The construction industry is still dominated by men. A new analysis of industry statistics shows that there is a growing number of women entering the field. FIXr.com, a site that specializes in home remodeling, analyzed the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest data and found that the number of female workers in the construction industry jumped 52.9% between 2013 and 2022.
According to FIXr, there were 840,000 women working in construction in 2013. However, this number has risen to 1.28million by 2022.
Jocelyn Knoll (partner at Dorsey & Whitty LLP) stated that “there are more women who have a place at the table” in the FIXr report. “This is a great time for women to get into the construction industry as a tradesperson or construction manager, team member, architect/engineer, executive, consultant, or professional.”
FIXr discovered that the majority of women working in the construction industry are in the professional, sales, and management areas.
FIXr looked again at Bureau of Labor Statistics data and found that 36.1% of women working in construction were in management and professional occupations, while another 36.1% worked as sales representatives and office workers. Another 24.6% worked as maintenance, natural resources, and construction workers.
Taylor Norris, primary owner of Smitty’s General Contractors, stated that women can use a hammer to climb on roofs, tear down and install roofs, and lead a team, create a safe work environment, and provide a client experience that is as good as their male counterparts in the FIXr report.
Despite this, women are still significantly outnumbered in the construction industry. According to FIXr, men account for 95.9% in the natural resources, maintenance, and construction end of the industry, and 94.9% in the production, transport, and material moving area.
Men make up 83.5% of jobs in management and professional areas of construction and 78.4% on the service side.
In sales and office jobs, the only place where women are outnumbered by men in construction is in sales. Women hold 72.2% in this sector.
FIXr also examined the states where the highest percentage of construction jobs are held in women. Minnesota was ranked first in the Midwest with 13.5% of all construction jobs being held by women. This is the same percentage as Nebraska. This percentage was 12.8% in Illinois and 12.9% in Tennessee.
The Texas number was 10.1%. In Ohio, it was 10.7%, and Indiana, 11.2%.