OFCCP NPRM Announcement Re: Affirmative Action

"Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would revise 41 CFR part 60-1 and 60-4 by removing outdated regulatory provisions, proposing a new method for establishing affirmative action goals, and proposing other revisions to the affirmative action requirements that reflect the realities of the labor market and employment practices in the construction industry today."

----------------------------------------------------------------- DOL/OFCCP

RIN: 1250-AA01

Publication ID: Fall 2013

Title: Construction Contractors' Affirmative Action Requirements
Abstract: The regulations implementing the affirmative action obligations of construction contractors under Executive Order 11246, as amended, were last revised in 1980. Recent data show that disparities in the representation of women and racial minorities continue to exist in on-site construction occupations in the construction industry. This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would revise 41 CFR part 60-1 and 60-4 by removing outdated regulatory provisions, proposing a new method for establishing affirmative action goals, and proposing other revisions to the affirmative action requirements that reflect the realities of the labor market and employment practices in the construction industry today.
Agency: Department of Labor(DOL)	Priority: Other Significant
RIN Status: Previously published in the Unified Agenda	Agenda Stage of Rulemaking: Proposed Rule Stage
Major: No	Unfunded Mandates: No
CFR Citation: 41 CFR 60-1; 41 CFR 60-4 (To search for a specific CFR, visit the Code of Federal Regulations.)
Legal Authority: sec 201, 202, 205, 211, 301, 302, and 303 of EO 11246, as amended; 30 FR 12319; 32 FR 14303, as amended by EO 12086

Legal Deadline:  None

Timetable: Action Date FR Cite NPRM  04/00/2014

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Required: Undetermined	Government Levels Affected: None
Federalism: Undetermined
Included in the Regulatory Plan: No
RIN Data Printed in the FR: No
Related RINs: Previously reported as 1215-AB81
Agency Contact: Debra A. Carr  Director, Division of Policy, Planning, and Program Development  Department of Labor  Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs  Room C3325, 200 Constitution Avenue NW.,  Washington, DC 20210  Phone:202 693-0103  TDD Phone:202 693-1337  Fax:202 693-1304  Email: ofccp-public@dol.gov

Repost: Atlanta council passes community benefits plan, clears path for construction

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

By Katie Leslie

Dec. 3, 2013

The Atlanta City Council unanimously passed a controversial plan for spending millions on neighborhoods near the future Atlanta Falcons stadium, clearing the way for the city to issue $200 million in bonds for stadium construction.

The community benefits plan was approved after months of tense negotiations between city officials and residents and is essentially a $30 million wish-list for the poverty-stricken communities most affected by the stadium — English Avenue, Vine City and Castleberry Hill.

The plan needed the council and Mayor Kasim Reed’s approval before city officials can issue bonds, backed by hotel-motel taxes, for stadium construction. The $1.2 billion Atlanta Falcons stadium is scheduled to open in 2017.

Despite months of talks, some residents have criticized the community benefits process as rushed and incomplete. They’ve repeatedly said they worry the money won’t be delivered and isn’t enough to make a difference. “I can’t say that it’s really good and it fulfilled what we would hope it would do because it hasn’t,” said Yvonne Jones, who serves on the community benefits committee and is chair of a neighborhood planning unit. “It just has not panned out to be in the best interest of the community.”

But English Avenue resident Makeda Johnson — who also sits on the committee which helped create the plan — called for the council to pass the legislation and praised the process as inclusive. “We worked very diligently. We worked very hard, and we’re here to stay in that process to the end,” she told council members before the vote.

Reed has said the $30 million is just one pot of money headed to those neighborhoods. The mayor appeared at the committee’s final meeting last week and said the city has applied for a $250 million housing grant and will spend tens of millions on infrastructure improvements. “I wanted to address this notion that we think we’re going to solve this with $30 million,” he said, recalling that more than $100 million has been spent in the area over the course of the past two decades. “As opposed to doing it over 10 and 20 years, we’ll be able to do it over four, six, eight and 10.” “It’s not $30 million we’re going to end up leveraging,” he continued. “It’s going to be far more than that.”

The community benefits committee doesn’t have the authority to direct how the money will be spent. Instead, the plan offers suggestions for projects to address environmental impacts, traffic congestion, public safety concerns and potential gentrification. Suggestions include a business incubator, childcare programs, land banks, affordable housing programs and more.

Organizations, developers and business owners whose projects fall within the plan’s parameters must apply to Invest Atlanta for funding. Invest Atlanta, the city’s economic development arm, oversees $15 million in funds from the Westside tax allocation district that must go to brick and mortar projects. The other $15 million — geared toward human services projects — will come from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and has a separate application process.

Deborah Scott, head of Georgia Stand-Up, successfully pushed for the council to amend legislation creating an advisory group for workforce development and job training programs. That committee will make recommendations for how to support these efforts in the communities. “If we can get a good couple of nuggets in there, that’s the goal,” she said before the meeting.

Still, Scott – whose group was an original proponent of a community benefits package — said she was concerned that residents have little recourse should funds not find their way to communities as the legislation requires. “If they don’t do what they say, there’s no claw-back,” she said.

Running underneath the discussions is a current of distrust. Residents worry they don’t have adequate say in how funds are ultimately directed toward their communities. And city officials are loathe to award money to organizations that have a history of under-performing. More than $100 million has been spent on the neighborhoods since 1989 with little to show for it, city officials have said.

Tensions have flared throughout the months of meetings as residents called for the benefits package to be an agreement instead of plan. The negotiations erupted in anger in recent weeks when residents learned the benefits package was introduced as legislation to the council before it had officially been approved by the community benefits committee.

At the time, Councilman Michael Julian Bond, who introduced the bill, said it was a procedural move to place the legislation on the calendar before the year’s end, but was not the final document.

The benefits committee later approved the final plan. “I know we’ve disagreed during this process, (but) the city has put millions of dollars in trying to attempt to turn this community around,” Bond said Monday. “And we’re not going to walk away from that investment just because we pass this resolution today.”

Repost: Massachusetts Building Trades face long diversity odds

(Photo Courtesy of Building Pathways)

by Martin Desmarais | 12/4/2013, 11:34am

Increasing the numbers of blacks, Latinos Asians and women in the construction industry and the building trades is an uphill battle, with thousands of workers entering each year and the established diversity programs helping a small number so far, but Massachusetts trades organizations say they are committed to the fight.

Mayor-elect Marty Walsh touted his own effort — Building Pathways, a building trades pre-apprenticeship program serving low-income residents of the Greater Boston area.

