Women in the construction industry
Table of contents
Abstract
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Research methodology
Chapter 3: Literature Review
Chapter 4: Data analysis
Chapter 5: Conclusions & recommendations
References
Appendix 1: Introductory Letter
Appendix 2: Questionnaire
Appendix 3: Raw responses to the questionnaire
Abstract
The dissertation looks at the issue of women in the UK construction industry, using two methodologies – a Literature Review and a questionnaire-based survey – in order to determine what barriers are present with regards to women entering the construction industry and to assess the opinions of women working within the construction industry, with particular regard to their career aspirations, any discrimination they have faced and the factors they deem are important in hindering their career advancement.
Chapter 1: Introduction
This dissertation will look at the issue of women in the construction industry, a topic of key concern for the UK, given the importance of the construction industry for the UK economy (Fielden et al., 2001) and the fact that women are poorly represented in the construction industry as a whole (Fielden et al., 2001). The dissertation is divided in to five Chapters: the Introduction, the Research Methodology (Chapter 2), the Literature Review (Chapter 3), the Data analysis (Chapter 4) and the Conclusions and Recommendations (Chapter 5). The Conclusions and Recommendations section looks at what more can be done to encourage women in to the construction industry, mentioning the problems that face the industry as a whole if the industry does not feminize.
Chapter 2: Research methodology
The dissertation uses two main methodologies to analyze the issue of women in the construction industry: a Literature Review and a questionnaire-based survey of ten women employed within the construction industry. The aim of this joint methodology is to provide a summary of the main findings of research related to women in the construction industry and to provide a review of the opinions of women who are currently employed within the construction industry. The two methodologies will now be described in detail.
A Literature Review is generally carried out before any research begins in order to provide a general overview of the research conducted on a particular research topic and to provide an understanding of the research conducted. A Literature Review is conducted by searching bibliographic databases with relevant key words and key terms that, it is intended, when entered in to the bibliographic databases will return relevant articles related to the research topic of interest. In the current work, the key words and key terms used were ‘women in construction’ and ‘female construction workers’, amongst others. The bibliographic databases chosen were Emerald Insight, Web of Science and other university-based databases, because these were deemed to be the most relevant databases for the topic being researched. In addition, the key words and key terms were entered in to Google and Google Scholar, as it was anticipated that relevant organizations, such as construction federations and other organizations were likely to have relevant information that was pertinent for the research topic in hand.
The key words and key terms were introduced in to the databases and relevant literature was returned. Once the literature was returned, it was read over and its relevance ascertained. If the literature was relevant and pertinent to the topic in hand, the literature was held to one side, for inclusion in the Literature Review section of the dissertation. Literature was included within the Literature Review section of the dissertation if the literature was relevant and was recent, i.e., published within the last ten years. Once the literature to be included was decided upon, the Literature Review was then written, including the most pertinent points from the literature selected through the Literature Review process, providing a comprehensive review of the pertinent literature. The Literature Review is presented in Chapter 3 of the dissertation.
The questionnaire-based survey was designed to gain information from those women surveyed with regards to their career aspirations, any discrimination they have faced and the factors they deem are important in hindering their career advancement. Given the short time period available for the collection and analysis of data, only ten women in construction industry were surveyed. The women were selected and an introductory letter was sent to them, by email, explaining the purpose of the survey and requesting their participation in the survey, with confirmation of their participation being requested by return email. A copy of this letter is provided in Appendix 2. Once confirmation of participation had been received, the questionnaire, which is included in Appendix 2, was emailed to the women, with the women being asked to return their completed questionnaire the next day.
As can be seen in the questionnaire presented in Appendix 2, fourteen questions were presented to ten women, aimed at eliciting responses from the women surveyed which would allow the women’s opinions to be explored, regarding women in construction, in terms of their career aspirations, any discrimination they have faced and the factors they deem are important in hindering their career advancement. Ten women were identified and asked to participate in the survey, although, in the end, only five of these women returned their completed survey within the requested timeframe. The analysis of the responses, presented in Chapter 4, is thus based on the responses of these five women.
The next sections of the dissertation will present the Literature Review (Chapter 3) and the data analysis (Chapter 4), with the Conclusions section being presented in Chapter 5.
