The National Football League faces a growing backlash over the way cheerleaders are compensated and the reason for it will sound very familiar to regular readers of Construction Citizen. Over the years, we’ve highlighted the practice of worker misclassification in our industry. Now other sectors of the economy are dealing with the issue in a variety of ways. Our industry insider Jim Kollaer noted just this week that the popular ride-sharing company Uber is under the legal microscope for whether its drivers should be classified as employees or independent contractors.In the case of NFL cheerleaders, at least five lawsuits have been filed including one against the Oakland Raiders. The Oakland Raiderettes settled that lawsuit with the team’s owners for a reported $1.5 million.
Describing the situation as a “perfect storm,” the President of Lee College in Baytown says the school is constantly innovating and working closely with the business community to fine-tune programs in an effort to meet the demands of employers and help students seeking to improve their lives.Construction Citizen’s team recently had a chance to sit down with the leadership of Lee College and the discussion was eye-opening. Administrators described a community-wide partnership aimed at putting people to work in solid careers – even if those careers aren’t “glamorous” or even top-of-mind for people who live in the heart of the petrochemical corridor along the Texas Gulf Coast.
September 17, 2015
The first reported conviction of a contractor guilty of wage theft was handed down by a jury in El Paso this past week. The case against the employer was pursued under a law passed in 2011 by a local lawmaker who has made stamping out wage theft one of his personal causes.The victim, Esteban Rangel, said he was owed $2,295 by the owner of Sun City Roofing, John Najera. Najera did not have any prior convictions, which is why the 180 day jail sentence announced in court was reduced to three months of probation. In addition, Najera must pay a fine of $5,000 and Rangel will receive $2,295 in restitution.The lawmaker who pushed for passage of the state’s new wage theft law, Sen. Jose Rodríguez, said the conviction is an important step forward and will hopefully send a message to other unethical business owners.
September 16, 2015
The head of the National Association of Women in Construction says the absolute most important thing she can say to women considering jobs in the industry is “don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do it.”During the association’s national conference in Nashville this past week, NAWIC President Sandy K. Field told Construction Citizen that the current labor shortage “is really at all levels” and the result of that is an even more attractive situation for women. She said entry level jobs are certainly open but there are also management opportunities like assistant project managers. Those jobs, of course, can lead to even higher management positions. “Lots of companies I know have a great need for that,” Field said.“Women sometimes don't have the self-confidence that our male counterparts do,” Field said and quickly added “we, as women, just need to say ‘hey, I can do this.’”Field began work in construction as a bookkeeper for a homebuilder, and over the last few decades worked her way up to management in a minority-owned firm in Houston. The opportunities for women are endless, she said, based largely on how hard a person is willing to work to achieve their goals.
September 10, 2015
Today is a day of rest for those who toil in the hot sun or blistering cold every day to build Texas and the rest of America. Millions regularly wake up before 5 am, drink their coffee, drive to a jobsite, and – just as they can start to see in the distance the structure on which they’ll work – they’re still about half an hour from parking the truck and getting down to business. Many do that kind of work daily from sun up until sun down and never complain or even ask for a “thank you.”The Texas Workforce Commission tells us there are more than 13 million workers “who are the backbone” of the Lone Star State. “As we continue to experience positive growth, in job creation and labor force size, the people of the great state of Texas are able to benefit from the thriving economy and opportunities that come with expanding employment,” commissioners said in a statement on Friday.
September 07, 2015
In a speech to business leaders in Houston last week, I pointed out that one of the reasons Donald Trump is doing so well in the presidential polls is he at least sounds like he’s certain of himself at such an economically uncertain time. I underscored the point about uncertainty by saying most of the people in the room had probably only checked their stock portfolios about 30 times before lunch.There were many nods of agreement.With the markets being so volatile, what's a sure thing? Hard to say. But, Martin Tiller at Nasdaq writes that publicly traded construction firms are doing particularly well:
September 03, 2015
Despite the fact that women are the absolute best candidates for many careers in construction, the perception remains that it’s a “man’s world” and that’s all there is to it in the industry. Though women lag behind the men in jobs actually held, leaders in the industry are working overtime to try to get more women involved and dispel the myths that prevent many of them from applying for positions in the first place.
August 26, 2015
More than two dozen states have now agreed to cooperate closely with the federal government to crack down on what’s known as worker misclassification. Alaska is the latest state to join the agreement.
August 19, 2015
Two men in GA have been arrested on federal charges that they intentionally misrepresented the employment classification of construction workers.
August 13, 2015
Read about a young woman from the Pacific Northwest who is working with her father in their family plumbing business. She hopes to inspire others to work with their hands.
August 06, 2015
