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City Report Calls for End of ‘Historic, Racially Exclusive Membership’ of Construction Unions

Local data, submitted by unions in July 2020, indicate that “numerous disparities” under PLA’s currently exist in Oakland. However, data was submitted to the city by only 10 out of 28 of the building trades. Presumably these may have been the unions with better results.

Published

4 years ago

November 9, 2021

Oakland Post

Women builders at Habitat for Humanity site. Photo courtesy of Habitat for Humanity

By Ken Epstein

The City of Oakland’s Department of Race & Equity recently issued a report calling for construction unions to abandon their historic, racially exclusive membership policies if they want the city to sign a contract guaranteeing the unions receive the lion’s-share of construction jobs on city-funded projects.

The City Council has been under behind-the-scenes pressure for several years from both building trades unions and their allied community groups to sign a binding contract, called a Project Labor Agreement (PLA), guaranteeing most jobs on city projects will go to union members.

Most building trades craft unions have failed to report numbers of Black and women members of their organizations. They also have not taken steps to eliminate the barriers to entry nor the sometimes-hostile work environments that keep African Americans and women out of union construction jobs.

So far, the 70-page racial equity analysis report, “Improving the Effectiveness of Project Agreements,” which examines current conditions and makes proposals for change, has been largely ignored by the media and most Oakland accountability activists.

The report was completed in in December 2020 by the Estolano Advisors and the San Francisco Foundation and submitted to the City Council by the Department of Race and Equity.

The San Francisco Foundation convened an advisory committee of representatives of public agencies, community-based organizations and the Alameda County Building Trades to examine strategies to diversify the construction workforce through PLA’s. Also supporting the study were Julian Gross of Renee Public Law Group, Junius Williams Consulting and others.

98% of current members in the data sample are male;
25% of building trades members lives in Alameda County (not necessarily in Oakland), and 75% do not;
Union members in the samples were 54% white, 35% Hispanic/Latino, 5% Black, 3% Asian, and 4% other or unknown.
Journey workers (the most skilled and highest paid) represent 79% of members, while 21% are apprentices;

These survey results confirm “that current data from the trade affiliates does not fully capture the landscape of the local construction workforce because trade affiliates do not collect data consistently and are not mandated to collect and report it,” according to the report.

The ongoing economic disparity in opportunities for women and African Americans in the building trades are national in scope and historically conditioned, according to a report to the City Council by Darlene Flynn, director of the Department of Race and Equity:

“Inequity in outcomes is the result of over 200 years of institutional policy and practice that excluded BIPOC Black, Indigenous, People of Color) groups from fair and equitable access to living wage employment and wealth building.”

“Government has a responsibility to right historical wrongs in which it participated, and the City of Oakland has made a commitment to address disparities through intentional equity strategies in all the City does,” Flynn said in her report.

One chart in the report shows that although Black workers comprise 12% of the nation’s workforce, they obtain roughly a flat 6% of the jobs in construction for 25 years, from 1995 to today.

National unemployment rates underscore the inequities. In July 2021, overall unemployment during the pandemic remained at 6.5%. White unemployment was lower at 5.1%, Black unemployment was significantly higher at 10.1% and Hispanic/Latino joblessness stood at 8.4%

The report listed some of the persistent barriers that at present maintain the underrepresentation of Black and female building trade membership:

“Vastly different, opaque, sometimes subjective entry process for each trade (somewhat like trying to get accepted into an exclusive fraternity);
Disparities in participation and success rates in apprenticeship programs, mainly for Black and women workers;
BIPOC members disproportionately hired into lower-paid apprenticeship programs;
Small and local contractors, many non-union but hire more women and African Americans, are often shut out of city contracting under PLA’s;
Poor reporting of race and gender data for unions, and “ineffective/inconsistent monitoring of contractor obligations;”
Poor funding for pre-apprenticeship programs;
Unwelcoming worksite culture for under-represented groups, lack of mentorship support for underrepresented groups;
Lack of public accountability for equity outcomes.

This is the first of a series of articles on Project Labor Agreements and racial equity analysis. Future articles will focus on concerns of Black construction workers and small contractors in Oakland and solutions that would produce more equitable outcomes.

