women in construction

Spotlight on… women in construction aims to demonstrate why the construction industry should be addressing the issue of attracting more women into the industry...

The campaign

In 2016, the number of women directly employed in construction hit a 20-year high. But despite comprising over 50% of the UK population, women still make up only 11% of the construction workforce; this number drops to just 1% of operatives on site. At less than 10% of engineering professionals, the UK has the lowest proportion of female engineers in Europe. With the industry facing a skills shortage, it has never been more important to draw from a wider pool of talent.

This campaign seeks to increase understanding of the issue of women in construction, highlight the great work done so far to promote diversity, showcase female role models and offer guidance on how to further encourage women into the industry.

Why are there so few women in construction?

Lingering sexist attitudes in the workplace are off-putting for many women. A July 2017 survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) found that nearly one third of women in construction said a fear of sexism held them back from pursuing senior roles. A January 2017 survey reported in Building.co.uk found that a shocking 73% of female engineers have experienced sexual discrimination, harassment or victimisation at work.

In 2018, it was revealed in a survey that construction has the third highest rate of unwanted sexual attention in the workplace, just below the hospitality and retail industries. Casual sexism, such as patronising and belittling attitudes, is also damaging and can result in women feeling unwelcome.

Other reasons for female under-representation in the industry relate to working conditions. While there have been vast improvements in recent years, particularly in on-site facilities, some sites still do not provide separate and equal welfare facilities. A 2018 survey by Unite discovered that women share toilets with men on one in five construction sites.

Inflexible working hours can also deter women who have family commitments, contributing to the ‘leaky pipeline’ which sees women not return to the industry after having children.

The gender pay gap is an issue that must be addressed in every industry but it is particularly acute in construction. The Office of National Statistics reports that the national pay gap is 18.1%, but also found that male construction and building trades supervisors are paid 45% more than their female counterparts – this is the largest pay gap in the UK.

While there is certainly still room for improvement in the industry’s approach to diversity, it can sometimes be more an issue of image and perception which puts women off construction careers. People often perceive the industry as an all-male environment where the only jobs available involve manual labour.

A survey by housebuilder Redrow asked young people about the careers advice they received at school – just 29% of women had been given advice on construction careers compared to 40% of men. This leads to a lack of knowledge among young people about the variety of roles in the industry, encouraging the assumption that construction is a world of male builders and discouraging them from joining the industry.

Why does it matter?

Recruiting more women into the construction industry should not be just a tick-box exercise – it is essential to the long-term viability of the UK construction industry, especially given that the industry accounts for 6.5% of total economic output (House of Commons – Construction industry briefing paper, 2015).

The industry needs 35,000 new workers a year to tackle the skills shortage and this will not be filled by ignoring the talents of half of the population. Diversity is also an economic generator, driving innovation through collaboration and creative thinking. According to McKinsey & Company, companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on their executive teams were 21% more likely to experience above-average profitability than companies in the fourth quartile.

What is the Scheme doing to encourage women into construction?

The Considerate Constructors Scheme has been leading the effort to raising standards and making the industry accessible to all. In the Checklist used by Scheme Monitors to score registered sites during their visits, Question 5.1 asks ‘Does the site demonstrate a commitment to respect, fair treatment, encouragement and support?’ while question 5.8 asks ‘What is being done to help encourage more equality, diversity and inclusion on site?’ These questions address issues such as inclusion, harassment, open door policies and inappropriate language.

Scheme survey results

In order to understand how these issues affect the industry, the Scheme issued an anonymous survey to all registered sites, companies and suppliers. Over 1000 men and women responded, and the following results were gathered:

94% said the industry would benefit from employing more women.
79% said the industry has improved its approach to encouraging women into construction.
76% said there are no construction jobs which only men can do.
74% said there should not be quotas for hiring women into construction
52% have witnessed or experienced sexism within the construction industry
When asked the most important reason women do not choose to work in construction, 22% said working conditions, 22% said lack of female role models and 20% said negative image of the industry.

The Scheme followed the survey with this ‘Spotlight on…’ campaign to provide information on the issue of women in construction.

While women are still under-represented in construction, the industry is making considerable progress in addressing diversity. The following sections highlight the steps taken by construction organisations and the Government, and showcase case studies of successful women across the industry. However, there is more to be done to improve gender diversity in construction and the conclusion offers advice on how to address these issues.

Law and legislation

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Law and legislation

The following law and legislation is relevant to helping address the obstacles faced by women in the workplace...

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External resources

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External resources

Gender diversity is a huge issue in the construction industry today. There are numerous organisations and initiatives committed to encouraging women into the construction industry...

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Examples of best practice

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Examples of best practice

The Scheme aims to improve the image of construction through sharing best practice with the industry. Below are a number of best practice examples that have been witnessed by the Scheme’s Monitors on their visits or submitted directly by registered sites, companies and suppliers…

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Case studies

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Case studies

The Scheme has reached out to women throughout the industry to hear their experiences of working in construction...

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What can you do?

As we have seen, the construction industry is making important strides in addressing the gender imbalance. Diversity is increasingly embedded in company policy and the number of women working in construction is increasing.

Recruitment agency Randstad report that in 2005, 79% of female construction workers said their company was doing little to engage female workers; by 2015, this was down to 29%. Indeed, 79% of respondents to the Scheme survey agreed that in recent years the industry has improved its approach to encouraging women into construction.

“My experience is very positive and I have found most on site to be supportive and helpful … A career in construction is hugely rewarding, I am proud to be here.”

“In the 15 years I have worked in the industry there has been a positive increase in the number of female trainees, construction managers and engineers.”

“I experience no difference in pay or opportunity and no mistreatment at work because of my gender and believe the industry has come a long way from more traditional views.”

– Anonymous responses to the Scheme survey

However, the effort to achieve gender equality in construction is far from over. The industry is making progress on the issue but women still comprise only 11% of the construction workforce. The imbalance needs to be corrected due to the skills shortage, so what more can the industry do to contribute to this effort?

Embedding equality and diversity in recruitment

“I work for a small construction company, who have an older and more traditional outlook. We have no women employed to work on site and although it is never mentioned, I don’t think that a woman would be considered for such a role.”