Chapter 3: Literature review
The construction industry is male-dominated, with women making up only 13% of the workforce, compared to 50% in all other industries (Fielden et al., 2001). It is thought that women face many barriers to both joining the construction industry and to being promoted to high positions one working within the industry. These barriers include the image of the industry as male-dominated, a lack of career guidance which orients women towards a career in the construction industry, a male-dominated working environment that is not attractive to women, family commitments that are not compatible with work in the construction industry, which often requires long, unsocial, hours, and training and recruitment programmes that are male-dominated (Fielden et al., 2000; 2001).
It is known that male students are five times more likely to choose construction as a career than female students (Gale, 1994), with only seventeen per cent of women interviewed suggesting that the construction industry could be a possible career option for them, compared to eighty per cent of men interviewed in the same survey (Construction Industry Training Board, 2003a). In addition, research by Dainty et al. (2000) suggested that women have a poor understanding of the culture of the construction industry and that this can lead to difficulties working in what is a male-dominated environment. In addition, many recruiters are of the opinion that the construction industry offers opportunities that are considered unsuitable for women, with many careers advisers having a very limited knowledge of the many and varied opportunities available within the industry and thus unable to advise women on a move in to the construction industry or to recommend that women move in to the construction industry (Construction Industry Training Board, 2003b).
Research has shown that many women who are thinking of entering the construction industry believe the industry is male-dominated with working relationships dominated by conflict and crisis management being the dominant mode of solving problems, all of which are generally unattractive for women (Gale, 1994). It is also thought that the working environment in the construction industry is hostile to women, and that women who wish to be successful in male-dominated environments have to act like men in order to be successful (Gale, 1994). It is generally understood that if women don’t adopt an aggressive, conflictive style, they are likely to remain in lower-level, entry, positions with little chance of career advancement (Gale, 1994; Fielding et al., 2001).
In addition, family commitments can often lead to women having lowered career aspirations than men, and, given the demands of the construction industry in terms of the unsocial working hours, the construction industry is generally considered to be incompatible with women’s career aspirations (Lingard and Lin, 2004). Lingard and Lin (2004) suggest that, for these reasons, women, when faced with the opportunity for a career in the construction industry, opt not to take a career in the construction industry but, rather, to take a career that would allow them to spend more time with their family.
In addition, women working in the construction industry report that they experience high levels of prejudice, with training courses and programmes being male-dominated, and many women who work in the construction industry facing discrimination from male colleagues, based on disbelief that women are able to do the work to a high standard (Bagihole et al., 2001). As Bagihole et al. (2001) discuss, project teams within construction are run by male colleagues who control recruitment and staff development and who are, therefore, in the position to make the workplace a problematic place for women. For this reason, women are less likely than men to be promoted within the construction industry (Bagihole et al., 2001).
Bennett et al. (1999) looked at the differing experiences of male and female undergraduates and employees, finding that women employed within the construction industry generally have higher career aspirations than female undergraduates, even though men generally receive higher salaries than women employed in the construction industry and supervise significantly more employees than women employed in the construction industry. It is clear, therefore, that there are clear gender biases present within the construction industry and that these could be counter-productive in terms of the recruitment of women in to the industry. As Dainty et al. (2000) show, women face problems at every career stage within the construction industry and, when employed within the industry, face pressures from the demanding work environment, inflexible working arrangements and overt resentment from male colleagues.
This situation is problematic, “given the skills shortage in the UK construction industry” (Gurjao, 2008) and it is important to attract more women to the UK construction industry, focusing on new entrants but also returnees to work and those women who might be seeking a career change, and focusing on better retention of female employees, by increasing understanding of the career pathways of women in construction and what can be done to improve retention (Gurjao, 2008). This is particularly important in view of the importance the construction industry plays in the UK economy, with the construction industry “providing a tenth of the UK’s gross domestic product and employing over two million people” (Gurjao, 2008).
Chapter 4: Data analysis
Women were surveyed with regards to their opinions of working within the construction industry, particularly their career aspirations, any discrimination they have faced and the factors they deem are important in hindering their career advancement. Ten women were sent the survey shown in Appendix 2, with five women returning their completed surveys within the required timeframe. This Chapter will now analyze the responses, question by question.
For Question 1, ‘How old are you?’, the five women were shown to be of different ages: 25, 42, 38, 40 and 41. For Question 2, ‘What qualifications do you hold?’ and Question 3, ‘What position do you currently hold?’, three women were quantity surveyors, with one stating they held a B.Sc. in Quantity Surveying, with the remaining two women holding a B.Sc. in Engineering and working as engineers. For Question 4, ‘How long have you worked in the construction industry?’, the answers varied: 5, 20, 8, 15 and 7 years. For Question 5, ‘How long have you worked in your current job?’, again, the answers varied: 2, 5, 1, 3 and 2 years. All of the women interviewed had, thus, only recently entered their current position.