The program, which he launched while he served as head of the Building and Construction Trades Council of the Metropolitan District, was designed to help Boston residents, with a focus on women and people of color, learn the skills and receive the credentials to enter building trades apprenticeship programs.

With over 20 different trades and several dozen apprenticeship programs throughout the state, Building Pathways aims to help its students find the right career direction.

Launched in 2011, the six-week skills training, assessment and placement program has had five training cycles with 70 graduates, 95 percent of whom are women and minorities. According to Building Pathways statistics, 85 percent of the graduates have been placed in apprenticeship programs. The last class of 16 participants graduated last month, all of whom were low-income minority Boston area residents, including 10 women.

While Walsh has received plaudits for his diversity efforts, the numbers are just a tiny fraction of the workers who enter the building trades on a yearly basis. According to the Massachusetts Building Trades Council, almost 6,500 workers were enrolled in both union and non-union apprenticeship programs last year — with unions spending close to $30 million to recruit and train new workers. Comparably, Building Pathways has graduated 70 over three years.

Walsh says he recognizes that the Building Pathways program is not going to single-handedly diversify the building trades industry overnight, but he says it is an extremely important program for what it is attempting to do and that it can serve as a model for a way to increase diversity.

He also points out that the only reason the program has had any success at all is because the different building trades are behind the efforts and have guaranteed placement of its graduates — they want to increase diversity.

“All of them are very much into it,” Walsh said. “That was the key to this program.

“It is the only program of its kind that is successful,” he added. “It has been very, very effective.”

Despite their professed commitment to diversifying their ranks, none of the union or non-union building trades organizations would disclose the demographics of their workers.

Frank Callahan, president of the Massachusetts Building Trades Council, says the problem is not about a requirement to track diversity, the challenge is so many different unions and organizations that are run separately and have their own bylaws and charters.

“It is difficult on a whole number of fronts,” Callahan said. “I get frustrated about it myself.”

Callahan says he believes the building trades are sincere in their diversity efforts.

“I go out to the union halls, I see the diversity in members,” he said. “It is something that the building trades have been committed to for quite some time.”

District 7 City Councilor Tito Jackson says the unions will have to disclose numbers if they want to make progress on diversifying.

“We know the building trades don’t reflect the population of the city of Boston,” he said. “We need to make sure we’re being thoughtful and deliberate about how we diversify the building trades. We have to be able to measure our gains against a baseline.”

While the Massachusetts building trades continue their efforts without numbers to illustrate the cause, other states that have made pushes for diversity in the trades have estimated numbers — and the results do not reflect much improvement.

A report out of Philadelphia, which cites numbers from the Office of Housing and Community Development collected from 2008 to 2012, found that the makeup of the union members in the building trades by the end of this period were 99 percent male, 76 percent white and 67 percent suburban residents. This number is only union members — non-union numbers have not been recorded — so it may not reflect the true diversity of the building trades workforce.

But the report findings demonstrated that even after Philadelphia officials pushed for diversity there was little impact on the unions that lead the way in the industry.

The National Black Chamber of Commerce was quick to jump on the implications of the report, releasing to the media an open letter in July to U.S. Representative Marcia Fudge, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

“We are very disturbed that elected officials as well as civil rights organizations have this cordial relationship with construction unions. Construction unions have consistently discriminated against black workers and contractors,” the letter stated. “Ninety-eight percent of all black construction firms are nonunion. There is a reason — if they join a union the union will manage their employees and thus never hire them for work. The end result is the business being void of any black workers and the former black employees will soon be unemployed.”

The letter also concluded: “These construction unions are a prime contributor to black unemployment.”

Municipal officials in the Maryland, Virginia and the Washington D.C. metro area have also made a push for diversity in the building trades, but like in Massachusetts, there is little data to back up what is actually happening.

While the numbers of minorities in the Massachusetts building trades workforce is small, the increased number of construction projects in Boston has created an opportune time for all parties involved to really target the diversity issue in the Massachusetts building trades.

“Boston is No. 2 in the nation for construction right now, so we are really booming,” said Mary Vogel, executive director of the Construction Institute and program manager for Building Pathways. “This is the opportunity to make sure all of our construction workforce reflects our neighborhoods. Women, in particular, are underrepresented in our industry and we want to make sure they have an opportunity to get these kind of careers.”

View the original article at http://baystatebanner.com.

Repost: Women finding new job opportunities in field of construction

Another article that agrees that tradeswomen are the answer to the projected labor shortages in construction.

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(CBS News) BURLINGTON, Vt. -- Just three percent of women work in construction, but now there's an unprecedented opportunity to get more of them into the trades. The average construction worker is in his 40s and 50s and getting closer to retirement.

Amy Judd / CBS News

"Seventy-five percent of owners say they face labor shortages," says Tiffany Bluemle, who runs Vermont Works for Women, which trains girls and women in nontraditional trades. "So why would you not deliberately recruit 50 percent of the population for the jobs that you have?"

Amy Judd, a college graduate, picked up a hammer 15 years ago when she could not find a job teaching.

"It had never occurred to me that I would want to be a carpenter," Judd says. "It took me 80 swings to finally actually hit the nail, but when I did, that was my light bulb moment."

The economy is expected to add nearly 200,000 carpenters by 2020.

"I don’t think it's made clear for women in high school to say, 'Hey, this is an option for you,'" says Sylas Demello, an electrician apprentice. "You can go into the trades. You don't have to go to college. You can be an electrician, you can be a carpenter, you can be a mason. You can do all this kind of stuff."

Last year, the Labor Department allocated close to $2 million in grants for women in "nontraditional" occupations like construction.

"It's not always necessarily wearing a tool belt, carrying heavy things," Judd says. "If you like just being creative, or designing things, or problem solving, you can make a really good livable wage."

The average wage for someone working in construction is $26 an hour. Amy Judd now has her own business. Half of her eight employees are women.

© 2013 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

View the original article at http://www.cbsnews.com/.

Toys for future tradeswomen!

Check out this great ad from Goldie Blox that targets future female engineers:



Read more about this advertising campaign in this Slate article.
Learn more about the Goldie Box company at http://www.goldieblox.com/.

Repost: Ferdinand Building project falls short on hiring Boston residents, women

Boston.com recently published an update on one of PGTI's target projects, the Ferdinand Building in Dudley Square. The project has made great improvements in its hiring goals during the past year, exceeding the BRJP minority requirement, but still has not met the requirements for women and resident workers.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The front façade of the Ferdinand Building, which is currently being redeveloped.(Patrick D. Rosso/Boston.com/2013)

By Patrick D. Rosso, Town Correspondent

The number of minorities hired for the redevelopment of the Ferdinand Building in Dudley Square is exceeding city goals, but the project is still falling short on hiring Boston residents and women.

