Recent National Catastrophies Could Usher in True Equality for Women

Because of strong labor and demographic trends – as well as the extensive damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita along the Gulf Coast – the construction job market is poised to put women in high demand.

For the past 10 years, headlines in the construction press have been reporting on the skills shortage facing the industry now and in the years to come. In fact, it is estimated that through 2009, at least 250,000 new recruits will be required to meet the demand in the construction industry.

"The labor shortage in the next few years is going to force change," Kara Roberson, marketing communications director for the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) recently told Monster.com. "Women are going to be needed to fill that void."

Despite affirmative action efforts to recruit women into construction, currently only about 2.5 percent of the country's estimated 6.3 million construction workers are women, according to the U.S. Dept. of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.

This low percentage comes at a time when the construction industry is facing large scale retirement of its aging workforce, as well as additional manpower demands from the rebuilding efforts and housing boom that are ongoing in the South.

"Women could be the greatest untapped resource for filling that gap," said Beth Youhn, director of Oakland-based Tradeswomen Inc., in a recent article from Haverstick Consulting.

So Why Haven’t More Women Pursued Jobs in Construction?

According to a recent survey of over 3,000 construction companies, women have been mainly deterred from working in the construction industry due to its long hours, its male-dominated environment and its perceived unfriendly culture.

But that is beginning to change as more women realize the benefits of working in construction jobs. For example, more women are being drawn to construction by the opportunity to run the family business or the chance to take on the challenge of working on a project from concept to completion. Others are being drawn by the freedom of working with their hands outdoors and enjoying the sunshine and fresh air.

Whatever the reason, more career-seeking women are definitely being drawn to the world of construction and are taking advantage of opportunities that didn't exist until recently. “Today, the construction industry is more open to women than ever before,” said Jon Rose, owner of Journeyman Line, a leader of high-quality toolbelts. (www.journeymanline.com)“Thanks to a number of degree programs, continuing-education courses, certifications, scholarships and apprenticeships, women who have a dream to be in construction, can now really do something about it.”

In the wake of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma, Rose said he expects his number of female customers to skyrocket in the very near future.

“After the nation's most extensive natural disaster, the Gulf Coast is already becoming a job-creating superconductor,” Rose said. “The demand for workers needed in the rebuilding efforts is already strained. We’re going to soon see a tremendous boom in construction jobs.”

Other respected employment and construction experts agree with Rose.

“Rebuilding the Gulf Coast will be the biggest public works and private housing endeavor since the Great Depression,” said Jerry Howard, CEO of the National Association of Home Builders.

“Anyone willing to do construction work will have a job for years," said Jim Lott, deputy executive director for the Mississippi Department of Employment Security.

So Could the Disaster Recovery Efforts Do What Years and Years of the Women’s Liberation Movement Couldn’t – That is Get More Women Involved in the Male-Dominated Construction Field?

No matter how you look at it, the women’s liberation movement has been successful. For example, did you know that the number of female construction workers has nearly doubled in the last 15 years? It’s true (and you can expect that percentage to surge much higher in the coming years).

Here’s some other statistics to consider:

•Women now bring in half or more of the income in most households.

•Women head 40 percent of all U.S. households with an income of over $600,000. •Women own roughly 66 percent of all home-based businesses.

•Today there are more than 9 million women in business for themselves, contributing more than $3.6 trillion to the U.S. economy.

•Women-owned businesses represent almost 40 percent of all U.S. businesses, employing 27.5 million people -- more than all the Fortune 500 companies combined.

•Women comprise almost half of the U.S. work force, a 60% increase from 1950 figures.

•Today, over 70% of women with children under 18 years of age, are in the work force as compared with only 20% in the 1950s.

•In 1983, women held 34 percent of executive, administrative and managerial positions; today that figure is 46 percent.

But despite all the success, women still have a long way to go. For example:

•Over 70% of corporations on the Fortune 500 list have no female directors. •Even though the economy was booming, the wage gap between male and female managers actually widened between 1995 and 2000. •On average, women make 78% of men's wages, according to a 2003 study by the U.S. Department of Labor.

In spite of all the gains that women have made in the workplace over the years, there remain certain industries, such as construction, where they have been unable to get equal footing with men.

Now it looks like a labor shortage caused by recent natural disasters could change all that forever.

“The construction industry needs women. I believe that more and more women are discovering that the construction industry is a great way for them to make a living,” Rose said. “And you can’t ignore the fact that in an industry that is so dominated by males being a woman could actually be a real marketing advantage.”

“The truth is, by discounting construction as a viable career, women could miss out on high earnings potential, a paid technical education and opportunities to head their own businesses,” Rose added. “It’s a great career choice for women. It gives them great freedom and flexibility and allows them to direct their own work.”

Bruce Prokopets Executive Editor Press Direct International www.pressdirectinternational.org

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