensed, fully insured, professional roofing and waterproofing contractors who exclusively employ skilled union craftsman
Our Mission
The Association’s over-arching mission is to be a world-class trade organization that effectively promotes the growth and development of the Bay Area roofing industry, enhances public understanding of its contributions to meeting the needs of home and business owners and provides outstanding benefits and services to members.
Toward these ends, the Association focuses its energy on four main objectives:
- To provide Member contractors with professional and effective labor relations representation and management services;
- To provide Members with “value added” professional, technical and educational services;
- To serve as the spokesperson for and advocate of unionized roofing and waterproofing contractors in the local and regional regulatory arenas; and
- To promote the accomplishments of the Bay Area roofing industry, enhance its image and provide consumers with authoritative and unbiased information about the roofing industry.
Our Services
Members of the Associated Roofing Contractors of the Bay Area Counties, Inc. have access to a range of benefits and services that is unmatched among organizations of similar size. That’s why we’re considered the premier organization of our kind.
Labor Relations: The Association is the recognized multi-employer bargaining agent for signatory roofing and waterproofing contractors throughout the Greater San Francisco Bay Area. On behalf of our contractor members, we negotiate Working Agreements with three Locals of the Roofers Union, appoint Management Representatives to various joint Boards, Committees and Trusts and handle any and all matters that may arise in connection with the interpretation and enforcement of the Working Agreements. In short, we “take the worry” out of being a union roofing and waterproofing contractor.
Problem Solving: The Association has considerable expertise in the laws, codes and regulations governing all aspects of the roofing and waterproofing industry. When it comes to the legal and regulatory environments within which roofing businesses operate, we are the “answer men.” We also maintain an extensive and up-to-date library of research and reference materials that are readily available to our members.
Government Relations: The Association is very active in regulatory affairs at all levels of government and has gained a reputation as one of the most effective trade associations in the country. We are routinely asked to represent the roofing and waterproofing industry on government advisory boards and committees.
Communication: The Association’s website section, From the Rooftop, keeps members apprised of our activities and of local, state and national developments affecting the roofing and waterproofing industry. We also hold period membership meetings to inform and educate members on subjects of interest and benefit to them.
Membership Opportunities
- Regular Membership
Open to roofing and waterproofing contractors who are: (a) signatory to a Working Agreement with Local 40, 81 and/or 95 of the Roofers Union, and (b) have been operating as a union contracting company for at least one (1) year.
- Associate Membership
Open to manufacturers and suppliers of materials and equipment used in the roofing and waterproofing industry, as well as providers of business and professional services to roofing and waterproofing contractors.
