When you think of an industry dominated by men, construction might be one of the first that comes to mind.
Of all the people working in construction, women comprise only 10.9%. Even smaller is the number of women on the front lines of a job site — only 1 for every 100 employees in the field. Considering that women make up 47% of all employed individuals, this means that the construction industry is only benefitting from about 1.25% of women in the workforce.
There are several factors that explain this enormous gender gap, including unconscious gender bias, a lack of adequate training and negative perceptions of women working in construction. Despite these barriers, women continue to build their path in the industry. According to Randstad, women in construction management roles increased by 9% in the UK between 2018 and 2020.
As new construction industry jobs are expected to balloon by almost 2 million in 2022, companies are looking to recruit more women than ever before to bring their skill sets into the field.
What Can Women Do in Construction?
Women can take on any role in the construction industry. However, they are currently severely underrepresented in trade and executive positions. Just under 87% of women working in construction hold office positions, and only about 2.5% of tradespeople are women. Women also only make up about 14% of staff executive and 7% of line executive positions.
Despite these troubling statistics, many organizations are making efforts to promote more women into leadership positions, and women working in the industry are inspiring younger generations to follow in their footsteps.
Women Paving the Way
Although women are still underrepresented, they are making significant progress as leaders in the industry. A substantial portion of women executives and construction managers entered those roles in the last five years, suggesting that companies have more recently promoted women to leadership roles.
Kim Roy
Kim Roy took on the role of CEO for HITT Contracting in 2017 after working for the company for 18 years. As a company leader, Roy was named to Building Design + Construction Magazine’s Top 40 Under 40 class of 2009 and won the Commercial Observer’s 2019 Top Women in Real Estate – Innovation Award. In an interview with NAIOP, Kim said that she hopes her position as a leader will help attract more women to a traditionally male-dominated industry.
Meirav Oren
Meirav Oren has made waves in the construction industry over the past few years after co-founding the construction tech startup Versatile in 2019. During Oren’s time as CEO of Versatile, the company secured over $100 million in funding and launched CraneView, an AI-powered device that improves operator safety and production efficiency for cranes.
Kylie Rampa
Kylie Rampa is the current Group Head of Investment at Lendlease Australia, a company that engages in construction, development and infrastructure projects across the globe. She has extensive experience in the real estate and development industry, and she will be taking on a new role as CEO of QIC in April 2022.
Learning Resources for Women in Construction
To enter a competitive and dangerous field like construction, women must have access to resources that address their specific needs in the industry. Fortunately, companies and associations are increasing their efforts to promote women within their organizations and educate young women about the benefits of working in the industry.
Women’s Organizations
Nationally recognized groups like the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) and Women Construction Owners & Executives USA provide mentorship, marketing and networking opportunities to help women who are new to the construction industry. For example, Jenny Brongo, president and owner of Brongo Contracting and Supply in Rochester, NY, used NAWIC resources learn how to successfully run her business after her father passed.
Construction Courses
In certain areas of the country, large construction companies collaborate with the local community to offer courses and boot camp programs for young girls and women interested in the industry. Many cities also offer apprenticeship programs that strive to recruit women, prepare them for exams and train them with job-specific skills.
Construction Forums and Conferences
A number of conferences are held to celebrate and discuss the topic of women in construction. NAWIC’s Annual Conference includes professional seminars and workshops for women, while the Groundbreaking Women in Construction conference provides management training and teaches women how to bridge pay gaps in their workplace.
In addition to conferences, women can stay up to date in the industry with blogs like Constructing Equality and Tradeswomen, which aim to tackle diversity issues, provide original research, highlight scholarship opportunities and share personal stories and anecdotes.
Diversity Drives Performance
Although more diverse representation in the construction industry isn’t a reality today, this report by McKinsey & Co. reveals that the most gender-diverse companies are 25% more likely to achieve above-average profitability than companies with less diversity. After a year of industry-wide growth in 2021, hiring more women is an optimal way to capitalize on that expansion.
In fact, that report found that construction companies with more women in executive line roles than staff roles experienced above-average financial performance compared to companies that didn’t. When 30% or more of executive-level positions were filled by women, those companies had a 48% likelihood of outperforming their least diverse competitors.
Although more diversity brings about more success, Randstad found that women executives are more likely to occupy staff roles (14%) than line roles (7%). This is in stark contrast to men in executive roles, with 33% operating as staff executives and 46% as line executives.
How Can Construction Companies Recruit More Women?
There is still much work to be done to fully include women in construction. To increase recruitment and improve retention, companies need to acknowledge and remove gender bias from their work culture, develop training programs and local mentorship groups specific to women’s needs, include more women in the hiring process and encourage women to become role models for other women. Schools and educational programs need to highlight the value of construction jobs for women and young girls so that they can see the industry as a viable career path.
The current shortage of labor in the industry presents an opportunity to hire even more women in construction jobs. As advancements in construction technology have grown, many companies are hesitant in trying them out for a variety of reasons, including a lack of staff. Hiring and training women in the IT departments of construction companies can help with the staff shortage and improve companies’ diversity.
Although there are obstacles for women entering construction, diversity is a proven asset in driving profitability and a key component in solving the construction industry’s labor shortage. With more and more groundbreaking women chipping away at gender norms and leveling the playing field, the industry is taking bigger steps at becoming a more diverse and inclusive space for future generations.
If you’re interested in learning more about women in construction, the infographic below provides a breakdown of key statistics and highlights women leaders transforming the industry.
Sources:
McKinsey & Co. | 2 | Catalyst | JLL | Randstad | JBKnowledge | GWIC | NAWIC | WCOEUSA | Constructing Equality | Tradeswomen
