Encore Boston Harbor President Bob DeSalvio reported last week to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) that it had exceeded all of its goals in diversity hiring on the casino project.
“We are exceeding in all our categories,” said DeSalvio. “It’s a great story to tell.”
The diversity hiring goals for the project were a key element in virtually every meeting at the MGC, as it set high bars and great accountability on all of its licensees to meet goals for hiring. Diversity populations included women, minorities and veterans.
When it comes to construction contracts, DeSalvio said they had an overall goal of 11.4 percent for all diversity populations and they hit 18 percent – mostly on the strength of women.
The numbers were as follows:
•Minorities had a goal of 5 percent and they awarded 6 percent for a total of $79 million.
•Women had a goal of 4.5 percent and they achieved 11.5 percent, or $152 million.
•Veterans had a goal of 1 percent and they awarded 2.5 percent, which was $33 million.
When it came to the construction workforce, that was also very diverse – even meeting the aggressive goal for women on the job.
For women, DeSalvio said they had a goal of 6.9 percent of the workforce, and actually are at 7.1 percent. That boiled down to 423 women on the job.
“We believe that’s the most of any job in the Commonwealth in terms of percentages,” he said.
Other numbers were:
•Minorities had a goal of 15.7 percent, and they hired 25.1 percent, or 1,500 people.
•Veterans had a goal of 3 percent and 5.8 percent were hired, or 300 people.
When it came to the design portion of the construction process, there was an overall goal of 18.9 percent of the work going to diverse populations, and they awarded 23.6 percent – which represented $15 million.
“These numbers are encouraging steps and I know what a concerted effort it was to bring more people into the project,” said Commissioner Gayle Cameron.
Said DeSalvio, “This benefit will go beyond our project because these workers now go on to the next job and hopefully bring friends and family with them.”