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Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

Published

1 day ago

June 20, 2025

Oakland Post

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Juneteenth: Celebrating Our History, Honoring Our Shared Spaces

It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

Published

3 days ago

June 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

By Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

Juneteenth marks an important moment in our shared history—a time to reflect on the legacy of our ancestors who, even in the face of injustice, chose freedom, unity, and community over fear, anger, and hopelessness. We honor their resilience and the paths they paved so future generations can continue to walk with pride.

As we head into the weekend full of festivities and summer celebrations, I want to offer a friendly reminder about who is not invited to the cookout: litter.

At Clean California, we believe the places where we gather—parks, parade routes, street corners, and church lots—should reflect the pride and beauty of the people who fill them. Our mission is to restore and beautify public spaces, transforming areas impacted by trash and neglect into spaces that reflect the strength and spirit of the communities who use them.

Too often, after the music fades and the grills cool, our public spaces are left littered with trash. Just as our ancestors took pride in their communities, we honor their legacy when we clean up after ourselves, teach our children to do the same, and care for our shared spaces.

Small acts can inspire big change. Since 2021, Clean California and its partners have collected and removed over 2.9 million cubic yards of litter. We did this by partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations to organize grassroots cleanup events and beautification projects across California.

Now, we invite all California communities to continue the incredible momentum and take the pledge toward building a cleaner community through our Clean California Community Designation Program. This recognizes cities and neighborhoods committed to long-term cleanliness and civic pride.

This Juneteenth, let’s not only celebrate our history—but also contribute to its legacy. By picking up after ourselves and by leaving no litter behind after celebrations, we have an opportunity to honor our past and shape a cleaner, safer, more vibrant future.

Visit CleanCA.com to learn more about Clean California.

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OPINION: California’s Legislature Has the Wrong Prescription for the Affordability Crisis — Gov. Newsom’s Plan Hits the Mark

Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

Published

3 days ago

June 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook. Courtesy of Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.

By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook

As a pastor and East Bay resident, I see firsthand how my community struggles with the rising cost of everyday living. A fellow pastor in Oakland recently told me he cuts his pills in half to make them last longer because of the crushing costs of drugs.

Meanwhile, community members are contending with skyrocketing grocery prices and a lack of affordable healthcare options, while businesses are being forced to close their doors.

Our community is hurting. Things have to change.

The most pressing issue that demands our leaders’ attention is rising healthcare costs, and particularly the rising cost of medications. Annual prescription drug costs in California have spiked by nearly 50% since 2018, from $9.1 billion to $13.6 billion.

Some lawmakers, however, have advanced legislation that would drive up healthcare costs and set communities like mine back further.

I’m particularly concerned with Senate Bill (SB) 41, sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a carbon copy of a 2024 bill that I strongly opposed and Gov. Newsom rightly vetoed. This bill would impose significant healthcare costs on patients, small businesses, and working families, while allowing big drug companies to increase their profits.

SB 41 would impose a new $10.05 pharmacy fee for every prescription filled in California. This new fee, which would apply to millions of Californians, is roughly five times higher than the current average of $2.

For example, a Bay Area family with five monthly prescriptions would be forced to shoulder about $500 more in annual health costs. If a small business covers 25 employees, each with four prescription fills per month (the national average), that would add nearly $10,000 per year in health care costs.

This bill would also restrict how health plan sponsors — like employers, unions, state plans, Medicare, and Medicaid — partner with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to negotiate against big drug companies and deliver the lowest possible costs for employees and members. By mandating a flat fee for pharmacy benefit services, this misguided legislation would undercut your health plan’s ability to drive down costs while handing more profits to pharmaceutical manufacturers.

This bill would also endanger patients by eliminating safety requirements for pharmacies that dispense complex and costly specialty medications. Additionally, it would restrict home delivery for prescriptions, a convenient and affordable service that many families rely on.

Instead of repeating the same tired plan laid out in the big pharma-backed playbook, lawmakers should embrace Newsom’s transparency-first approach and prioritize our communities.

Let’s urge our state legislators to reject policies like SB 41 that would make a difficult situation even worse for communities like ours.

About the Author

Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.