NYC★ WORKS
CELEBRATING LABOR IN THE BIG APPLE
CONSTRUCTION UNIONS COPE WITH
NEW REALITIES IN PHASE 1 REOPENING
BY MARK HALLUM
The recovery begins now
for construction trades
in New York City, the
members of which are not
only facing the usual occupational
hazards, but the
looming threat of COVID-19.
June 8 marked the beginning
of the first phase reopening
in the city allowing
for those who build New York
City to get back to work, but
the unions have a whole new
role to play in keeping the
spread of the disease away
from their members.
Devon Lomax from District
Council 9 of the International
Union of Painters
and Allied Trades says
antibody testing, personal
protective equipment and
staggered schedules have
been a new feature in protecting
members, though
many do not face the same
hazards as some in the construction
business as they
often own their own respirators.
PPE is mostly being provided
for workers traveling
between work and home.
“Construction is always
a risk, but in these kinds
of times during COVID
around there is some risk.
It’s a construction site, but
in New York in general in
can be hard to get six feet
away from another person
at any time. That’s why we
created the staggered times
for workers to come in,” Lomax
said. “As far as PPE and
N95 masks, a lot of our painters,
drywall painters and
bridge painters, other than
N95 masks they have respirators
that they use for when
they’re sanding walls.”
One DC9 worker, while
over 80% of their members
were unemployed at the
height of the crisis, even lent
his respirator to his wife
who was a nurse, Lomax
said. Bridge painters to begin
with have PPE that goes
above and beyond the CDC’s
recommendations, according
to Lomax.
With the union already in
contracts for many of projects,
Lomax said employers
have not pushed back
against demands to stagger
shifts.
DC9 workers have been
working throughout the pandemic
as essential workers
building the new terminals
at LaGuardia Airport and
chipping away at turning
the Farley Building into the
new Moynihan Train Hall in
Midtown Manhattan.
Paul Capurso is the president
of the New York City
and Vicinity District Council
of Carpenters and told
amNewYork the organization
has launched an extensive
information campaign
for its members, up to 30% of
whom were unemployed at
some point during the New
York on PAUSE period.
“We stepped up a little
more when we took to zoom
and had workshops with
68% attendance,” Capurso
said of the communications
on safety and what to expect.
But the carpenters
who were not unemployed
were finding work building
out hospital capacity as
the state anticipated over
Photo by Todd Maisel
100,000 cases and such took
measures triple hospital capacity.
“Early on we worked with
a lot of hospitals with redesigning
the space, we built
temporary facilities. Unfortunately,
we built some of
the temporary morgues,”
Capurso added. ” We had
the opportunity to do a lot of
highway work as well.
The DCC was able to preorder
100,000 masks and Capurso
says the employers
have been cooperative in facilitating
social distancing
on the job site.
Lou Colletti, president
and CEO of the Building
Trades Employers Association,
said dedication emergency
funds helped their
organization not only purchase
face masks, but they
acquired enough to donate
to healthcare workers.
Temperature checks are
mandatory to enter job sites,
only two workers at a time
are allowed in “shanties”
and elevators, and disinfectant
is available for employees
and worksites. All in all,
Colletti says the cooperation
between trade workers, project
management staff and
government agencies.
“Very early on, we were
faced with the challenge of
getting face masks as much
as others, we have dedicated
labor-management funds for
emergencies such as this, so
we were able to go out and
purchase large quantities for
when we were able to work,”
Colletti said. “Many of my
contractors ended up donating
thousands of masks to
healthcare institutions, so
we had more than enough.”
Every employer has to
have safety plans in place
and temperature checks
have t be logged with the city
Department of Buildings, according
to Colletti.
“For us this is consistent
with the way we responded
to 9/11 and on Sandy. It’s not
a surprise that we all came
together and are working together,”
Colletti said.
Even essential sights
were operating at 25% to 30%
due to difficulties with workers
avoiding public transit.
The overnight shutdowns of
the subways between 1 and
5 a.m. helped boost productivity,
Colletti said. But for
those on non-essential work
sights, about 60% to 70%
went without a paycheck.
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