For Question 6, ‘How many positions have you held within the construction industry?’, 3, 8, 4, 4 and 4. It is clear, therefore, from these responses that women spend relatively short periods of time in their positions within the construction industry, with one respondent explaining this as follows, “. I move every time I want higher pay – it’s impossible to move higher on the career ladder in the same company so I move to a job that offers better pay. It’s tough moving, but then again, it’s tough staying in the same place and seeing you’re always passed up for less experienced male colleagues.”. It is clear, therefore, from these responses that women face difficulties in being promoted and that, to advance in their chosen career, or to earn more pay, these women felt it necessary to move job. This is disruptive for these women in many ways, not least professionally and due to the upheavals this would have caused in their personal lives. It is difficult to see how a similar situation would occur with male employees in the construction industry, and this is, therefore, a clear sign that there is a problem in the construction industry with regards to female employees.
For Question 7, ‘What made you want to enter the construction industry?’, the responses were as follows: “I found the job description interesting and liked the idea of the varied working day, and opportunities, that a job in the quantity surveying profession offers.”; “Loved the idea of quantity surveying and the challenge of working in a male-dominated industry”; “Engineering always fascinated me and I wanted to work in the industry”; “Loved quantity surveying”; and “Loved engineering and a position came up that suited my circumstances”. There are, therefore, a variety of reasons for women deciding to enter the construction industry, most based around a love for the subjects they studied at university and a desire to continue on in that subject.
For Question 8, ‘Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold?’, the answers were telling: “Yes and no. I earn significantly less than my male counterparts who are equally qualified. I have worked here for less time, however, so perhaps that explains the difference”; “No. Male colleagues who are less qualified earn more than me for the same work”; “No. My male colleagues readily tell me they earn more than me”; ‘No”; and “No. I don’t earn as much as similarly qualified men in my position”. All women surveyed thus outlined how they were paid less than their male counterparts, even if these male counterparts were less qualified. It is clear, therefore, that there is gender inequality in the construction industry with regards to pay.
Question 9, ‘Do you expect to be promoted from your current position?’, was equally telling with only one women surveyed being hopeful that she would be promoted from her current position. All the four other women either stated that they moved company when seeking higher pay or a better job, as the chances of promotion were low, or they replied with a simple ‘No’ or that they had been understood, implicitly, that they would never be promoted.
For Question 10, ‘Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience’, all the women surveyed highlighted the fact that they had faced discrimination, some of whom highlighted that this was on a daily basis, with negative comments, sexism and sexual innuendo all being cited as the most common forms of discrimination. Perhaps because of the answers to Question 10, the answers to Question 11, ‘Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry?’ were mostly ‘Yes’, with several of the women surveyed going as far as admitting that they were currently looking for work in other industries.
For Question 12, ‘What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry?’, the responses all converged on common responses, such as ‘Discrimination’, ‘Low, unequal, pay’, ‘Tough work’, ‘Hostile atmosphere’, ‘Long, unsettled hours’, ‘Difficult to maintain work-life balance’ and ‘Too many problems and too much discrimination’, with one respondent recommending that women use their skills in other industries.
For Question 13, ‘Would you recommend the construction industry to other women?’, the women were divided, with two stating ‘yes’, one with the caveat that women considering entering the profession should be aware of just how difficult it is, and the other three women stating an emphatic ‘No’. Question 14, ‘What would you say could help women in the construction industry?’ elicited a variety of responses, such as, “Equal pay rates. More female trainers”; “Fair pay. More women in the industry, which would help to make the atmosphere more female-friendly”; “Fair pay. More women in the industry”; “Better, fairer, levels of pay, equal to men’s. Better opportunities for promotion”; and, “Not to even consider entering it”. It is clear, therefore, that the women surveyed understand the barriers to women entering the construction industry and that there are things that can be done in terms of encouraging more women to enter the construction industry.
The next Chapter, Chapter 5, will look at the Conclusions to the work and will make recommendations based on the findings of the Literature Review and the responses to he survey.
