Minorities in Construction: Can We Do Better?

What challenges do minorities (not just ethnic minorities) face in the construction industry, whether they work on a job site or own the company? Should the industry change/adapt to help them succeed and thrive? If so, how? These are the questions we asked our AWCI member contractors.


We received a very broad range of responses.


Leveling the Playing Field

Robyn Kavanagh, senior director of human resources at Performance Contracting Group in Missouri, answered in great detail. Her answers are summarized here.


“Minorities in the construction industry, including ethnic minorities, women, people with disabilities and others, face several challenges that can hinder their participation and advancement within our industry: implicit bias and discrimination, physical and environmental barriers and a lack of support networks and mentorship opportunities.


“Addressing these challenges requires a comprehensive approach that involves implementing inclusion initiatives, providing equitable access to training and education, promoting a culture of respect and inclusion, and actively supporting the advancement of minority individuals within the construction industry.


“I can say without reservation, that our industry is making positive changes in this space. I have been lucky to bear witness to some incredible shifts in perception of these concepts over the last 17 years. That said, there is always room for improvement.”


The key measures Kavanagh recommends are addressing barriers to entry, cultural competency training, community engagement and outreach, supplier diversity programs and zero tolerance for discrimination and harassment.


Anthony Brooks, president of Platinum Drywall, Inc. in Arkansas, believes, “The biggest challenge for minorities is a lack of proper and complete mentorship. The industry could help by establishing mentor-protégé programs.”


Bill Fritz, president of Mission Interiors Contracting, LLC in Texas, says, “The main challenges minorities have in the construction industry are the language barrier and training. Women have consistently been taking more of a role in almost every aspect of construction. More and more companies in our industry have women and ethnic minority leaders as key principal owners in order to bid government projects as a minority.


“People with disabilities probably have the most challenges. Interior construction has a tendency to pick management from craftsmen in the industry. There are not many people with disabilities in that area of construction. If we can overcome language barriers, spend more on training, and think outside the current box, we will eventually overcome these challenges.”


He recommends “funding a portion of revenue for continuing education in order to improve language skills as well as continued training programs for improved skill levels, proper safety training, with a directed path to management. It will not be easy nor cheap, but a necessity if we want our industry to grow in the right direction.”


Bill Rosch, vice president at Rosch Brothers Inc. in New York, says, “Minority business enterprise owners are far behind women-owned business enterprises. This is because there are far fewer opportunities to thrive. MBEs are mostly left with public-works–sector projects with many rules, regulations, low profit margins and lots of risk. They will thrive given the chance to provide private sector construction services. Due to racist mentalities, many qualified contractors miss out.”


How can the industry help? “Encourage partnerships with incentives in the private sector—this could come in many forms and should not be public sector markets only,” Rosch says.


Christine Luizzia-McGuire, president of Golden Crown Contractors, Inc. in New Jersey, says, “I have experienced that uncomfortable feeling of being the only woman in the room. Peers thought I did not have enough knowledge to be accepted. It was a roller coaster and I had to hang on and ride the ride.”
She has noticed major changes over the years: “To be honest, there are so many more programs, classes and volunteer mentors accessible now than there were in the 1980s.”


Ron Karp, principal at Advanced Drywall Systems Florida, says, “Ethnic minorities have no challenges in our trade—they are welcomed on the same basis as anyone. The women or those with disabilities are the ones who cannot perform in our trade due to the physical demands of the job (mostly heavy lifting). Most women and/or disabled persons cannot lift the product we install over 200 times a day.”


The solution? “We are looking at how technology can open our trade to women and disabled persons. There are ‘lift assist’ devices that would help women and certain disabled persons, and we are pursuing that technology. Technology is what will change our industry and open it up for others.”


Regional Variations

Gabriel Castillo, director of business development at Pillar Construction Inc. in Virginia, notes that minorities’ issues vary by region. He says, “Women have entered the construction industry and have carved their way into the business, not only as hands-on in the field but also as managers and business owners. We work alongside women-owned businesses in the doors and hardware installation, mill work and final cleanup. As project managers, women are detail-oriented, focused and oftentimes great facilitators.


“The DC region has a great representation of minority business and minorities on the labor force. Local programs that encourage participation have created a growing market for women/minority entrepreneurs. The main challenge can be trust. It is not easy to cut your way through the jungle of stereotypes. Organizations and associations have provided visibility and voice to minorities. Sharing experiences and contacts at these associations is a way for minorities to gain exposure to more work. General contractors are making every effort to give minorities access to bidding work and helping contractors to access resources to secure more volume.”


The CFO of an Ohio contractor confirms this: “We are located in a fairly rural area of Ohio. Our field personnel are all union. We don’t currently have any sort of recruiting program outside of interacting with local trade schools, which are also very rural. Currently we have no Hispanic workers or any ethnic minorities at all.”
“We do work with more women in construction these days,” he continues. “It’s a refreshing change at jobsite meetings and interactions.”


