A complaint filed with the National Labor Relations Board in Minneapolis reveals a green building issue I don’t think anyone predicted.  It appears the roofing contractor hired to install the green roof decided his laborers were more akin to landscapers than roofers.  Landscapers earn about $20 less an hour than roofers….you think you see where this is going? Wait, there’s more!

The workers filed a complaint with the NLRB stating they should be compensated at a roofer’s wage, not at a landscaper’s wage.  OK, I thought that was coming. What you didn’t know . . . this project, the Target Center, is a massive arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota (home of the Minnesota Timberwolves of the NBA).  And….(dramatic pause)….the arena is owned by the city of Minneapolis. 

This opens up a whole new can of worms. I am not well versed (or versed at all) in the laws of Minnesota, but if they are anything like California, you enter a different area of law when you contract with a municipality.  What appears most telling about the uncertainty of the claim is that Minneapolis took immediate action on the safety issues asserted by the laborers, but is still reviewing the wage issues.

According to Rob Snider of Roofers and Waterproofers Local 96 (who represents the laborers in their claim), the review is being handled by the human rights division of the city. This is a confusing issue indeed, but any decision will set a precedent.

Mr. Snider hopes the city or NLRB will establish a clear precedent that roofers are roofers no matter what type of roof is installed.  The union’s position is that if you are up on the top of a structure you’re a roofer.  The safety issues are the same, and the safety regulations are the same. 

Currently, Local 96 is looking into whether this same pay structure was used when the same contractor installed a green roof on Minneapolis’s City Hall.  The NLRB will decide the Target Center issue in about six weeks. The city may issue a decision before that.  We will keep you updated.

Thanks to Shari Shapiro over at the Green Building Law Blog who alerted me to this story, and thanks to Abby Simons from the Star Tribune and Rob Snider at Roofers and Waterproofers Local 96 for taking time to speak with me.