Labor law hits 98%
Navajo Preference Act impact helpful, surprising

New Mexico Highway department workers Anderson Lee and Daryl Beyal work Tuesday to temporarily fill in the dirt around a cattle-guard on US-491 in Ya-Tah-Hey that has been washed away by the recent rains. Beyal and Lee both said that their efforts were only a temporary fix and the cattle-guard is scheduled to be replaced next week. [Independent File Photo]

By Natasha Kaye Johnson
Diné Bureau

Wynema Tahe, a traffic controller with A.S. Horner Construction Company, finishes putting together a road sign at the construction yard on the corner of 491 and Maloney Avenue in this file photo. [Independent File Photo]

WINDOW ROCK — Fifteen years ago, in even the most rural part of the Navajo Nation, it was common to see construction jobs filled by non-Navajos. The Navajo Preference in Employment Act has since turned that once normal sight into a rare one.

Although Navajo preference laws were implemented in the 1970's, employment of Navajos within in the construction field on the Navajo Nation still hovered around 43 to 46 percent in the mid-1990s. High regulation of NPEA laws today has raised the percentage of Navajo workers on Navajo Nation construction projects to between 96 to 98 percent.

"It had been in the laws, but we didn't really start it enforcing it until the 1990s," Reynold Lee, director of the Office of Navajo Labor Relations with the Division of Human Resources, said.

With summer beginning and construction projects popping up across the Nation, the Office of Navajo Labor Relations is making sure that companies are abiding by the laws and hiring Navajos. "If we see a high number of non-Navajos (on a construction site), we give them (hired companies) a week to hire Navajos," said Lee. "There's no shortage of laborers."

With high unemployment rates on the Navajo Nation, Lee said making sure that Navajos are given the opportunity to work is important.

Navajo preference laws and Indian Preference Law evolved from the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. The intent of the U. S. Congress was to facilitate Indian self-government. While there was uproar about Indian employment preference laws following its implementation, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Indian Preference Law does not constitute harmful racial discrimination or violate the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment, but is reasonably and rationally designed to further Indian self-government. It is a distinct statue that does not violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Although most companies are aware of the additional operational issues that may arise on Indian lands, Lee said many are still unaware of the different employment laws when operating on or near Indian lands. Though employment laws have been in effect for years, there are non-Navajo companies who win bids for construction jobs that are still caught off guard with the preference laws.

"They're surprised," said Lee. "They always ask what is the percentage of (Navajo workers) required."

The Navajo Preference in Employment Act requires employers doing business within the Navajo Nation or near its boundaries to give preference in employment to Navajos, but also requires submission of a written Navajo affirmative action plan, and the creation and posting of a Navajo employment preference policy. But it does not stop some employers from attempting to have their own company workers do the work.

"Their favorite phrase is 'My people are specialized, they're trained to do it'," said Lee.

It is during these situations that Lee said the office has to become adamant and remind them of the employment laws. "A lot of them are sure that Navajos are unskilled," said Lee. "But they are surprised and notice that a lot of them take pride in their work."

"There's Navajos all over the country looking for work here," he said. "There is no shortage of skilled Navajo workers."