Is construction racist?

"Jade Goody on Big Brother was nothing. I hear those kind of ignorant racist comments every day," said Barry Oxford, senior resident liaison officer at construction firm Higgins.

Oxford, who is 50 and black, has been with the social housing contractor for 10 years and believes that while racism hasn't curbed his career, it is widely accepted across the industry as "part of the banter".

The perennial issue of racism was thrown into the spotlight last week by the Olympic Delivery Authority. Its draft equality and diversity strategy stated that workforces on Olympics projects needed a "reasonable number" of staff from black, Asian and ethnic minorities.

Meeting goals
But how geared up is the construction industry to meet these goals? Figures from the Commi-ssion for Racial Equality's (CRE) 2004 Labour Force Survey found that only 3% of construction workers were from non-white ethnic minorities, compared with a figure of 10% for the overall population.

Oxford is one of two black people in the construction sector who spoke to CJ.

Both agree that attitudes have improved in recent years, but are resigned to the fact that racism still lingers in the background.

Oxford claimed it happens at all levels of the industry - from offensive graffiti in site toilets to clumsy jokes in boardrooms, where he said a predominance of white middle-aged men means there is no real impetus for change.

"It's like water off a duck's back now," he said. But would he like it to stop tomorrow? "Oh, God yes," he replied.

He is not alone. Jeff Joseph is a 40-year-old black community development manager who has been at the same company for eight years. He previously worked in retail and for the civil service and concedes some of the racist graffiti he has seen on construction sites would be unthinkable in those two arenas.

Bigoted industry
"I've made my career in construction and I love it. But the downsides include the fact that it is one of the most bigoted industries out there," he said.

Joseph puts it down to the industry's roots. "Thirty years ago it was even more of a white male-dominated industry than it is today. Those workers have come up through the ranks and are now running construction companies.

"Combined with the fact that a lot of contractors are of Irish origin, ethnic workers have traditionally been in the minority."

Both men, however, are keen to draw a distinction between 'banter' and 'abuse' and stress that Higgins is not institutionally racist.

Joseph said: "'Banter' is making a joke like 'I'm going out for a traditional British meal of curry tonight' to an Indian. 'Abuse' is telling them they smell of curry."

Oxford put such comments down to what he calls the "Essex boy mentality". "People will make pathetic jokes about me driving a BMW or the size of my manhood, but I give back as good as I get."

Education
Joseph added that because a lot of Higgins' staff come from areas like Romford in Essex they can also be influenced by groups such as the British National Party. "Essentially it's a class and education issue," he added.

Irrespective of the nuances, unions and trade bodies are keen to stamp it out, although they are hazy on the detail.

Perhaps tellingly, a spokesman for the CITB told CJ that he couldn't remember the last course on racism it ran, while a Construction Confederation spokesman conceded that while "it undoubtedly goes on", it was no worse than in any other industry.

UCATT is similarly guarded. A spokesman said: "I've never seen any evidence that construction is worse than any other sector and we've never passed a resolution at conference about it."

Graduates and women
Despite the current reticence of trade bodies, Joseph is hopeful for the future and said the industry must also do more to attract more graduates and women.

He added that the change is also being driven by clients. "The housing associations we work for have very strict rules about equality in the workplace. You won't see a page three pin-up anywhere now." Unthinkable 20 years ago, but perhaps a sign of what can happen when companies are hit in the wallet.

Do you suffer racism on site? email tom.bill@rbi.co.uk

Racism in the workplace
If you think you have been discriminated against, talk to your immediate boss and discuss your concerns. Under the Race Relations Act, cases must be brought to court or tribunal within three months of the incident.

Racial discrimination can be difficult to prove. You will stand a better chance of winning if you gather as much evidence as you can.

For more information, go to http://www.cre.gov.uk/legal/complaint_employer.html

Source: Commission for Racial Equality

[Contract Journal, 7th Feburary 2007, p 6]