The project, dubbed the Dudley Municipal Center, is a $119 million city development being led by Shawmut Construction. Eventually the structure, slated to be completed by December 2014, will house the headquarters of Boston Public Schools and ground-floor retail.

Of the 149,630 hours of work completed on the project 44.3 percent was by Boston residents, 57.6 percent was by minorities, and 7.2 percent was by women, according to figures provided by the city of Boston.

Hiring goals established by the city call on contractors to employ 50 percent Boston residents, 25 percent minorities, and 10 percent women.

Those numbers have stayed consistent over the past year, although the project did get off to a rocky start and was picketed in October 2012.

“We strive to exceed the goals with every contractor and sub-contractor we can,” said Patrick Brophy, assistant director of the city’s Capital Construction Division. “We’re happy with where the numbers are, but we’d still like to see improvements on the number of women and Boston residents.”

At the moment there are an estimated 162 workers on site, and city planners said they don’t expect the numbers to fluctuate much in the near future.

“We are on schedule and on budget and we expect to maintain that; we’re exactly where we want to be,” Brophy said.

For those that frequent the area they will begin to notice some changes at the job site. Crews will soon start removing the staging surrounding the building as they prepare to begin exterior work. The massive tower crane that has loomed over the neighborhood for the past year is also expected to come down by early-December.

To read more about the project and its “topping-off” ceremony held over the summer, click here.

Email Patrick D. Rosso, patrick.d.rosso@gmail.com. Follow him @PDRosso, or friend him on Facebook.

To read the original article, visit http://www.boston.com/.

Aspen Institute's Workforce Strategies Initiative Releases Report on Building Trades Apprenticeship Programs

Completion and Cancellation in the Building Trades, a recent report released by The Workforce Strategies Initiative at the Aspen Institute, analyzes the completion and cancellation rates in construction apprenticeship programs, including

• the barriers apprentices face
• the elements of successful program completion
• current retention efforts, such as counselors, mentoring, and pre-apprenticeship programs
• and recommendations for supporting program completion in the future.

Based on apprenticeship completion data, as well as testimonies from apprentices, journey workers, union representatives, construction contractors, pre-apprenticeship programs leaders, and other stakeholders, this study provides insight into the current state of apprenticeship programs and strategies for improving them.

Visit http://www.aspenwsi.org for more information.

Repost: New push to recruit and retain more women in mining

In Australia, a national employers group is making a new push to increase the female participation rate in an industry dominated by men in heavy boots and high visibility safety gear. The Australian Mines and Metals Association hopes to see women's participation in mining, energy, and related construction exceed 25 percent by 2020, from about 15 percent today.

Listen to or read the full new story at http://www.abc.net.au/news.

Repost: DC-area construction contractor to pay $875,000 to settle discrimination case with US Labor Department

News Release

OFCCP News Release: [10/30/2013]
Contact Name: Leni Fortson or Joanna Hawkins
Phone Number: (202) 861-5102 or x5101 
Email: uddyback-fortson.lenore@dol.gov or Hawkins.Joanna@dol.gov
Release Number: 13-1996-PHI

DC-area construction contractor to pay $875,000 to settle discrimination case with US Labor Department

Nearly 400 minority applicants to receive back wages as company reviews hiring practices

DULLES, Va. — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that federal construction contractor M.C. Dean Inc. has settled allegations that it failed to provide equal employment opportunity to 381 African American, Hispanic and Asian American workers who applied for jobs at the company's Dulles headquarters. A review by the department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs determined that the contractor used a set of selection procedures, including invalid tests, which unfairly kept qualified minority candidates from securing jobs as apprentices and electricians.

"Our nation was built on the principles of fair play and equal opportunity, and artificial barriers that keep workers from securing good jobs violate those principles," said OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu. "I am pleased that this settlement will provide remedies to the affected workers and that M.C. Dean has agreed to invest significant resources to improve its hiring practices so that this never happens again."

Under the terms of the agreement, M.C. Dean will pay $875,000 in back wages and interest to 272 African American, 98 Hispanic and 11 Asian American job applicants who were denied employment in 2010. The contractor will also extend 39 job offers to the class members as opportunities become available. Additionally, M.C. Dean has agreed to undertake extensive self-monitoring measures and personnel training to ensure that all of its employment practices fully comply with Executive Order 11246, which prohibits federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment on the bases of race, color and national origin.

M.C. Dean is a construction, design-build and systems integration corporation with more than 30 offices worldwide. Since 2006, the company has held more than $600 million in contracts with federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Defense.

In addition to Executive Order 11246, OFCCP enforces Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. These three laws require those who do business with the federal government, contractors and subcontractors, to follow the fair and reasonable standard that they not discriminate in employment on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran. For more information, please call OFCCP's toll-free helpline at 800-397-6251 or visit http://www.dol.gov/ofccp.  

Repost: Weighed Down

In India, women (who make up about 50% of construction workers there) are told that they "aren't smart enough" to do the skilled construction work. In the United States, women are told they "aren't strong enough" to really do construction.

Do all the smart women live in the United States and all the strong women live in India? We think not.

------------------------------------------------------------

The HinduPhoto: Mohammed Yousuf

The construction industry in India has always been male-dominated, with men doing the more skilled jobs and women reduced to unskilled labour. Women are involved mostly in physical work such as carrying construction material, breaking bricks and rocks, cleaning, etc. However, women construction labourers often face discrimination in wage payment. It has been found that women workers are usually paid 40 to 60 per cent less than men; sometimes even below the minimum wages set by the government.

Apart from that, there are hardly separate facilities like toilets, first-aid and child care for the women workforce at construction sites. Women labourers work under serious life and health risks with no safety gear and a polluted environment.

In the photograph, the camera captures women toiling at a construction site in Hyderabad.

Visit http://www.thehindu.com to view the original article.

Repost: Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne talks youth jobs with St. Mary Catholic Secondary School students

Ontario Premier shares her concerns about the lack of women in the trades.

---------------------------------------------

By Paul J Rellinger

COBOURG -- Through the power of the Internet, some Cobourg high school students got the rare opportunity to speak with Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.

Speaking to Meaford, Brampton, Ottawa, Cobourg and Toronto students during her first Google Hangout, Ms. Wynne answered questions from students about the Province’s youth jobs strategy, during the online chat on Oct. 17.

The Ontario government’s youth jobs strategy was unveiled on Oct. 16.