Chapter 5: Conclusion & Recommendations
The dissertation has looked at the issue of women in the UK construction industry, using a Literature Review and a questionnaire-based survey to determine what barriers there are to women entering the construction industry and the opinions of women working within the construction industry, with particular regard to their career aspirations, any discrimination they have faced and the factors they deem are important in hindering their career advancement.
The Literature Review showed that there is a distinct lack of women in the construction industry, with only 9% of the construction industry’s workforce being female, compared to around 50% of the total UK workforce (Fielding et al., 2001) and that women face significant barriers to entering the construction industry and once working within the industry. The survey looked at these issues in more detail, surveying five women with regards to their attitudes towards their jobs, their opinions of their jobs, the discrimination they have faced and the recommendations they have for building an environment that is more conducive for women.
It was found that these women were, on the whole, dissatisfied with their jobs, their pay levels, the discrimination they face (often on a daily basis) and the fact that promotion was unlikely for them. Most women surveyed found themselves moving position regularly, far more regularly than their male counterparts, as promotion was unlikely and so moving position was the only way to achieve higher pay. It was also found that the women surveyed would not, on the whole, recommend the construction industry to other women, with their recommendations for improvements to the construction industry being based around reducing discrimination, equalizing pay and introducing more women trainers.
In conclusion, the dissertation has found evidence for many problems facing women in the UK construction industry, with many barriers being present both for new female recruits to the industry and for experienced female construction workers. It is clear, given the skills shortage in this industry, and the increasing need for workers in this industry, that the industry as a whole needs to be more pro-active about changing the working environment so it is more attractive to women and encouraging women to consider construction as a career option, through advertising campaigns, for example.
The construction industry could do to make the industry more attractive as a career for women, including enhancing maternity leave (Hill McGlynn & Associates, 2005); as suggested by the Women and Manual Trades (WAMT) organization, it is reasonable to ask for a fairer deal for women, challenging stereotypes and the prevailing culture that excludes women (WAMT, 2009; Menches and Abraham, 2007). As Evitigala et al. (2009) argue, “both structural and image-related barriers could be challenged”, and, indeed, working to change some of these barriers would change the image of the construction industry for the better as, currently, the industry is viewed as high cost, low quality and chaotic. It is suggested that if the industry does not feminize, this image is likely to propagate and the shortages of workers within the industry will worsen, as fewer women decide to enter the industry.
In conclusion, then, a great deal more could be done to encourage women in to the construction industry, and, if the industry does not feminize, the industry as a whole will face problems, in terms of staff shortages, which would make it difficult to meet the demands placed on the industry as a whole, especially given new, large, public projects that are planned in the coming years, such as the Olympics.
References
Bagihole, B.M. et al. (2001). Women in the construction industry in the UK: a cultural discord? Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering 6(1), 40-45.
Bennett, J.F. et al. (1999). Women in construction: a comparative investigation into the expectations and experiences of female and male construction undergraduates and employees. Women in Management Review 14(7), pp. 273-292.
Construction Industry Training Board (2003a). Construction skills foresight report.
Construction Industry Training Board (2003b). Employers’ skill needs survey.
Construction Industry Training Board (1995). Equal Opportunities in the Construction Industry Interim Report: A Discussion Document, Construction Industry Board, London.
Court, G. and Moralee, J. (1995). Balancing the building team: gender issues in the building professions. The Institute of Employment Studies. Report 284.
Dainty, A.R.J. et al. (2000). Comparison of men’s and women’s careers in UK construction industry. Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice 126(3), pp. 110-115.
Elvitigala, G. et al. (2009). The impact of culture on career development of women in construction. Available from http://www.irbdirekt.de/daten/iconda/CIB9007.pdf [Accessed 1st April 2009].
Fernando, G. et al. (2009). Career advancement of women managers in the UK construction industry: career success factors and hindrance. RICS, 11th December 2008.
Fielden, S.L. et al. (2000). Women in construction: the untapped resource. Construction Management and Economics 18(1), pp. 113-121.
Gale, A.W. (1984). Women in construction. PhD thesis.
Gale, A. (1989). Attracting women to construction. Chartered Builder, September/October, pp.8-13.
Gurjao, S. (2008). Inclusivity: the changing role of women in the construction workforce. CIOB Publications.
Hill McGlynn & Associates (2005). Women in Construction 2005: Report Findings. Available from http://www.hillmcglynn.com/common/pdf/HMG_women_report.pdf [Accessed 1st April 2009].
