Not sure what to do about a union demonstration in front of his car dealership, Legacy Auto Group owner Kirk Bengtzen tried to talk to them. He tried to be polite by buying water and lunch on an unseasonably warm March day. He tried to call the union's office.

When none of it worked, he told employees at Legacy Ford Mazda in Orem to pull some of the big trucks and vans in front of the 20-foot-long banner reading "Shame on Legacy Ford Mazda."

"We all shook hands, and I said I can understand your concerns, but I disagree with you and I think it's unethical" to be targeting him for a perceived problem that he didn't create, he said.

The banner was manned by a few people who handed out fliers to people passing by but referred all questions to Daniel O'Shea, the senior representative for the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters. Banners like this have been up at businesses throughout Utah.

"There are contractors in this valley that make a lot of money, and they still don't pay their even long-time employees health insurance," O'Shea said.

The problem, according to the bright pink flier, is that Legacy contracted with Salt-Lake based Cameron Construction to build the new facility. Kenco Drywall, one of Cameron's subcontractors, does not meet area labor standards for carpenters, including full family health benefits and a pension.

"Legacy Ford is the purchaser of the construction," O'Shea said. "I realize that some people don't understand this, but at the end of the day people who purchase the construction have to be responsible as well."

Providing health insurance was in the best interests of all the community so taxpayers don't have to pick up health care costs, O'Shea said. Companies should be asking for the "lowest responsible bid, not the lowest bid."

Bengtzen said he viewed it as an unfair attack on him since he doesn't control what his contractor's subcontractors do, and coming after his business is unethical.

"They all agree that this has nothing to do with me, but they know if they stand out in front of my business with my name on it it'll get my attention, and they're hoping I'll do something about Kenco," he said.

It's not much of an issue for Kenco, said General Manager Scott Cavanaugh; union demonstrations targeting various companies have been going on for about a year. He said he thought the campaign was more to raise awareness about the union than about poor labor practices.

"This is just an attempt to get more members," he said.

John Cameron of Cameron Construction could not be reached for comment.

The banner will be displayed outside the car dealership indefinitely, O'Shea said, although he knows it won't change any current projects; all the places they protest already have signed contracts and started building.

"But we put a banner up so that people know, so people know who's responsible and who's not," he said.

Bengtzen, who called the union office several times trying to get answers after the surprise demonstration, looked at it differently.

"This is a joke," he said.

Heidi Toth can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it