The gender pay gap is lower for in construction occupations
As the federal government is heavily investing in infrastructure and manufacturing projects through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the CHIPS Act, the demand for skilled workers is pushing companies to pursue new pipelines for developing a sustained workforce.
The number of women employed in the U.S. construction industry has grown substantially in the last few decades, doubling since 1985. Women currently make up 14% of the overall construction workforce — an all-time high — although women make up only about 4% of craft professional positions.
While the picture is certainly improving, construction companies still struggle to effectively appeal to women in their recruiting and retention efforts — thereby overlooking a huge segment of the population.
Despite the relatively low participation of women in construction, the industry offers many opportunities. To begin with, the gender pay gap is significantly smaller in construction occupations, with women earning on average 95.5% of what men make - across other industries women in the U.S. earn on average 82.9% of what men make.
Women are proven assets on construction job sites. Not only can recruiting women into the trades help make up for the quantity gap in the skilled construction workforce, but they also bring unique qualities to the jobsite that contribute to an improved work environment: women are more focused on making sure that the entire team is functioning at a high level, and tend to follow the prescribed work process as designed instead of relying on experience and physical strength, which can result in improved safety and fewer injuries.
Companies are doing more to address common barriers for women in construction, including:
Reducing discrimination and bias on the job site and in the hiring process
Provide mothers and caregivers support through actions such as clear working hours, scheduling flexibility and consistent PTO policies between office and field positions
Offering training programs to bring women into the industry, specifically into the trades
Promoting more women to site leadership positions
Improving the job site experience and adapting equipment to fit properly
For those who may not be attracted to performing physical tasks, the construction industry also includes roles such as:
Human Resources: managing and hiring people
Admininstration
Logistics
Safety
Accounting
Sales
Estimating
Design
Project management
