ForConstructionPros.com

The melting pot that is America finds people from different cultures working together, particularly on construction sites.

While early immigrants were usually from Italy, Ireland, Poland and other European countries, today's non-native workers are most likely to come from Mexico and other Hispanic countries. Concrete contractors are faced with the challenge of blending the best of the traditional American work ethic with the work practices of these newer arrivals.

Communication issues

It might seem that speaking different languages would be the main source of communication difficulties on the job. But consultant Chris Krueger of Zerah Services Inc. attributes only 30 percent of misunderstandings to language, with 70 percent caused by cultural differences. He blames power distances for many miscommunications between workers and supervisors. "That has to do with how you interact with your boss," he explains. "If you're born in the U.S., you're expected to speak up and state your opinion if you have one. That will never happen in a meeting with workers from Mexico, Central and South America.

If the boss says, 'Did you understand?', they're going to shake their head 'yes' even if they don't. We call it 'Why does yes mean no?' It's really a cultural issue — you don't contradict the boss. You (the supervisor) need to observe to see if what you said is taking place (on the job) to be sure they understand or look to see if the light's on in their eyes."

Making sure workers understand is an important part of the supervisor's job, says Trademark Concrete Systems, Inc. General Superintendent Art Rodriguez.