Answer extracted from the Forum Focus podcast — listen to the full episode below.
How should contractors and unions approach hiring women and people of color to ensure genuine inclusion rather than superficial compliance?
Contractors and unions must place women and people of color in supervisory positions, not just entry-level roles—giving them the same chance to advance or fail that white male workers routinely receive. When a middle-aged white man fails on a job, the company hires the next white man; people of color and women deserve identical treatment, not exclusion from future opportunities based on a single person's performance.
Genuine inclusion in construction goes beyond hiring. As Sylvester Taylor explains in the episode, the industry has long operated on a principle of repeated second chances for majority workers—yet applies a one-strike policy to minorities. This structural bias starts at recruitment and extends through career progression.
The path to meaningful change requires contractors to examine their decision-making patterns. Leadership positions are where real institutional change begins. When women and people of color hold supervisory roles, they influence hiring, mentoring, and workplace culture from positions of authority—not as isolated entry-level hires dependent on a single supervisor's goodwill.
Taylor's argument directly challenges the tokenism that passes for diversity in many construction firms. Hiring one woman or one person of color at entry level and promoting them only if they outperform peers is both unfair and ineffective. As discussed in this podcast, the construction industry's traditionally exclusive culture has meant that recruitment and advancement operate under entirely different rules depending on a worker's race or gender.
"I had to bite my tongue until it was my turn to swing. And then when it was my turn to swing, I swung as hard as I could."
Sylvester Taylor — Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives at The Electrical Connection (IBEW Local One and NECA St. Louis Chapter). Taylor has been an electrician with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers for 32 years, co-founded and presides over the Electrical Workers Minority Caucus, and in March was appointed to lead the first-ever joint diversity, equity, and inclusion position created between IBEW and NECA nationally. He served as a representative for the 80th District in the Missouri House of Representatives from 2012 to 2019 and chairs the St. Louis County Fire Safety and Standards Commission.
The real metric of inclusion is whether contractors are willing to hire supervisors and leaders from underrepresented groups. This means not only recruiting women and people of color for entry-level apprenticeships—important as that is—but actively developing and promoting them into management, project leadership, and decision-making roles where they shape the industry's future.
A practical starting point involves unions and contractors auditing their current supervisory rosters and succession planning. If women and people of color remain concentrated in entry-level or trade positions after years of diversity initiatives, the organization is likely perpetuating the very inclusion theater it claims to address. Taylor's work with the newly created diversity initiative at IBEW Local One and NECA illustrates how intentional structural changes can reframe hiring and advancement across the electrical trades nationally.
See also
What concrete example demonstrates the impact of early career entry in the electrical trades on economic mobility?
Taylor describes a young man he helped enter the trade at age 18 who, by age 21, purchased his first house. Taylor notes that this achievement puts the young man ahead of college graduates who typically face $70,000 to $80,000 in student debt upon graduation.
What does Taylor identify as the personal strategy that allowed him to survive and advance within a historically hostile construction trade environment?
Taylor states: "I had to bite my tongue until it was my turn to swing. And then when it was my turn to swing, I swung as hard as I could." He emphasizes that he waited for his opportunity and then performed at his best when it came.
How many apprentices can IBEW Local One accommodate annually, and how does that compare to current demand?
IBEW Local One can take approximately 80 apprentices per year, based on industry work cycles. In the earlier part of the year discussed, the union interviewed 700 young people—an unprecedented number in Taylor's experience.