A minority business owner (Hispanic) in New York says the biggest challenge for him is “getting paid in a reasonable amount of time. Big business feels it’s OK to pay you 60-90 days after the monthly invoice (that’s 120 actual days out cash-wise).”


He talks about a very recent case: “[We received a] project bid invite from a company soliciting minority participation, and they boldly state their payment terms. I don’t think they realize they are breaking prompt pay laws in general, let alone scaring every potential sub away.”


He adds, “If you really want to help minority companies, make biweekly payments mandatory. That means agencies would have to be mandated to pay GCs faster so that the GCs will pay the subs. Then you would need a payment mechanism you could enforce.”


Pat Arrington, principal of Commercial Enterprises in New Mexico, has some specific issues in his area and with the contracts he undertakes. “Government work requires American citizenship,” he says, citing Sandia National Laboratories and Los Alamos National Laboratory and some work on military bases.


“Language is one of the problems,” he continues. “However, in our field operations, minorities are 70% to 80% of our work force. Attitude is the most important thing we look for—with the right attitude, they can be trained.”


Staying Legal

In an article published on March 3, 2024, Bringing undocumented workers out of the shadows is a win-win (Opinion), AWCI member Stan Marek, chairman and CEO of Marek in Texas, writes, “It’s not popular to ask that business owners and their boards acknowledge that, outsourced or not, a portion of the workforce is undocumented.”


He further writes, “A common-sense solution that would be a great start is a policy proposal called ID and Tax. It gives employers the ability to hire undocumented workers who have been in the United States for over five years if they can pass a background check and agree to work as an employee and pay payroll taxes. In exchange, the government would issue a ‘worker permit’ good for three years, and which can be renewed if all conditions of employment are met. It is not a path to citizenship, or a way to get welfare, but it allows its holder to get a driver’s license and to come out of the shadows.”


Scott Bleich, principal at Heartland in Iowa says, “With ethnic minorities, the primary issues are language and cultural barriers. Women in construction seem to suffer from the stigma of construction being a ‘man’s world’ or ‘a man’s job,’ which we believe is shortsighted thinking. Our industry has come a long way in this, but we need to continue to be intentional. We need to embrace legal immigration. We need to continue to support groups like the National Association of Women in Construction. We need to make job sites more accessible for those with disabilities.”


Jerry Reicks Jr., president and CEO of Tri-State Drywall in Iowa, mentions the situation of illegal immigrants finding their way onto the job site via labor brokers: “GCs are accepting more and more the risk of using this source of labor,” he says. “Legal minorities are thriving in our industry and make up the majority of our tradesmen and superintendents by far.”


Merit Wins

Rick Wagner, senior projects manager at Richard Wagner Enterprises, LLC in North Carolina, points out, “This country was built by minority immigrants” (his own family included). “However, I believe today we have an overloading of our cities and an out-of-control immigration system. All of that directly affects all the minorities already here fighting for their opportunity for a better life.”


He concedes, “It is hard for some with language barriers, hard for those with disabilities because of accessibility, and hard for women in a male-dominated industry. But they are all welcome to be in the industry and earn their position, not just be a quota. We must correct the broken system, prosecute the criminals, and secure the border for all of us.”


He adds, “We have a great American working system already. I believe new immigrants and minorities should first conform to what is already in place as far as language, education and training. The job site is a dangerous place for anyone who cannot competently communicate or have the mobility to cope with jobsite hazards safely. We must put safety first, not social policy.”


Michael Mazzone, president of Statewide General Contracting & Construction in Hawaii, says, “I was a minority worker with no family when I became an apprentice, the only white guy among Hawaiians, Chinese and Filipinos. So, if you ask me, ‘How did you face the challenges of being the only white guy in the company?’ I would answer: ‘I used the trade skills and out-performed every other apprentice on the job. I made sure my journeyman knew I was worthy of his time so he would teach me every bit of knowledge he had. I took charge and let my skills speak for me.’ After five years with that company, I was supervising journeymen who had been in the trade for years.


“What advice would I give to anyone wanting to be in the trade today? Stop complaining, and let your skills do the talking for you. That is what every employer is looking for. Employers don’t care what color or gender you are. All we care about is if you can make money for the company, which is purely based on skill and performance.”


He concludes, “I don’t think the industry should change at all. What I always loved about the construction industry is the merit-based system. Even in the union shop companies, merit wins out over every other aspect. If you can do the job, you will always have work.”


Can we do better? Yes, of course we can. There is a balance to be found, and this is expressed in the various viewpoints of those AWCI members quoted in this article. They may seem contradictory or even polarized at first glance, but if you read them carefully and take them as a whole, there is really no disagreement or argument. What’s wanted is a level playing field where merit can shine, regardless of ethnicity, gender or anything else, to the benefit of the industry and everyone in it.


David C Phillips, a freelance writer and photographer, is an original founding partner at Words & Images.

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