When you factor in the COVID-19 pandemic, recent social unrest, labor relations challenges, and a host of other hot-button issues facing the electrical construction industry this year, there was certainly no shortage of topics for NECA CEO David Long and IBEW President Lonnie R. Stephenson to discuss at this morning’s “Fireside Chat.” In this first general session, which kicked off the NECA 2020 Live virtual convention and trade show, the pair sat down at 9 a.m. for a candid conversation about diversity and inclusion in the industry, among other matters.
Long started off the dialog with an overview of the challenges the industry has faced over the last many months during what he considers a national disaster. “Then, in the middle of the pandemic, we had social unrest in America — it brought some things to the forefront that both IBEW and NECA had to address,” he says.
Stephenson went on to describe a resolution IBEW passed in 2016 that established a diversity and inclusion committee, made up of 33 people across the country, to address these types of issues. It has been looking at best practices and ways to bring more women and minorities into the trade. “We not only want to get them into the trades, but we want them to be able to get into leadership positions in their local unions,” he says. “We think there should be opportunities for everyone.”
In fact, in September, he appointed the first woman (Gina Cooper) to serve as an international vice president in IBEW’s 129-year history. Serving as an IVP for the Fourth District, Cooper has worked in all branches of the IBEW and was very qualified for the position with more than 15 years of experience on the international stage. “l’ll tell you one thing… She’s a tough cookie, too,” he says. “If people think they may push her around because she’s a female, they’ll find out really quick that won’t happen. She’s hit the ground running like I knew she would.”
In addition to prioritizing diversity in the workplace, the leaders talked about other top challenges facing their membership. Acknowledging that the country and the industry has faced some really hard days recently, Long highlighted some key initiatives moving forward. “We stopped a half million workers and put them back onto the job. Going forward, we’re still in a tumultuous environment in America,” he says. “On top of that, going back and seeing where the marketplace is, you and I both agree that recruitment is essential. We’re both trying to make great efforts in veterans programs like never before. We’re working on a hands-on apprenticeship programs to try and get more craft certification processes in place.”
As far as what’s coming down the road, Stephenson cites challenges coming from both inside and outside of the construction industry. Continuing to attract more people to the workforce is key, notes Stephenson, emphasizing that the bottom line is the industry has to have enough people available to do the work. “One of the challenges is to really just continue to do our outreach programs, organize electrical workers that are already working in our industry to expand our workforce, and make sure we’re being very inclusive in our apprenticeship programs and expanding,” he says.
According to Long, another important trend among both organizations is recognizing regional differences. “One of the things we agreed to do was we’re going to give everyone a platform, but if they have the ability and want to sit down and negotiate something different locally, we’re ok with that,” Long says. “I think that’s helped us evolve into our new model of labor relations — it’s hands-on region by region. I think your reps and our reps are now more engaged than ever before, and you and I are seeing a lot of fruits of that labor as we go.”
Stephenson, who also values the regional perspective, concurs. “I know that what happens in the Northeast is a lot different than the Southeast — they’re different markets,” he says. “Nobody knows those markets better than the local leadership and their chapter managers. I tell our vice presidents, if you guys can put something together in your district that makes sense that’s going to recover work or keep work, then sit down and work it out.”
IBEW has already put regional agreements in place, notes Stephenson, who says the organization is doing progressive things, such as developing agreements that address portability and prefab. “It’s hard to sit out here in D.C. and make a decision that’s just going to be a blanket all across the country and think it’s going to work,” he says. “That’s why I take more of a regional approach. The goal is when they do that, they have to get the contractors to come in and take advantage of what they’re putting together. Once we put those tools together, we have to have those contractors who are going to come in and aggressively support it because our locals have to sell it to their membership.”
Looking forward, Long reiterates the importance of being able to pivot in a changing market, citing renewables, training, and technology as key areas of emphasis going forward. “What we see today is not what we’re going to have tomorrow,” he says.
The ever-changing energy landscape will also require a different skill level and training among electrical professionals, adds Stephenson. “As more electric vehicles come into play, that means charging stations will need to be installed all across the country on the highways, in homes, etc.,” he says. “There will be work opportunities for us, if we can get in early. We have a chance to grasp a hold of that.”
Retrofitability is another potential niche that’s poised for growth. “As we keep moving into renewable energy and people trying to conserve energy, retrofit buildings are a huge opportunity for us — it might be installing solar on a commercial building or more solar on homes,” he says. “We need to get ourselves in a position to get that work. We need to get together with contractors and target some of those opportunities because they’re coming.”
If electrical professionals aren’t proactive, they may miss out, maintains Long. “We need to keep that work,” he says. “Other union organizations are trying to infringe on traditional electrical work. I want our members to know we’re at the wheel trying to fight that every step of the way.”
Look at LED lighting as an example, notes Stephenson “They’ve got it in their mind, that’s low voltage; we can do that,” he says. “We do have a problem with some trades aggressively going after our work. So we need to make sure that we’re out there being competitive, aggressive, and going after that work — because others will if we don’t.”
As the Fireside Chat began to wind down, both executives took a moment to sincerely thank their members. “I think we would be remiss at a time like this if we didn’t take a moment to thank all of our workers for being essential, putting their lives at risk, working in the hospitals, working on the front lines, and our linemen and construction personnel outside battling the weather,” he says. “The worst phone call we can get as leaders is when we’ve lost an individual’s life. We beat ourselves up at night because we worry about it, it’s very emotional to us, and every person counts.”
Ultimately, it is a group effort, says Stephenson, who considers electrical workers first responders. “Our members go into an area and restore power,” he says. “We are essential workers to this country, and we should all be proud of what we do. Everybody relies on being able to turn that switch and have the lights come on.”
If IBEW and NECA didn’t work together like they do, Stephenson says that wouldn’t necessarily be the case. “It’s really an honor to be part of this industry,” he says. “We’ll get through this, and when we do, we’ll be in a position to move forward.”
