The staff churn in Speaker pro Tem Nora Campos’ office is the talk of Sacramento, raising questions about the assemblymember’s ability to advocate for constituents who’ve been shortchanged by ineffective leadership.

Neil Struthers is out as CEO of the powerful Santa Clara & San Benito Counties Building & Construction Trades Council, a source tells San Jose Inside. The circumstances of his departure from the labor organization are unclear. The Building and Trades Council oversees the training and representation of 23 craft unions and more than 30,000 construction industry workers employed in Silicon Valley, according to the organization’s website.

Since slashing construction fees for high-rise development in downtown, two towers have broken ground, including the $135 million 23-story project at One South Market. Hoping to spur more nearby development, the City Council on Tuesday will consider whether to vote in a similar half-off discount for buildings of any size as long as they create jobs. Other items on the agenda for the first council meeting of the 2013-114 fiscal year include another look at building restriction height around the airport, a potential study of the city’s sewer system and an update on the city’s graffiti abatement contract.

There’s a lot of jockeying going on over who will succeed local trade union boss Neil Struthers, but reports of his departure to Sacramento may be premature. In October, the state Building and Construction Trades Council will meet in Santa Monica and vote in a successor to its chief of 20 years, Robert Balgenorth. The two presumed candidates for the position: Struthers, who’s married to Assemblymember Nora Campos, and Robbie Hunter of the Los Angeles/Orange Counties chapter.