Gender pay gap grows in construction

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s (WGEA) has released its findings from 4,943 reports submitted for 2019–20.

The gender pay gap in the construction industry has risen by 0.1 per cent in the last year, and now has the second-highest rated full-time pay gap at 26.1 per cent.

In a Build Australia article, National Chair of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), Kristine Scheul, said that the results are disappointing based on how much work has been done to turn public perception around.

Construction isn’t typically a first choice for young women trying to pick a career. For females, the word “trade” tends to evoke images of hair dressers and florists rather than fridgies.

A recent article in HVAC&R Nation discussed women in the HVAC&R and construction industry.

Grant Swanson, M.AIRAH, teaches HVAC and refrigeration at Ultimo TAFE in Sydney and has been in the industry for forty years. He believes school career advisors and parents should be encouraging girls leaving school toward more male-dominated trades that are paying top dollar but lacking numbers of quality candidates entering the trades.

However, founding members of Women in Design and Construction, SHAPE Australia design manager Althea Papinczak and SHAPE Australia project manager Erin Oxley, say they think a 50 per cent target or gender quotas are not the best way to proceed.

Papinczak thinks the focus should be on who is best for the job.

Overall, the WGEA data found that the current gender pay gap sits at 14 per cent for full-time employees – a difference of $253.60 per week.