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£10m boost to get people of diverse backgrounds into construction

CITB will be targeting more than 11,800 people to attract them into construction careers, as part of the Pathways Into Construction programme.

Construction output is expected to grow by 1.3% per year with 168,500 jobs being created by 2023 – challenging employers to recruit more people from diverse backgrounds.

Just 16% of construction employees are female, and 7% are from BAME backgrounds.

This has been due, in part, because construction employers have relied over the years on traditional recruitment methods (PDF. 903kb) such as word of mouth.

Pathways Into Construction will attract people from underrepresented groups over the next three years with CITB’s investment establishing recruitment pathways that employers can use in future.

This supports construction employers by helping them meet their workforce and skills needs. Pathways Into Construction will see a £10m investment in 270 colleges; construction employers and federations; infrastructure projects; councils; housing associations; armed forces organisations; charities; prisons; recruiters and training providers across England, Wales and Scotland to connect employers with people who traditionally don’t enter the industry.

CITB insight into critical training and employment issues underpins the Pathways Into Construction programme with investment aimed at key groups including young people not in education, training or work; women; long-term unemployed; service leavers who left the military at least 12 months ago; and full-time learners, focusing on CBE Diploma students.

In the West Midlands and East Anglia, Women Into Construction will assist 240 women with work-readiness support and job placements with 30 companies, half of which are to be small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

Specifically in Wales, Creating Enterprise will also run work readiness courses and placements for more than 140 long-term unemployed people, including careers support plans beyond the project. Also in Wales, the Community Impact Initiative will provide nine renovation projects for 72 women to train on, plus CSCS card testing, along with vital on-site work experience to enable employment in the industry.

In Scotland, Sibbald will target 180 service leavers and young people not in education, training or employment within the North Glasgow area, in partnership with Glasgow Kelvin College, TIGERS Ltd, Keepmoat and Morgan Sindall.

Stephen Cole, CITB Head of Careers Strategy, said “With thousands of jobs being created in the coming years, Pathways Into Construction will demonstrate that we need to stop fishing in only half the pond and diversify the talent pool to meet future skills needs.

“We’ll explore the best routes, which employers can adopt in future, to bring under-represented groups into the industry, not only filling the skills gap but also supporting employers by recruiting domestic talent with Brexit on the horizon.”

Mark Reynolds, Mace Group CEO and Construction Leadership Council lead on skills, added “The funding awarded to the 16 projects will have a huge impact… It will help to ensure that everyone can access high-quality construction training and employers can find the right new people to deliver their projects.”

Other organisations leading Pathways Into Construction multi-partner projects include: Abbey Access Training; Balfour Beatty; Construction Youth Trust; Croydon Council, Doncaster College; EN:Able Futures; Ethos VO Ltd; the Home Builders Federation; Leeds Beckett University; Lendlease; Saint-Gobain; Sibbald Ltd; and YTKO.

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Lack of women in construction could be worse than predicted

The number of females in professional construction roles is less than many analysts predicted, according to a survey carried out by specialist construction recruitment firm, One Way.

In a survey of professionals from across the industry, the firm found that 65% of respondents work in a company where less than 5% of the workforce is made up of women in an actual construction role.

When asked about the challenges for women in construction, over half (58%) stated that businesses themselves are to blame due to a range of issues such as stereotyping in the recruitment process and a lack of commitment from employers. Just over a third (35%) felt that it simply isn’t a popular career choice for women.

The survey – carried out as part of the firm’s #GirlsAllowed campaign which aims to bring together those in construction and education outlets to encourage more girls into the sector – also revealed that the majority (83%) believe that a lack of construction career education in schools is creating a concerning gap in female talent.

Reassuringly, over 80% of those surveyed agreed that they would personally get involved in an initiative to help address the lack of women in construction.

Paul Payne, Managing Director of One Way, commented on the findings “What is clear from these results is that employers need to do more to both attract more women into the industry and embrace them once on board. The results of the survey clearly demonstrate that the sector has a bad reputation when it comes to hiring females and given the severity of existing skills shortages, this simply cannot continue. While we were expecting to find low levels of employment, some of the figures were certainly below our initial perceptions, which makes the need for greater collaboration through initiatives such as the #GirlsAllowed campaign more vital now than they have ever been.

“While it’s great to see so many respondents commit to taking more action, there were some concerning views that came to light that I feel need to be altered immediately. Aside from some of the gender stereotyping comments, other remarks suggested that some in the industry itself don’t think construction is a sector that women should be in. This is quite simply untrue and is an attitude myself and the team at One Way certainly want to turn around.”

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Will Theresa May encourage gender diversity in construction?

41% of young women aged 13–22 believe their gender will hold them back in the workplace; however, they claim that the rise of female leaders, such as Theresa May and Hilary Clinton, could help to change sexist attitudes and encourage workplace diversity, according to a new YouGov survey commissioned by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

While almost half of young women believed that their gender would count against them in the workplace, young men seem to think differently, with 20% saying that they expect to earn more in their careers than their female counterparts.

But there may be hope on the horizon in the form of Theresa May and Nicola Sturgeon. 43% of young women believe that having a female Prime Minister or President will encourage gender diversity at work. Of those surveyed, 73% believe that the attitudes and behaviour of CEOs and senior leaders are important in encouraging equal numbers of men and women.

The property and construction industries were perceived by respondents to be among the least diverse with 29% of girls saying that the sector was purely for men. Among the industries perceived as most diverse are retail and health, with law and construction cited as the least.

Amanda Clack FRICS, RICS President said “Speaking as a woman in construction, I can say with confidence that this is not just a job for boys; however, the need for diversity at the very top is clear. When I first entered the profession there were no strong female role models. Yet, according to our survey, a quarter of young women believe they will do better under the leadership of a female CEO and they want to see visible female role models.

“Strong female roles models will help to attract greater diversity into the industry because the more we celebrate individual success, the more surmountable barriers become. With a female Prime Minister in the UK and a woman in the running for the US Presidency, we are seeing great female role models at the very highest levels.”

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