Diversity in the construction industry: still a long way to go

Data released by the London Assembly paints a bleak picture of diversity in the construction industry...

Analysis of Skills Funding Agency data has revealed that gender stereotypes continue to influence the male to female ratio of apprenticeships in industries that have traditionally been seen as ‘male’ or ‘female’. This revealed that of 1,000 intermediate level construction apprenticeships in London in 2014/15, just 30 (3%) went to women.

However, not a single woman or person from a BAME (Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic) background took a higher-level apprenticeship (equivalent to a higher education qualification) in London over the last academic year.

Approximately 96% of all London construction sector apprenticeships were taken by men. Just 60 women took an apprenticeship, while a total of 280 apprentices came from a BAME background.

Holly Porter, founder of Chicks with Bricks – a network connecting women in the construction industry – says she’s not surprised by the results. “Statistics around women in the industry don’t shift, and haven’t shifted for a decade,” she says. 

“It bounces around 11-12% in terms of women in the industry as a whole, but if you take out women in support and administrative roles, this drops by 4%. Attracting women into the trained professional sphere is very hard to do and I think it comes back to the same issue: women don’t see anyone in the industry that they want to be like."

“A big thing for young girls going into the profession is that they want to be able to emulate someone who has already made it.”

Ms Porter says that while big construction firms should lead from the front, many of the problems exist at the other end of the industry. “For example, you can go on a Laing O’Rourke building site where the set-up is very professional: there will be a separate girls’ toilet, separate changing room. But on small building sites, you don’t get any of this.”

While progress has been made in improving diversity in the last decade, there is, undoubtedly, a long way to go. Seven women (23%) attended the most recent LABC training college and this figure has grown steadily over the last five years.

Hopefully, this year’s statistics will make for better reading.

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Further reading

https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/assembly/fiona-twycross/gender-divide-in-londons-apprenticeships

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/mar/14/apprenticeship-system-gender-inequality-workplace-women