Sid Hastings
24 JULY 2010 -- ST. LOUIS
-- Rally participants stream onto the Eads Bridge before the start of a
meeting on the bridge calling for greater participation by women and
minority in contracting and construction during the building of the new
Mississippi River bridge Saturday, July 24, 2010. That bridge, which
will carry I-70 when completed, is being built just north of the
existing Martin Luther King Bridge. The rally, held at mid-span of the
Eads Bridge, was sponsored by the United Congregations of Metro East,
Metropolitan Congregations United for St. Louis, the St. Louis, East St.
Louis and O'Fallon, Ill., chapters of the NAACP, Mo-Kan, Construction
and Contractors Assistance Center, St. Louis Metropolitan Clegry
Coalition and St. Louis Area Jobs with Justice.
Photo by Sid Hastings 
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The discussion about minority hiring in the construction trade - a hot button topic that has vexed St. Louis
for well over a half century – rose to the surface again Thursday in a
pair of dueling forums that showed the issue is far from resolution.
Yet the day's events also offered some hope that minority employment will improve after Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District decided Thursday evening to set its minority hiring goal of 25 percent.
Early Thursday afternoon, a consortium of leaders from major regional trade organizations led off with an announcement of what they envision as a “productive move forward” to remedy decades of the underrepresentation of minorities and women on local construction projects.
The briefing by the Construction Task Force presaged a 4 p.m. protest outside the headquarters of MSD.
MOKAN, the minority Construction and Contractors Assistance Center, gathered approximately 50 members to accuse the MSD of falling far short in its commitment to hire minority workers on regional water and sewer projects.
The organization asked the MSD to meet the city of St. Louis' hiring threshold of 25 percent minority hiring on all construction sites. The MSD board was considering a proposal for a 14.7 percent over the next six months.
MOKAN executive Director Yaphett El-Amin also blasted a MSD proposal that could lower the percentage of non-construction contracts awarded to minority-owned businesses to 7.5 percent. She estimated the proposal, if adopted, could cost minority business owners $3.1 million between now and September.
El-Amin pointed out that the bulk of the funding for $4.7 billion in projected water and sewer improvements for the region will be drawn from the utility bills paid by homeowners and tenants.
“If we're going to pay for it, we're going to participate in it,” El-Amin said.
Less than two hours after the protest, however, the MSD board agreed to set the minority hiring target to 25 percent.
The MSD board did not change its position on the percentage of minority-owned businesses in line for contracts.
El-Amin couldn't be reached late Thursday for comment on the MSD board action.
The MOKAN protest brought the issues raised by the Construction Task Force into sharp relief.
Spurred by a study that found that non-whites comprise just seven percent of the construction workforce, the Associated of General Contractors of St. Louis, St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers and the St. Louis Minority Supplier Development Council convened a symposium earlier this week to give various industry stakeholders the opportunity to air their thoughts and grievances.
General contractors president Len Toenjes said disagreements erupted frequently in the Tuesday talks among 80 representatives of labor, business owners, community activists and trade organizations.
But the day ended with agreements to form working groups and a commitment to moving the dialogue forward, he said.
“This is the first time the entire community has has come together on this issue,” said James Webb, president and chief executive of the Supplier Development Council. “We didn't get here overnight so it will take us a long time to dig our way out of it.”
Yet the day's events also offered some hope that minority employment will improve after Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District decided Thursday evening to set its minority hiring goal of 25 percent.
Early Thursday afternoon, a consortium of leaders from major regional trade organizations led off with an announcement of what they envision as a “productive move forward” to remedy decades of the underrepresentation of minorities and women on local construction projects.
The briefing by the Construction Task Force presaged a 4 p.m. protest outside the headquarters of MSD.
MOKAN, the minority Construction and Contractors Assistance Center, gathered approximately 50 members to accuse the MSD of falling far short in its commitment to hire minority workers on regional water and sewer projects.
The organization asked the MSD to meet the city of St. Louis' hiring threshold of 25 percent minority hiring on all construction sites. The MSD board was considering a proposal for a 14.7 percent over the next six months.
MOKAN executive Director Yaphett El-Amin also blasted a MSD proposal that could lower the percentage of non-construction contracts awarded to minority-owned businesses to 7.5 percent. She estimated the proposal, if adopted, could cost minority business owners $3.1 million between now and September.
El-Amin pointed out that the bulk of the funding for $4.7 billion in projected water and sewer improvements for the region will be drawn from the utility bills paid by homeowners and tenants.
“If we're going to pay for it, we're going to participate in it,” El-Amin said.
Less than two hours after the protest, however, the MSD board agreed to set the minority hiring target to 25 percent.
The MSD board did not change its position on the percentage of minority-owned businesses in line for contracts.
El-Amin couldn't be reached late Thursday for comment on the MSD board action.
The MOKAN protest brought the issues raised by the Construction Task Force into sharp relief.
Spurred by a study that found that non-whites comprise just seven percent of the construction workforce, the Associated of General Contractors of St. Louis, St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers and the St. Louis Minority Supplier Development Council convened a symposium earlier this week to give various industry stakeholders the opportunity to air their thoughts and grievances.
General contractors president Len Toenjes said disagreements erupted frequently in the Tuesday talks among 80 representatives of labor, business owners, community activists and trade organizations.
But the day ended with agreements to form working groups and a commitment to moving the dialogue forward, he said.
“This is the first time the entire community has has come together on this issue,” said James Webb, president and chief executive of the Supplier Development Council. “We didn't get here overnight so it will take us a long time to dig our way out of it.”
Steve Giegerich covers the manufacturing and employment for the Post-Dispatch. He blogs on STL JobsWatch. Follow him on Twitter @stevegiegerich and the Business section @postdispatchbiz.
Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/dueling-forums-address-minority-hiring-in-construction/article_0769c98a-697b-11e1-a60e-001a4bcf6878.html#ixzz1oeKiQe1C
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