Lingard, H. and Lin, J. (2004). Career, family and work environment determinants of organizational commitment among women in the Australian construction industry. Construction Management and Economics 22, pp. 409-420.
Menches, C.L. and Abraham, D.M. (2007). Women in construction: tapping the untapped resource to meet future demands. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 133(9), pp. 701-707.
NAWC (2009). Enhancing the success of women in construction. Available from http://www.nawic-fw.org/updates/Region7News.pdf [Accessed 1st April 2009].
WAMT (2009). Campaigning. Available from http://www.wamt.org/campaigning/ [Accessed 1st April 2009].
Appendix 1: Introductory Letter
Address
Email address
Date
Dear XXXX,
I am writing to you to introduce myself and to ask for your participation in a survey, your responses to which would form part of my dissertation which is aimed at exploring the issue of ‘women in construction’, looking at the reasons behind why there are so few women in the construction industry and what can be done to increase the amount of women in the construction industry.
Your participation in the research and all of the responses you give to the questions in the survey will remain completely anonymous at all times. The survey would take around 30 minutes to complete and, if you agree to participate in the survey, would be emailed straight to you. If you feel you are able to take part in this survey, I would be grateful if you would reply to me by email, letting me know that you are interested in participating. I will then email the full survey out to you and would be grateful if you could email your completed survey back to me by the next day.
Many thanks for your time and I do hope you are able to participate in this research.
Yours sincerely,
XXXXXX
Appendix 2: Questionnaire
Question 1. How old are you?
Question 2. What qualifications do you hold?
Question 3. What position do you currently hold?
Question 4. How long have you worked in the construction industry?
Question 5. How long have you worked in your current job?
Question 6. How many positions have you held within the construction industry?
Question 7. What made you want to enter the construction industry?
Question 8. Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold?
Question 9. Do you expect to be promoted from your current position?
Question 10. Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience.
Question 11. Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry?
Question 12. What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry?
Question 13. Would you recommend the construction industry to other women?
Question 14. What would you say could help women in the construction industry?
Appendix 3: Raw responses to questionnaire
Individual 1:
Question 1. How old are you? 25
Question 2. What qualifications do you hold? I am a quantity surveyor and have all the necessary qualifications
Question 3. What position do you currently hold? Quantity surveyor
Question 4. How long have you worked in the construction industry? Five years
Question 5. How long have you worked in your current job? Two years
Question 6. How many positions have you held within the construction industry? Three
Question 7. What made you want to enter the construction industry? I found the job description interesting and liked the idea of the varied working day, and opportunities, that a job in the quantity surveying profession offers.
Question 8. Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold? Yes and no. I earn significantly less than my male counterparts who are equally qualified. I have worked here for less time, however, so perhaps that explains the difference.
Question 9. Do you expect to be promoted from your current position? Yes.
Question 10. Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience. Yes. I have received negative comments from male colleagues and from other male employees at this company and at other companies. I am also regularly mistaken for a secretary or wife of another employee when we go on jobs. That is quite insulting.
Question 11. Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry? No.
Question 12. What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry? The work is hard – long hours, in the field. Male colleagues can be hostile and discriminatory. You pay can be lower than that of your male colleagues. I know all of that but I love my job. I would recommend any woman who loves the idea of this profession to join the profession. It is hard but it is so rewarding, and I hear from my female friends that there’s discrimination in other professions anyway – teaching, accountancy, you name it, there’s discrimination against women, unfortunately.
Question 13. Would you recommend the construction industry to other women? Yes
Question 14. What would you say could help women in the construction industry? Equal pay rates. More female trainers.
Individual 2:
Question 1. How old are you? 42
Question 2. What qualifications do you hold? I am a quantity surveyor
Question 3. What position do you currently hold? Quantity surveyor
Question 4. How long have you worked in the construction industry? 20 years
Question 5. How long have you worked in your current job? 5 years
Question 6. How many positions have you held within the construction industry? Eight
Question 7. What made you want to enter the construction industry? Loved the idea of quantity surveying and the challenge of working in a male-dominated industry
Question 8. Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold? No. Male colleagues who are less qualified earn more than me for the same work.
Question 9. Do you expect to be promoted from your current position? No. I move company when I want to move up the career ladder, although it’s not easy finding higher positions as a woman.
Question 10. Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience. Oh yes, plenty. Twenty years is a long time and now it is better. When I first started, men were openly hostile towards me. Now there’s still hostility but it’s more subtle. I have to say I prefer the open hostility – at least its out in the open and you deal with it there and then rather than it brewing and tainting everything.