“The youth jobs strategy really builds on what’s been done in the past,” the premier said. “We want to help create a seamless path for our young people to find jobs.”

Ms. Wynne said the government relies on Ontario residents providing feedback on how politicians can help.

“We can’t always have conversations face-to-face like we are now,” she said. “But talk to your teachers, your guidance counsellors so they can help get the message out.”

During her online chat, the premier fielded two questions from St. Mary high school--one regarding the low number of women employed in the trades and opportunities for First Nations youth.

“It actually concerns me when I visit shops or tour job sites,” Ms. Wynne said, regarding the women in trades question. “I see a real unequal balance between men and women there. The Ontario government has a women in trades website that is geared towards helping women explore and find work in the trades.”

The premier added she would like to see trades opportunities exposed to young grades in elementary school, “before they enter high school so they have a better understanding of what type of trade they may want to pursue.”

She said the youth jobs strategy is to encourage all young people.

“Ontario has a rich and diverse workforce. We want all young people, no matter their background, to have the same opportunities,” the premier said, citing three current programs the government currently has to help First Nations youth pursue certain careers, such as law and natural resources.

To view the original article, visit http://www.mississauga.com.

For more information on the youth strategy program, visit www.ontario.ca.

Career Opportunity: Researcher/Field Activist, NERCC

Researcher / Field Activist
NERCC | Boston MA - USA | Full Time

Job Description
The New England Regional Council of Carpenters is looking for four motivated individuals to help promote union jobs and better standards for workers in the construction industry. Positions are available in the following locations:

• Boston, MA
• Central Connecticut
• Rhode Island / Southeastern MA
• Central / Western MA

Organizational Background
The New England Regional Council of Carpenters is a 19,000 member organization covering the six states of New England. We focus on representing the interests of our members as well as raising the standards of all carpenters in the regional construction industry. We are a progressive union that has committed 50% of its resources to organizing. We are an activist union that promotes union construction through political action, community involvement, regulatory enforcement, and coalition work. Effective organizing campaigns depend on a combination of comprehensive research and street activism. The Researcher / Field Activist will be expected to handle both aspects of the job title. They will report to the Regional Manager / Lead Organizer in their area.

Primary Responsibilities

• Develop research material on industry trends, track construction projects, and provide financial analysis on owners, developers, builders, lenders, etc.
• Develop educational material and leaflets
• Work with state and federal regulatory agencies regarding issues of wage theft, the underground economy, and tax and insurance fraud
• Work in conjunction with other unions, community groups, immigrant worker advocacy groups
• Occasionally assist in visits to non-union job sites, interviewing non-union carpenters on the job and in their homes Participate in demonstrations and picket lines

Qualifications

• Previous organizing experience preferred
• Commitment to economic and social justice and agreement with our union's mission and goals
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Strong organizational skills – good attention to detail and well organized
• Self-motivated – proven ability to work independently
• Ability to work well with diverse groups and populations
• Knowledge of computer operations and programs
• Multilingual skills preferred

How to apply
To apply, please send cover letter, resume and three references to Researcher@NERCC.org

Repost: Recommendations to Encourage Registered Apprenticeship – Community-Based Organization Partnerships

The Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship, Education and Workforce Partnership Workgroup, and Under-Represented Populations Workgroup recently presented a white paper to the United States Department of Labor's Office of Apprenticeship that analyzes best practices and challenges, and provides recommendations for partnerships between Registered Apprenticeship programs and Community-Based Organizations. Download a PDF of this white paper.

Career Opportunity: Boston Resident Jobs Program (BRJP) Monitor position available

Job Title: Sr. Research Analyst (Boston Residents Jobs Program)

Job ID: 346702

Location: ASD-Boston Residents Jobs Policy



Full/Part Time: Full-Time
Regular/Temporary: Regular

BRIEF JOB DESCRIPTION (essential functions of the job):
Under the supervision of the Manager of Boston Residents Jobs Program (BRJP), monitors public and privately funded construction projects to ensure contractor compliance with relevant City of Boston policies and Federal and State regulations.

• Conducts kick-off meetings and pre-construction conferences with developers, general contractors and project managers. 
• Conducts on-site monitoring of the participation of minority, women and Boston residents. 
• Verifies reported employment data and wage data. 
• Conducts quarterly review meetings to review contractors' performance goals, and review cases of non-compliance, and statements of recommended corrective actions. 
• Prepares reports and make presentations before the Boston Employment Commission (BEC). 
• Performs related work as required. 

MINIMUM ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Must have four (4) years of fulltime, or equivalent part-time, experience in research work including project monitoring and statistics. A bachelor's degree may be substitute for two (2) years of the required experience. Must have computer knowledge of Microsoft software; knowledge of City utilized software and hardware preferred. Excellent written and oral communication skills and willingness to travel to sites throughout the City of Boston on public transportation; writing sample; knowledge of the construction trades and related legislation; ability to exercise good judgment and focus on detail as required by the job.

Boston Residency Required

Terms: Union/Salary Plan/Grade: SEIU/RL-18
Hours per week: 35

Please refer to the Salary Information section on the Boston Career Center site for more information on compensation. For each Salary Plan, salaries are listed by Grade and Step.

Visit the City Job Postings webpage for more information.

Repost: Sports Authority Announces Partnership to Ensure Minorities and Women Workforce Equity

The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority commits $700,000 to meeting workforce hiring goals on new Vikings stadium, hires local community/labor coalition to provide outreach and training.

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The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority (MSFA) announced Thursday that it has chosen Summit Academy OIC and its community partners to serve as the Employment Assistance Firm (EAF) for the construction of the Minnesota Vikings stadium. The group will identify qualified workers, provide training and placement, and offer quality assurance to ensure the project employs a highly-skilled diverse workforce. “We are committed to having the people of Minnesota build the ‘People’s Stadium’,” said Louis King, president of Summit Academy OIC. “This is truly a unique collaborative effort that brings together a strong team of 17 community partners to recruit, hire and train minorities, women and veterans. We applaud MSFA for supporting this process.”

The MSFA has committed to meet the state-mandated goals of employing 32 percent minorities and six percent women on the construction of the Vikings stadium. The organization also has taken the unprecedented step of investing $700,000 to develop the workforce.

“The MSFA is proud to contract with the Employment Assistance Firm “EAF” – Summit Academy OIC,” said MSFA Equity Director Alex Tittle. “We are excited that the collaboration of groups will serve as a resource that will assist us in delivering a workforce that reflects the Twin Cities demographics. We are also proud to announce that MA Mortenson/Thor, Summit Academy and MSFA are working diligently to connect the workforce needs with the project.”

