Women Working Construction Maintains Upward Trend
Washington, DC, has the highest female percentage of construction workers.
Women are playing a more significant role in construction employment and in greater numbers, according to a new report from fixr based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In the past 10 years, employment has increased by 52.9%, from 840,000 women in 2013 to 1.28 million women in 2022, including more with a “seat at the table.”
Jocelyn Knoll, partner at Dorsey & Whitney LLP, said in prepared remarks, this trend shows it’s a good time for women to enter the construction industry, whether as a tradesperson, construction manager, team member, architect, engineer, executive, consultant, or professional.
Mentorship programs, diversity and inclusion training, and women’s construction associations are helping to fuel this rise, according to Guiomar Obregón, CEO and co-founder of Precision 2000.
In prepared remarks, Obregon said these kinds of initiatives are crucial to keep the momentum going and give more opportunities for women in male-dominated fields, creating more awareness of the opportunities.
The gender pay gap is one of the smallest of all industries, according to the report.
Washington, DC, boasts the biggest percentage with 17.6% of its total construction workforce being women – far greater than the national average of 10.9%. Elsewhere, Arizona (15.6%) and Florida (14.5%) also have high percentages of women in the construction workforce. Delaware (6.8%) shows the fewest female construction workers.
Hispanic Women Prevalent
Hispanic women make up 2.5% of the entire construction workforce as of August 2022.
Sales and management roles are the most common for women in construction.
Joan Barton, General Contractor at Dirty Girl Construction, said in prepared remarks that she has noticed an increase in the number of women who contact her about working in construction, which is a direct result of women being publicly recognized on numerous outlets.
“This has also translated into a general awareness about the need for earlier education and opportunity, as well as a specific outreach by some companies to train and hire more women,” Barton added.
“Women can swing a hammer just as well as their male counterparts can,” Taylor Norris, primary owner of Smitty’s General Contractors, said in prepared remarks. “Women can climb on roofs, tear off and install a roof, lead a crew, create a safe workplace environment, create a well-rounded client experience just as well as their male counterparts can.”