Question 11. Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry? Yes, many times, but this is my job and I need to provide for my family.
Question 12. What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry? Many. Lower pay than male counterparts. Discrimination. Sexism. Low work-life balance, making family life difficult. The work is difficult and that might put a lot of women off.
Question 13. Would you recommend the construction industry to other women? Yes, but you’ve got to realize that the work is difficult and that you’d be likely to experience discrimination and sexism in your workplace.
Question 14. What would you say could help women in the construction industry? Fair pay. More women in the industry, which would help to make the atmosphere more female-friendly.
Individual 3:
Question 1. How old are you? 38.
Question 2. What qualifications do you hold? B.Sc. Engineering
Question 3. What position do you currently hold? Engineer.
Question 4. How long have you worked in the construction industry? Eight years.
Question 5. How long have you worked in your current job? One year.
Question 6. How many positions have you held within the construction industry? Four.
Question 7. What made you want to enter the construction industry? Engineering always fascinated me and I wanted to work in the industry.
Question 8. Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold? No. My male colleagues readily tell me they earn more than me.
Question 9. Do you expect to be promoted from your current position? No.
Question 10. Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience. Yes, plenty. On a daily basis.
Question 11. Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry? Yes. I am planning to move in to teaching.
Question 12. What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry? It is difficult work, because you face discrimination every day. You work long hours for less pay than your male colleagues, and you have no chance of moving higher. It’s a tough industry to work in. Very tough.
Question 13. Would you recommend the construction industry to other women? No.
Question 14. What would you say could help women in the construction industry? Fair pay. More women in the industry.
Individual 4:
Question 1. How old are you? 40.
Question 2. What qualifications do you hold? Bsc Quantity Surveying
Question 3. What position do you currently hold? Quantity Surveyor
Question 4. How long have you worked in the construction industry? Fifteen years
Question 5. How long have you worked in your current job? Three years
Question 6. How many positions have you held within the construction industry? Four. I move every time I want higher pay – it’s impossible to move higher on the career ladder in the same company so I move to a job that offers better pay. It’s tough moving, but then again, it’s tough staying in the same place and seeing you’re always passed up for less experienced male colleagues.
Question 7. What made you want to enter the construction industry? Loved quantity surveying.
Question 8. Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold? No.
Question 9. Do you expect to be promoted from your current position? No.
Question 10. Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience. Yes, a great deal. It’s tough being discriminated against.
Question 11. Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry? Yes, but this is how I earn my living and feed my family, so that’s not an option. I’m too old for re-qualifying and moving in to a different career.
Question 12. What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry? Men working in the construction industry can be very hostile. The work is difficult, very hard, lots of long hours, unsettled, often running over schedule with lots of unplanned overtime. This makes it difficult to manage family life and can put relationships under strain.
Question 13. Would you recommend the construction industry to other women? No.
Question 14. What would you say could help women in the construction industry? Better, fairer, levels of pay, equal to men’s. Better opportunities for promotion.
Individual 5:
Question 1. How old are you? 31.
Question 2. What qualifications do you hold? Bsc Engineering
Question 3. What position do you currently hold? Engineer
Question 4. How long have you worked in the construction industry? Seven years
Question 5. How long have you worked in your current job? Two years
Question 6. How many positions have you held within the construction industry? Four
Question 7. What made you want to enter the construction industry? Loved engineering and a position came up that suited my circumstances
Question 8. Do you feel you are fairly paid for the position you hold? No. I don’t earn as much as similarly qualified men in my position.
Question 9. Do you expect to be promoted from your current position? Unlikely. It’s made clear, implicitly, in every job I’ve had that I’d be unlikely to be considered for promotion. That’s why I move jobs so much.
Question 10. Have you ever experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace? If so, please detail your experience. Yes. All the time. Snide comments from males, sexual innuendo, nasty comments. The works.
Question 11. Have you ever considered leaving the construction industry? Yes. Pretty much every day. I am hoping to do a teaching conversion course and then I’m out of here, and good riddance.
Question 12. What barriers do you think women face in the construction industry? Too many. I wouldn’t recommend any woman entering construction. There are too many problems, too much discrimination. Use your skills elsewhere, I say.
Question 13. Would you recommend the construction industry to other women? No.
Question 14. What would you say could help women in the construction industry? Not to even consider entering it.