Summit Academy OIC will lead a coalition of local organizations in education, construction training and organized labor that will assist with recruitment and outreach, provide construction-related training and facilitate job placement. In addition, a comprehensive database will be developed to capture existing and new minority, female and veteran workers, and make their data available to employers working on the project.

“MCTC and Saint Paul College are pleased to be the lead higher education partners for this project,” said Mike Christenson, Associate Vice President of Workforce Development at Minneapolis Community and Technical College. “This is an unprecedented agreement that will create clear construction pathways for students of color.” Demographic estimates show that by 2040, people of color will represent nearly 45 percent of the Twin Cities’ population. In addition to providing a diverse workforce for the Vikings stadium, this effort has the potential to meet the workforce needs for future construction projects in Minnesota while also enabling individuals from disadvantaged communities to become self-sufficient. “We are pleased that the MSFA is supporting our efforts to ensure that the people working on the new stadium reflect the diverse population of the city,” said Al Flowers, community organizer. “This is an exciting time for Minneapolis and we look forward to working together on this historic project.”

To read the remainder of this article, visit http://www.blackvoicenews.com/.

Career Opportunity: Apprentice as an Operating Engineer

HOISTING & PORTABLE ENGINEERS Local 4
Apprenticeship & Training Program

The Training Center will accept applications for entry into the apprenticeship program during the month of November.

Each year at this time, Local 4 notifies appropriate agencies and interested parties regarding their application period. November is the only month that interested parties must apply in person at the Canton Engineers Training Center, One Engineers Way, Canton, MA 02021-3708 (Telephone: 781-821-0306)

To be eligible as an applicant, these basic qualifications must be met at the time the application is assigned.

To join the Apprenticeship & Training Program's inquiry list, please register online.

Tradeswomen Lawsuit: Lisa Davis v. Kiewit Pacific Co.

COVERAGE, LIABILITY—Cal. App.: “Managing agents” ignored feces smeared in portable toilet, fear of retribution; punitive damages back on the table

By Lorene D. Park, J.D.

Because there were triable issues over whether a project manager and EEO officer had the discretionary authority to enforce corporate policies against harassment and retaliation when they instead ignored an employee’s complaints over feces and porn in the women’s portable toilet, a California Court of Appeals found that they could be “managing agents” for purposes of corporate liability and the employer could be liable for punitive damages (Davis v Kiewit Pacific Co, decided September 18, 2013 and published October 8, 2013, McDonald, A). Thus, the trial court erred in granting summary adjudication to the employer on the issue of punitive damages before the matter went to trial. The rest of the judgment entered following the jury’s award was affirmed.

The employee was one of two females on an excavation crew of over 100 employees working on a 12-mile excavation project. She had difficulty accessing the portable toilets (often miles away) and they were often left in an unsanitary condition. She asked her foreman, two superintendents, and the safety officer to resolve the issue but she was ignored. At one point her foreman told her to “go find a bush.” She complained to the project manager but nothing changed. Soon thereafter, she opened the door to the women’s portable toilet and saw feces smeared all over the toilet seat and a pornographic magazine on the toilet paper dispenser.

She immediately informed a foreman and a superintendent but there was no investigation. After that incident, her crew members would not even speak to her. She complained to the EEO officer, saying she was afraid of retaliation, but nothing was done. Less than a month later, she was laid off with the rest of the crew but, when the company selectively rehired crew members a week later, the employee was not among them.

The employee filed suit alleging gender bias, a hostile work environment, and retaliation. A jury found in her favor but, before the trial, the court granted the employer summary judgment on the issue of punitive damages. Appealing from that ruling, the employee argued that the trial court erred because there was a triable issue of fact regarding whether a “managing agent” of the company engaged in or ratified the wrongful conduct against her. The appeals court agreed.

Corporate liability. Under California Civ. Code Sec. 3294, an employer is not liable for punitive damages based on the acts of its employee unless it had advance knowledge of the unfitness of the employee and employed him with a conscious disregard of the rights or safety of others, authorized or ratified the wrongful conduct, or was personally guilty of oppression, fraud, or malice. For corporations, the advance knowledge, conscious disregard, ratification, or act of oppression, fraud, or malice must be by an officer, director, or managing agent. The term “managing agent” includes only “corporate employees who exercise substantial independent authority and judgment in their corporate decisionmaking so that their decisions ultimately determine corporate policy.” Here, the employee claimed that the project manager, who was the highest ranking employee at the worksite, and the EEO officer to whom she complained of retaliation were “managing agents” of the employer.

Project manager. The court explained that in moving for summary adjudication on punitive damages, the employer had the initial burden of making a prima facie showing that there were no triable issues regarding whether the project manager and EEO officer were managing agents. As to the project manager, it simply produced his declaration that he never drafted corporate policy or had substantial discretionary authority over decisions that determined policy. To the court, that simply stated a legal conclusion and parroted the legal standard set forth by the state supreme court. The corporation could not satisfy its burden of production of evidence by making a statement of law and the declaration did not sufficiently describe his duties or the nature and extent of his authority and discretion.

Even if the corporation had carried its burden, the employee produced sufficient evidence to show a triable issue of fact. She alleged the project manager was the top manager in charge of the $170 million project and all other managers reported to him. His duties included interfacing with stakeholders, operations and personnel oversight, and contract administration. A jury could conclude that in performing those duties he exercised substantial authority and discretion over a broad range of issues involving the project, including compliance with corporate polices. Accordingly, the trial court erred by concluding there was no triable issue of fact on whether he was a managing agent.

EEO officer. As to the EEO officer, the court again concluded that the corporation did not carry its initial burden of production because again the officer’s declaration merely parroted a legal standard and did not include a sufficient description of his duties or the nature and extent of his authority and discretion. Even assuming the employer carried its burden, the employee showed a triable issue on whether he was a managing agent. Testimony and other evidence, including the employer’s EEO policy manual, indicated that as EEO officer, he was responsible for administering corporate policies on preventing discrimination, retaliation, and harassment for the entire northwest district, including California and on-site EEO officers were trained to send concerns over policy violations to him. He also conducted training for supervisory personnel and oversaw the company’s investigations into policy violations.

Based on this, a trier of fact could reasonably infer he had authority and discretion in making, interpreting, and applying the employer’s EEO policies on a corporate-wide basis, the court found. It could also be inferred that, despite the fear the employee expressed to him on possible retaliation for her reporting the portable toilet issues, he exercised his authority and discretion to not enforce the policy against retaliation and/or to protect her from retaliation and, in so doing, exercised authority that resulted in the ad hoc formulation of corporate policy. Thus, the trial court erred in granting the employer’s motion for summary adjudication of the claim for punitive damages.

