Women In Construction – Fighting Stereotypes

Construction is the definition of a male-dominated industry, with women often facing significant challenges and obstacles in pursuing careers within this sector. Despite progress towards gender equality in the workplace, women continue to experience various struggles in the construction industry, including discrimination, harassment, and limited opportunities for career advancement. These challenges can have a significant impact on the recruitment, retention, and success of women in construction roles.

Why is there a lack of women in the industry?

Gender stereotypes have played a huge part in creating the gender gap within the construction industry. Society has traditionally assigned certain professions to men and women, with construction being viewed as a male-dominated industry. This has limited the amount of skilful women entering the construction labour market simply due to the lack of understanding of the industry, shortage of interest and being uninformed of available opportunities.

One of the most visible struggles for women in construction is the lack of representation.

There are very few women in leadership positions in the industry, and this makes it challenging for women to advance in their careers. With only 15% of the construction workforce in the UK being females, many women feel that they are not taken seriously in the industry and may be overlooked for promotions or other opportunities.

Why is inclusion so important and what can you do to help?

Innovation can strike from all places. With new ground-breaking ideas and initiatives, a diverse and inclusive workforce encourages change that can revolutionise the we all work on a day to day basis. Hiring women from entry level to senior management roles, we are opening a new stream of initiatives and practises that would otherwise be ignored or gone unheard.

The inclusion of women in the industry needs to be on the forefront of everyone’s mind. Working to create an environment that is more welcoming, educating women from all walks of life on the options available and support them once in the industry are three simple, yet significant steps we can all take to ensure the sector is more diverse.

What have YardLink done?

At YardLink we have worked hard to ensure that everyone has equal opportunities to join the team and excel. A conscious effort has been made to find the perfect team that will help build an online procurement platform being used by thousands nationwide. We love all employees and push for all to take every opportunity they can including internal promotions, movements into new departments and personal development. With a workforce made up with 36% females across multiple functions, we are building a work environment where all are appreciated and respected.

For International Women’s Day we sat down with some very important ladies across the business to talk all things women in construction. Asking the question “What is it like to be a woman in a very male-dominated sector?” We investigated the different routes taken, barriers to entry and stereotypes that have been in effect since the beginning of the construction industry. Watch the discussion on Linkedin.