In the News

Stadium Project Falling Short Of City’s Ambitious Hiring Goals
The Washington Post
February 24, 2008

Noose Incident Highlights Systemic Ballpark Discrimination
DCEEC Press Release
January 25, 2008

"There's a pattern here. They've shut out local and minority residents from work, they've been silent over the racism involving the electricians, and now this," said Trabue. "It's clear those involved with stadium construction -- including IBEW Local 26, which has been involved in each of the racist  incidents -- have little regard for local, minority workers."

Ballpark Worker Fired Over Noose Incident
Washington Post
January 25, 2008

"The incident came less than two months after five African American electricians said they had been fired after a Truland worker made what they believed were racially derogatory remarks about them."

Rally Urges Local Labor for Ballpark
Roll Call
December 6, 2007

"Protesters gathered outside RFK Stadium on Tuesday morning, charging that the D.C. government and Washington Nationals have broken their promise to hire minorities and D.C. residents to build the team's new baseball stadium."

Firings spark demonstration at RFK; protestors claim racial motivations
American Observer
December 5, 2007

"Protestors gathered outside RFK Stadium this morning in reaction to the recent firing of five black construction workers from the project for a new Washington, D.C., stadium. The protestors, mostly black and hispanic construction workers and contractors, said the firings were racist."

D.C. Residents Still Not Doing Enough Stadium Work
Washington City Paper
October 12, 2007

"D.C. residents aren't doing anywhere near the amount of work that the stadium's labor agreement promised."

On deck: Playing field for stadium
Washington Times
October 10, 2007

"Officials acknowledged yesterday that only 28 percent of the project's journeyman workers were residents of the District, well short of the commission's goal of 50 percent. Council member Kwame Brown, at-large Democrat and chairman of the committee on economic development, called the 28 percent figure unacceptably low."

DC Residents Not Getting Enough Stadium Building Hours
NBC4
October 3, 2007

"D.C. residents were supposed to be allotted half the skilled-labor hours needed to build the new Washington Nationals stadium. But numbers from the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission show residents have only worked about one-third of the total hours so far."

Goals Unmet on Stadium Construction Jobs for D.C. Workers
Washington Post
October 2, 2007

"The figures have frustrated some D.C. leaders who supported the $611 million investment of public money for the stadium complex with the expectation that the project would provide many jobs for residents."

DC Residents Lose Out on Stadium Jobs
Washington City Paper
September 12, 2007

"Although residents were promised a chunk of construction jobs at the stadium, the work hasn't come through...'I really think they knew it couldn't get met,' [Jerry] Lozupone [of the Building and Construction Trades Council] says about the resident worker goals. 'Come April next year, nobody is going to give a rat's ass. Everybody forgets it. It goes away."