The case number is D062388.

Attorneys: Jason D. Dumbeck (Dumbeck & Dumbeck) for Lisa Davis. Ann Kotlarski (Seyfarth Shaw) for Kiewit Pacific, Co.

Companies: Kiewit Pacific, Co.

Cases: CoverageLiability RemediesDamages Discrimination Retaliation CaliforniaNews

Career Opportunity: Building Pathways Pre-Apprenticeship Program

Click the above image to download this flyer.

Repost: Program aims to diversify highway construction workforce

By Peter Wong

A state agency is seeking proposals for pre-apprenticeship services that will help encourage more women and minorities to begin careers in highway construction.

The services are the result of a partnership between the Bureau of Labor and Industries and the Oregon Department of Transportation. They are intended to inform students and young adults about potential careers as carpenters, cement masons, iron workers, laborers, operating engineers and painters.

About $200,000 will be split among two or three proposals. The amount will be drawn from $2.1 million in federal funds approved by the 2013 Legislature for pre-apprenticeship services and efforts to diversify the highway construction workforce. The two agencies will ensure that the amount is spread statewide.

Proposals are due at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at the Department of Administrative Services/Procurement Services office in Salem. Services are scheduled to start Jan. 1 and run for 18 months.

To view the original article, visit http://www.statesmanjournal.com.

Repost: The women behind the construction project

Women take a key roll in building a 497,652-square-foot nine-story library built by Turner Construction in San Diego, CA.

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By Marion Moss Hubbard, San Diego Public Library

Thursday, September 26, 2013

The new 497,652-square-foot nine-story Central Library is one of the largest municipal projects in the city’s history. To successfully construct it within three years took an immense amount of coordination, teamwork and leadership.

While the construction field is still primarily led by men -- and there were many men who played prominent and vital roles on this project -- several women in key positions were instrumental in moving the Central Library project to completion.

Carmen Vann, project executive with Turner Construction, provided the oversight of intricate workflows and detailed schedules to keep the project moving as quickly and efficiently as possible. As the person in charge of the construction project, she had to coordinate among the various trade professions onsite, including carpenters, ironworkers, concrete workers, electricians and infrastructure experts. Vann grew up in Washington, D.C., and has always had a fascination with buildings. “I do what I do out of passion for people, and it is way beyond bricks and mortar,” she said.

Kristine Wunder was Turner Construction’s safety manager on this project. She instilled in the entire team the importance of maintaining a clean and safe worksite throughout construction. Her commitment to safety was key to Turner’s impressive safety record on this project of more than 1,000 days without any injuries. A former Army aviation officer and UH60 Blackhawk helicopter pilot, Wunder has a long history of commitment to leadership and passing on her expertise to others. She is a mentor with the ACE Mentor Program, which mentors professionals from leading design and construction firms.

Cynthia Meinhardt is the city of San Diego’s project officer with public works, engineering and capital projects, and helped oversee this $185 million Capital Improvement project. Through her oversight, she assured that the architectural and engineering services -- including technical and operational support, design and construction -- were performed with the highest degree of quality, while remaining on schedule and within budget. Throughout her career, Meinhardt has been committed to making sure that building projects are designed to enhance our overall quality of life and communities.

Deborah Barrow, library director for the San Diego Public Library, worked closely with all of these exceptional women. She also worked with the architects, other Turner Construction professionals, other city departments, outside consulting organizations and partnering organizations to assure that what was built actually met the needs of the community and goals of the library.

A native San Diegan with more than 20 years of experience in public library management, Barrow is no stranger to library building projects. She has managed the design and construction of several new libraries, including the South Chula Vista Library.

All of these extraordinary women came together in their careers at just the right time and place to help make this new library a reality. Through this remarkable accomplishment, they will serve as role models for young women who will be inspired to achieve their own great success.

To read the original article, visit http://www.sddt.com/news.

Career Opportunities: The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority is Hiring

The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority is currently accepting applications for the following positions:

OB POSTINGS	APPLICATION DEADLINE
JVA #6532, Program Manager, Water Quality Assurance	09/26/13
JVA #6531, Jr. Civil Engineer	09/26/13
JVA #6454, Plumber/Pipefitter	09/25/13
JVA #6519, M&O Specialist	09/24/13
JVA #6526, IT Project Manager, III	09/18/13
JVA #6523, Operator	09/18/13
JVA #6506, Sr. Staff Engineer, Electrical	n/a

Visit http://www.mwra.state.ma.us to submit your application.

Repost: China's Women Workforce

Reuters recently posted a slideshow of beautiful photos that capture women construction workers in China. Here's one of the twenty-nine photos:

To view the full slideshow, visit http://www.reuters.com/.

Yesterday Cleveland Signed Community Benefits Agreement

Community benefits agreement aims to keep construction work local

By JAY MILLER
1:46 pm, September 16, 2013

A group of Cleveland’s leading institutions, some of the city’s largest contractors and the building trades unions today formally endorsed an agreement designed to provide what Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson described as “a self-help approach to economic development.”

Called a community benefits agreement, or CBA, the memorandum — signed by 10 organizations that expect to spend billions of dollars on construction projects in the next several years — sets standards designed to encourage the use of local labor and local contracting firms, in particular minority and female workers and firms.

It also would expand apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs and study best practices for improving diversity and inclusion in the construction industry, which Mayor Jackson said is critical for training Cleveland residents for jobs in the building trades.

“Never before have you seen the private sector step forward and voluntarily say they would participate in a program that would result in community benefits,” Mayor Jackson told Crain’s Cleveland Business. “We need to keep those dollars local and spend them in a way that creates jobs and support businesses. Not only will this construction activity support local construction firms, but they have to buy their goods and materials” locally as well.

University Hospitals Health System, in its Vision 2010 construction program, laid the foundation for this community benefits agreement when it made a concerted effort to ensure that as much as possible of the $1.2 billion it spent on construction between 2005 and 2010 benefited local businesses and workers.

“This is really about culture change,” said Steven Standley, chief administrative officer of UH, who was among the signers of the CBA this morning in the Red Room at Cleveland City Hall. Mr. Standley said the hospital system believes it needs to play a role in developing the next generation of local construction workers, construction firms and even health care workers.

“It’s really about pipeline,” he said. “Everybody is starting to figure out that we don’t have the next generation of people ready to take over and everyone is starting to realize” they must help support that next generation locally.

