NY construction unions make it hard for minorities to move up

The New York Post reports:

When Averil Morrison sued the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 14-B for racial discrimination back in 2012, she confirmed what we’ve known for decades: New York City union construction is no standard-bearer for workplace diversity.

And when her lawsuit received a pre-trial hearing this month, the plight of minority employees citywide gained renewed relevance.

Operating Engineers Local 14 “intentionally and systematically discriminated in favor of white members in the assignment of work to operating engineers,” according to a summary of the complaint. The union allegedly “prevents many minorities from joining the union while welcoming whites . . . referred or sponsored by existing white members.” (Translation: It’s who you know that counts.)

According to the complaint, Local 14-B’s membership is 91 percent white — only about 100 of its roughly 1,200 members are minorities.

Unsettling, yes, but not surprising. City construction unions’ history of racial discrimination prompted an investigation by the New York City Commission on Human Rights under former Mayor David Dinkins. In 1993, the commission issued a damning “Building Barriers” report, which found that the severe underrepresentation of black employees indicated a “profound failure in social policy.”

Where would unions be without racism?