Racism on the jobsite: How hate erodes construction’s bottom line
Racism on the jobsite: How hate erodes construction’s bottom line
As 2020 enters its final months, the construction industry is grappling with how to deal with overtly racist acts in its midst, even as George Floyd’s and Breonna Taylor’s deaths at the hands of police have spurred a broader reckoning with racism in the United States and around the world.
From nooses hung on display in work areas to verbal harassment to racist graffiti in port-a-potties, there have been nearly 20 reported incidents of hate and discrimination on North American jobsites this year. (For a recap of some of the most recent jobsite episodes, see Construction Dive’s Racist Incidents Timeline).
But racist attitudes and actions are nothing new in the construction industry. Stephanie Roldan, who is Mexican-American, recalls the overt discrimination she dealt with early in her career. Roldan, who works as corporate lean manager for San Jose, California-based Rosendin Electric, said that in her first job with a different employer she and a Black worker were tasked with an assignment in a first-floor mechanical room, while White workers were directed to go to the basement.
But racist attitudes and actions are nothing new in the construction industry. Stephanie Roldan, who is Mexican-American, recalls the overt discrimination she dealt with early in her career. Roldan, who works as corporate lean manager for San Jose, California-based Rosendin Electric, said that in her first job with a different employer she and a Black worker were tasked with an assignment in a first-floor mechanical room, while White workers were directed to go to the basement.