In addition to UH, endorsers of the seven-page CBA memorandum of understanding were William Peacock, chief of operations for The Cleveland Clinic Foundation; Scott Miller, vice president of Dominion East Ohio; Fred Geis, president of Geis Cos.; Michael Heise, president of The Medical Center Co.; Julius Ciaccia Jr., executive director of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District; Stephen Campbell, vice president of campus planning and facilities management at Case Western Reserve University; and Eric Gordon, CEO of the Cleveland Municipal School District.

The CBA has been in the works for several years and the memorandum of understanding that was endorsed last February by the city of Cleveland, the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the Construction Employers Association, the Hispanic Roundtable, Hard Hatted Women, the Urban League of Greater Cleveland, Cuyahoga Community College, and the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council.

To view the original article, visit http://www.crainscleveland.com/.

Save the Date: "Building Economic Security for Low-Income Women" Roundtable on Fri, 9/27/13, 9:30-11:30am

Budget Buddies

Center for Women & Work at University of MA, Lowell

Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union

The U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau

INVITE YOU TO AN IMPORTANT ROUNDTABLE:

BUILDING ECONOMIC SECURITY FOR LOW-INCOME WOMEN

Friday, September 27, 2013

9:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Corporate Offices of Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union

257 Father Morissette Blvd, Lowell, MA

The roundtable will bring thought leaders in the Greater Lowell area together to discuss potential pathways to financial stability for low-income women once they’ve learned essential money-management skills. During this time we will break into four work groups that will consider the following topics:

   1) How do we help women find flexible work situations?
   2) How can women qualify for higher-paying jobs?
   3) What opportunities are available for women in “green” jobs?
   4) How can we help homeless women veterans reenter the work force?

Attendance is free but registration is required. Space limited to 25

RSVP: To register, please send an e-mail to kathrynbrough@verizon.net by close of business on September 23 and include your name, organization, and telephone number. Please also indicate your preference(s), if any, for the work group you’d like to join.

Repost: Apprenticeships lead to higher pay, but only for men

Young Canadian women who apprenticed had lower incomes than high school and college grads

Canadian men who complete an apprenticeship can expect to earn more than men who have only a high school education, more than men with trade qualifications and even more than many college graduates, according to a working paper on apprenticeships based on the 2006 census.

But the story is much different for women, with females who complete apprenticeships earning less than women with high school or college degrees or women in trades, according to the report Returns to Apprenticeship.

The study by University of Toronto researchers Morley Gunderson and Harry Krashinsky found male apprentices, who tend to be in the construction and mechanical trades, earned 24 per cent more than men who had a high school degree.

They brought home 15 per cent more money than those in the trades who were not apprenticed and two per cent more than college graduates. University graduates continued to outstrip those with apprenticeships, with incomes 40 per cent higher than high school graduates, though that number may be changing as the opportunities for university graduates diminish.

The results emphasize the value of apprenticeships, which many provinces are promoting as an alternative to college or university. With construction booming, businesses are reporting skilled trades shortages.

Unemployment among young people in Canada is now above 14 per cent.

Still, only a small percentage of the Canadian workforce has completed an apprenticeship — about 7.7 per cent of men and 1.6 per cent of women. The system of fostering apprentices is more common in Europe, but the study questioned why so few young men take on apprenticeships when the benefit appears to be so clear.

Canadian women were better off just completing high school, the study found. For women taking "an apprenticeship yields lower returns than simply completing high school and substantially lower returns than completing community college, likely reflecting the fact that female apprenticeships tend to be in low-wage jobs in industries like food and service," the study found.

The areas where women apprenticed were professions such as hairdressing and chef’s assistant. Those who completed apprenticeships earned 25 per cent less than women who completed college and 6.6 per cent less than high school graduates, the study found.

To read the full article, visit http://www.cbc.ca.

Repost: Female pipefitter in training gives thanks for Trade-Up’s pre-apprenticeship program

By David Pendered

on September 1st, 2013, 11:38 pm

As the United States pauses to honor workers on Labor Day, one Atlanta mother is thankful and proud that she’s on her way to becoming a pipefitter.

Jacquelyn Treadville-Samuels is changing careers after working as a forensic science technician in Atlanta and Alabama. She lost her taste for that work after caring for her cancer-stricken mother in Alabama. She returned to Atlanta and became homeless while looking for a job.

“This is a dream come true,” Treadville-Sanders said outside the auditorium where members of Georgia Stand-Up had just applauded the first all-female class of pre-apprentice trainees in its Trade-Up program. “I’ve prayed for something like this, but I never knew is would be like this.”

Students in the first all-female pre-apprenticeship program
offered by Georgia Trade-Up stand beneath a banner
of an iconic tradesman: Tyeshia Foster (left to right);
Lisa Brooks; Jacquelyn Treadville-Sanders (president);
Leslee Shepherd (coordinator); Janell Carter; Joanne Barker;
Chamena Johnson (secretary). Photo credits: David Pendered

Treadville-Samuels took a few moments outside the I.B.E.W. auditorium in downtown Atlanta to count her blessings. Even as she looks ahead to a good job that will enable her to provide for herself and her 8-year-old son, she’s contemplating how to give back to the community.

“I want to offer low-income housing for single parents because, if you’re not a husband and wife, you just can’t afford to buy a house,” Treadville-Samuels said.

“I want to go on and open my own business, and the only thing I ask is that I am able to take another woman under my wing and pay it forward,” she said.

“I want to teach our community that you can be better and do better, and there are people in our community who can help you do that,” she said. “There are so many people in our community who need an opportunity, or want an opportunity.”

Treadville-Sanders is enrolled in Georgia Trade-Up. It’s a pre-apprenticeship and workforce development program that teaches job-readiness skills to men and women who plan to enter construction trades apprenticeship programs or the construction industry. The program lasts eight weeks.

The all-female class in which she’s enrolled is funded by Goodwill Industries International. Goodwill, in turn, received the funding through the Department of Labor’s Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations program, according to Deborah Scott, executive director of Georgia Stand-Up and founder of Trade-Up.

Georgia was the only southern state to receive any of the $1.8 million the Labor Department announced in 2012. Goodwill received $300,000, the amount awarded each of the six programs nationwide, and promised to place at least 100 participants over the life of the two-year program into a registered apprenticeship program, according to a DOL statement.

These are good jobs in a field that’s anticipated to have labor shortages, Scott said. According to Scott, the Governor’s Office of Workforce Development has predicted openings for 82,000 skilled tradespersons by 2016. Some of those openings are due to workers who retired during the recession and aren’t expected to return to the field, Scott said.

To read the remainder of this article, visit http://saportareport.com/.

