Celebrating women in construction: The future is female

This year, Women in Construction Week (or WIC Week) — a campaign by the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) — is recognized from March 6–12, 2022, and highlights women as a visible and vital component of the construction industry. The theme for this year’s Women in Construction Week is “Envision Equity” and seeks to raise awareness of opportunities for women to enjoy a wide range of roles in the construction industry, from tradeswomen to project managers to administrative positions and even business ownership. The week of recognition is also a time for the industry as a whole to raise awareness of the opportunities available for women in the construction industry and emphasize the growing role of women in the industry.

Initiatives and programs for women in construction started by ICC

The International Code Council is excited to celebrate the 24th Annual Women in Construction Week and recognize the diverse and important roles of women in the construction industry. Beyond highlighting the accomplishments of female architects, tradeswomen, general contractors, executives, apprentices or any woman in the industry, the Code Council has also been working to create opportunities for making female representation in construction the norm rather than the exception.

Last month, the Code Council opened applications for a new Ad Hoc Committee on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion established by its Board of Directors to increase diversity, equity and inclusion in the membership association while helping Code Council members diversify their own municipalities and organizations and, ultimately, the building safety profession overall. The new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee will help the Code Council determine next steps in bringing in new individuals to the association and the building safety industry to fill the workforce gap and create a more inclusive community. The Code Council has also been a catalyst in welcoming the next generation of female leaders through its signature initiative, Safety 2.0. Both programs focus on the important role of women in construction in the future, specific career paths that women can take to advance their careers, and how gender and racial diversity are critical to building a dynamic construction industry workforce.

“The Code Council Board of Directors approved a guiding statement in December of 2021,” said International Code Council Board President Cindy Davis, CBO. “We recognize that some individuals have historically experienced barriers to membership, participation, and leadership, and we are committed to advancing inclusion in all activities of the Code Council. This committee will bring together voices from across the built environment to research best practices and provide a list of recommendations for the Board to consider.”

“Seeing people of all backgrounds come together to create lasting change, that’s what building safety is all about,” added International Code Council Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims, CBO. “This committee creates a space for open, candid dialogue to take place on diversity, equity and inclusion in our industry.”

Creating a place for women in construction

The National Association of Women in Construction has always been a place where women can find support from their peers and in 1953 a group of 16 women set out to make the idea of a community for working construction women with aspirations of success within the construction industry a reality. Doris Efird was proudly working within the construction industry but realized she was missing support and felt alone in some aspects of her career — and that she wasn’t the only one looking for more from her peers. Efird and a group of 15 other construction women — all based in Fort Worth, Texas, who had worked on various projects with each other over the years — met face to face and bonded over this missing link within their professional endeavors. Quickly understanding that this was an issue that plagued construction women throughout the industry, the group made their networking permanent and the “Women in Construction” group was created.

These 16 women — Alice Ashley, Ida Mae Bagby, Carolyn Balcomb, Sue Bowling, Margaret Bubar, Margaret Cleveland, Era Dunn, Doris Efird, Ronda Farrell, Hazel Floyd, Jimmie Blazier, Nina Ruth Jenkins, Ethel McKinney, Irene Moates, Mildred Tarter and Edna Mae Tucker — are credited as the founders of what is now known as the National Association of Women in Construction, the leading association for construction women in the nation. In May of 1955, the group officially became NAWIC and outreach to construction women all over the nation began.

Giving a voice to women in the construction industry is a high priority of the group, but NAWIC also grew to serve several other objectives early on. These objectives, still in effect today, include:

• To unite for the mutual benefit of the women who are actively engaged in the various phases of the construction industry.
• To promote cooperation, fellowship and a better understanding among members of the Association.
• To promote education and contribute to the betterment of the construction industry.
• To encourage women to pursue and establish careers in the construction industry.

Today, NAWIC is still based in Fort Worth and has 118 chapters throughout the United States that provide professional development, education, networking, leadership training and public service.

Celebrating community with women in construction

This new support system for women within the construction industry created quite an impact and NAWIC went on to create many programs and events to educate and inspire peers. One of the most noteworthy is Women in Construction Week. This event, occurring annually in early March since 1998, provides the opportunity for construction women across the country to spread awareness of opportunities within the industry and to highlight the role women have in construction today. The celebratory week has become so popular that it’s recognized throughout the industry as a staple event, with many construction women even participating regardless of NAWIC membership.

