by his predecessor, David N. Dinkins, in which minority/women-owned firms would get up to 20% of the city’s contracts.
Familiar with the models in New York, Al Barber, national president of the National Association of Minority Contractors, says the construction industry finally recognizes the value of minority contractors participating in construction projects, and he points to several such initiatives across the country: “There are directives coming from owners of the companies hiring these larger firms requesting that the makeup of the workforce reflect that of the communities in which they do business.”