Repost: Alliance Seeks to Improve Conditions for Female Construction Workers

OSHA announced the alliance and its new website for this purpose on Aug. 22.

OSHA has signed an alliance with the National Association of Women in Construction to develop training resources to protect female construction workers. It will focus on musculoskeletal and sanitation hazards and issues related to poorly-fitting PPE, and OSHA has created a related website.

"Safety and health problems in construction create barriers to women entering and remaining in this field," said Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels. "Through this alliance, we will work together to forge innovative solutions to improve the safety, health, and working conditions for women in the construction trades and retain female workers during a critical time of job shortages in this industry."

The two-year agreement is intended to develop training programs, fact sheets, and other outreach resources. Following a recommendation from its Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health, OSHA created the Women in Construction Web page, a site that outlines and addresses safety and health issues specific to female workers in this industry.

For more information on the alliance, visit OSHA's new Women in Construction webpage or this description of the alliance.

View the original article at http://ohsonline.com.

Repost: On the Dudley Square Municipal Office Building Job Site

Check out these great videos on how "construction of the Dudley Square Municipal Office Facility is impacting the lives of a Madison Park High School student and an iron worker at the site."





See the original post by the Boston Redevelopment Authority at http://www.bostonredevelopmentauthoritynews.org.

Happy Women's Equality Day!

For those of you who are in downtown Boston today, you can celebrate Women's Equality Day right now with your fellow Bostonians:

Celebrate Women's Equality Day with Us!

Women’s Equality Day, August 26, celebrates the day women won the right to vote in 1920. We will gather at the Boston Women’s Memorial on Commonwealth Ave. Mall, between Fairfield and Gloucester Streets, from 12-1:30PM. Join City Councilor Ayanna Pressley, the first woman of color to be elected to the Boston City Council. We will have great music, voter registration, and girl scout snacks. Wear the suffrage colors of white, purple and yellow and join us. All are welcome.

Wherever you are, you can celebrate by reading this USDOL blog post about the importance of construction jobs for women and being thankful for the efforts in our community to achieve gender equality in the construction industry.

Like PGTI on Facebook!

The Policy Group on Tradeswomen's Issues can now be found on Facebook! Like us at https://www.facebook.com/Tradeswomen to follow our events, blogs, and other relevant news from the construction industry. We hope you will spread the word about our page!

Save the Date: 9/20/13 USDOL Women's Bureau & The Construction Institute Will Host "Engaging Women for STEM, Non-Traditional, and Green Careers"

THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WOMEN’S BUREAU & THE CONSTRUCTION INSTITUTE INVITES YOU TO AN IMPORTANT ROUNDTABLE: ENGAGING WOMEN FOR STEM, NON-TRADITIONAL, AND GREEN CAREERS 

The roundtable will bring together leaders in the Metro Boston area to discuss potential pathways for women to become involved in careers related to science, technology, math, and engineering (STEM). This discussion will also draw on ideas for engaging women in green and non-traditional careers. Some of the topic questions to be considered are:

1. How can women qualify for STEM, Non-Traditional, and Green Careers? 
2. What opportunities are available for women in “green” jobs and STEM? 
3. How can we help women transition from traditional occupations to non-traditional ones? 

DATE: Tuesday, September 20, 2013

TIME: 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: Sheet Metal Workers Training Center, 1181 Adams St. Dorchester 

Attendance is free but registration is required. Space limited to 25.

RSVP: To register, please send an e-mail to Rizzolo.Angela@dol.gov by close of business hours on September 18 and include your name, organization, and telephone number.

For questions, please call: Angela Rizzolo @ 617-565-1988.

Our special thanks to the Sheet Metal Workers Training Center for co-hosting this roundtable.

Repost: Council addresses how to diversify workforce on city construction projects

An ordinance to increase diversity within the construction workforce is being considered by Seattle's City Council!
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by: Aaron Burkhalter, Staff Reporter

People of color and women make up a small portion of the workforce on city-funded construction projects. This year, people of color made up 25 percent and women represented 6 percent of the workforce on city-funded projects, said Nancy Locke, director of city purchasing and contracting services for the city of Seattle.

The Seattle City Council is exploring how to change that. The nine-member council will vote in September on a resolution directing city staff to research and propose a program that would hire more people from disadvantaged communities for construction work.

The city council’s Economic Resiliency Committee discussed the resolution Aug. 7.

The resolution stems from a request by Got Green, a South Seattle environmental and social justice nonprofit, and the Targeted Local Hire Coalition. The groups want the city’s construction contractors to hire a percentage of the workforce from poor communities, perhaps using the median income of a ZIP code or census tract as a guide.

Other cities require that up to 50 percent of the jobs on city construction projects go to people from those disadvantaged communities.

In Seattle, the Women and Minority-owned Business Enterprise program requires the city to contract out a percentage of work to businesses owned by women and people of color. It encourages the city to hire on-the-ground workers from disadvantaged communities, but does not require it.

It hasn’t helped, Locke told the Economic Resiliency Committee Aug. 7.

It’s difficult to legislate diversity in Washington state because voters passed an anti-affirmative action initiative in 1998 that prohibits state and local governments from hiring based on race or gender. Seattle is required to accept the lowest bid on a project and cannot select the contractor with the most diverse workforce.

Labor unions would support a targeted local hire program, said Jermaine Smiley of Laborers Local 242. Construction workers have a history, he said, of hiring from disadvantaged communities.

“Our union 100 years ago was started on the workers nobody wanted: African Americans, Irish workers,” Smiley said.

View the original article at http://realchangenews.org.

Repost: Women empowerment imbizo

The provincial human settlements department is set to hold a summit in Rustenburg on Friday 
to identify emerging women contractors in the province. Picture: Ishaan Haffajee

By Elfas Torerai

The provincial human settlements department is set to hold a summit in Rustenburg on Friday to identify emerging women contractors in the province.

The one- day summit is, among other things, intended to promote access to economic opportunities for women in construction.

Human settlements spokesperson Ben Bole said synergies would be created between the department and contractors to improved relations between contractors and the department. About 500 delegates are expected to attend.

“MEC Nono Maloyi is expected to address the delegates. In his address Maloyi said he would give a detailed outline on how the department had progressed in policies that are geared towards empowering women,” Bole said.

He said construction agencies that had been working with the department would provide relevant information to new entrants to construction.

“Young unemployed women will be part of the summit and will be empowered through the presentations that will be made by the human settlements agencies. This will give them a chance to join the construction sector,” he said.

The summit takes place at the Rustenburg Civic Centre, and starts at 8 in the morning.

View the original article at The New Age Online.