Labor Studies and Employment Relations Lecturer at Rutgers University Amy Tracy Wells, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss the North American Building Trades Unions study on diversity, equity and inclusion in both union and non-union construction workers.
NABTU commissioned a report from the Institute for Construction Employment Research better known as ICERES on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) within the construction industry. Wells discussed her involvement in the study, including the chapter that she was responsible for in the 2022 study. Wells was also responsible for looking at 20 different pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs within the construction industry, and their impact on the local community. During her study, she found that all 20 programs had successfully provided work and growth opportunities to underrepresented people within their local communities.
Wells discussed the background information on the study, and what caused the biggest improvements. Originally, before the directed desire to increase DEI numbers within the trades, many programs only responded to the requirements in contracts and community needs, and the increases were considered minor at best. When the trades began to make a direct effort for DEI growth, she found there was drastic improvement within the number of members of underrepresented races and an increase in female membership.
The growth of Hispanic members was one of the largest groups to show a positive increase in union members, according to the study, following a similar trend on the non-union side. Women however have been historically underrepresented in construction and face a multitude of harassment issues in the workplace, which Wells believes is a factor to their lower representation. While the female representation is not where it should be, she believes that there has been a positive trend in their growth.
Listen to the entire episode to learn more.