Collaborative and subcommittees
Worksite Cooperation Committee
The Worksite Cooperation Committee is a subcommittee of the Collaborative that:
- Identifies worksite issues related to workforce diversity
- Develops recommendations to ensure highway construction worksites are respectful and welcoming to all
The committee meets 9-10:30 a.m. on the second Thursday every other month. Norma Miller serves as chairperson.
Participants include stakeholders from different industry groups including:
- Community-based organizations
- Construction industry workers
- Contractors
- DEED
- MnDOT
- Unions
2022 Worker Survey results
If you would like an alternate format of this report, contact Isela Xitlali Gómez.
The committee devised an anonymous employee survey in 2022 to learn more about barriers to entering and working in highway heavy construction. Contractors, unions, apprenticeship coordinators, and other industry stakeholders then helped distribute this digital questionnaire to workers across all trades and at all levels.
Methodology
- Hosted on SurveyMonkey
- Provided link in emails and texts
- Provided QR code in emails, texts, and on flyers posted on jobsites
- Asked 29 voluntary questions, including: multiple choice, fill in the blank, and rating scales
After compiling and analyzing the data from 266 survey responses, the committee published its findings – the 2022 Worker Survey – in February 2024. The report details the trade, level, years of experience, and demographics of respondents, as well as their answers to more substantive questions centered around three primary themes: barriers to entering and working in the industry, reporting and retaliation, and discrimination and harassment.
Potential next steps
Potentional next steps following the 2022 Worker Survey include but aren’t limited to:
- Presenting the data to different industry stakeholders
- Conducting another survey(s) focusing on specific topics and/or narrowing the respondent pool to a specific subsection of workers
- Researching and offering recommendations to address childcare challenges facing workers
- Updating the Respectful Workplace Guide to incorporate survey results and insights
- Researching the workplace impact of the fear of retaliation and the retaliation prevention strategies of other industries
Please contact the committee with any questions on the 2022 Worker Survey Report or feedback concerning next steps to understand the experiences of workers in highway heavy construction.
Respectful Workplace Guide
The committee created a Respectful Workplace Guide to improve behaviors on highway construction project sites. The group created the document geared towards contractors covering the following:
- Business case on why a respectful workplace is important
- Strategies to improve workplace culture
Respectful Workforce Webinar
A respectful and inclusive workplace is a necessity for contractors looking to thrive in today's competitive marketplace. With that in mind, MnDOT Office of Civil Rights provided a free webinar "Strategies for Creating a Respectful Workplace: Implementing Best Practices to Improve Workplace Culture."