“WIC Week gives the opportunity to shine a bright light on the construction industry and women’s very important place in it,” said NAWIC Executive Director Crissy Ingram. “There has long been a culture of construction being only for men. If we can get the women who have worked past that barrier out of the shadows and into the spotlight, they can show other women — no matter the age or background — that there are countless opportunities for them in the industry.”

“[WIC Week is vital to] bringing awareness to the great success women are having in every aspect of the industry,” said NAWIC National President Doreen Bartoldus. “It will also hopefully influence the next generation to join our ranks after seeing construction can be a great career for women.”

Women are poised to move toward the forefront of the industry

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, by the end of 2016 there were approximately 939,000 women employed in the construction industry, and while that seems impressive it’s actually only nine percent of the U.S. construction industry; a relatively small percentage when compared to other industries. The majority of these women (76 percent) held roles in sales/office and professional/management — of the more than 800,000 women employed in construction in 2010, only 200,000 of them were employed in physical labor occupations such as laborers, electricians, plumbers and more.

Following the Great Recession from 2007 to 2010, the number of women in construction declined sharply; more than 300,000 women left the construction industry by 2010. However, with the massive construction labor shortage currently facing the industry, the labor and skill needed to relieve that shortage are readily available. Despite making up a fraction of the current construction workforce, women are poised to move toward the forefront of the industry with a slow, but steady influx of female engineers, architects, project leaders, tradeswomen, contractors and more.

Today, the construction industry is currently about 11 percent female, and attracting young women to the profession is a major goal. However, young women have an incomplete perception of the construction sector. Most don’t realize the industry’s high earning potential and claim that they can’t envision themselves in a construction career. The industry fails to show the many successful women in construction, and young potential workers feel that construction work is a male-dominated sector, unfriendly to females, with work that is insignificant and too labor intensive for women. There is also the overwhelming concern that they would not be listened to or respected for their contributions, that sexism would be tolerated, and masculine behavior such as aggression and assertiveness would be the norm in the workplace.

And, in some cases, a career in construction does not match with their altruistic aspirations to serve the community and help people, while in other cases, young women do not believe that construction careers can be creative or interesting.

A realignment of values to attract young women

To have any chance of overcoming its poor distinction with young women, the sector will need to overhaul its outdated reputation and champion the successful women already working in the sector. Building, fire and life safety professionals need to find ways to engage directly with young women and respond to the sometimes valid, and other times, mistaken beliefs they may hold about the industry. It must also concentrate on retaining and progressing the women who already work there through appealing initiatives, including flexible work practices, transparent promotion procedures and paid parental leave.

Construction roles include different trades – such as plumbers, carpenters, electricians and mechanics – project managers, engineers, communication and community engagement specialists, land surveyors, health and safety experts, crane operators and commercial managers, just to name a few. Better communication about the diverse range of roles in the sector may help to spark greater interest among female students. The sector also needs to work with school career advisers, who often have low knowledge of the sector and tend to steer male students towards it. The construction sector has work to do in educating schools and the public that it is a valid member of the highly regarded STEM professions. Almost all construction roles draw on science, technology, engineering and math.

While young women — and perhaps even the general population — don’t associate the construction industry and women in the way that they should, Women in Construction Week provides a chance to promote opportunities in construction for women within their communities, while also generating a conversation around diversity in the trades. Below are a few suggestions for promoting Women in Construction Week:

Constructing a welcoming environment for women

• Display the Women in Construction Week poster at your office, job site, local high schools and colleges.
• Volunteer in your local middle and high schools to encourage young women to seek opportunities in the construction field.
• Promote a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) event for girls/women.
• Host a Women in Construction career day.
• Connect with women’s organizations and share job and training opportunities to their members.
• Facilitate mentor opportunities for women joining the construction industry.
• Post about Women in Construction Week on social media.
• Make it a priority to hire and work with other subcontractors or vendors that are women.
• Develop and enforce a zero-tolerance sexual harassment policy – not only for employers but for everyone on a job site.
• Ensure female crew members have properly fitting personal protective equipment.
• Ensure that adequate gender-neutral restroom facilities are available on every job site.

Female construction workers across any of the industries that intersect with construction understand that there are differences between how men and women are represented in their field. And while the construction industry has a long way to go before true equality, the International Code Council is dedicated to helping women learn more about the opportunities and options available to them as well as making it easy to connect with our network of professionals for support and guidance and providing them with amazing resources to help them gain confidence in their abilities and develop more leadership skills.