Women in the UK construction industry

Historically the construction industry has been a male dominated industry. However, in recent years positive steps have been made to increase the number of women in construction.

We’re going to be looking at what’s going on now. We’ll observe some facts and figures from reports about women in construction and identify some stumbling blocks to progress being made.

 

Facts and Figures – Women in construction

The construction industry in the UK is booming. The current forecasts predict that the industry will grow at a much faster rate than the UK average. Clearly, it is an exciting time to be a part of the industry.

The predicted growth will lead to an increase in the workforce. By 2020 a quarter of the workforce is estimated to be made up of women.

Furthermore, over the past decade women’s pay has risen an average of 6% per year. However, 41% of women believe that they still earn less than men.

Having said this there has been positive growth in the number of women filling senior roles in the industry. In 2005 6% of senior roles were populated by women. By 2015 16% of senior roles were occupied by women.

Clearly there are positive strides being taken to disassociate the industry with the ‘male only’ stereotype.

 

Work to do

However, the work cannot stop here. Although the industry is making positive strides there is a huge amount to be done. Many women still have apprehensions about the industry.

For example, a report compiled by Randstad identified three areas that have been reasons for women leaving the industry.

Firstly, 44% of respondents stated that improved flexibility would have made the industry more attractive to them.

Secondly, 35% specified that enforcing equal pay could make them consider a career in construction again.

Finally, 23% detailed that improved sponsorship and mentoring programs are necessary for women in construction.

 

Evidently the construction industry is heading in the right direction. We have witnessed this ourselves with the increase in women attending our courses such as the SSSTS and the SMSTS schemes. However, there is a lot of work to be done. Changing the ‘male only’ stereotype that has existed for hundreds of years will take time and effort.

There are now many organisations that are aiming to promote gender equality in the industry. For example, Women Into

Construction are a non for profit organisation that is putting huge amounts of work in to increase the opportunities for women in the industry.

We were lucky enough to meet a representative of their organisation when we recently attended UK Construction Week. The passion that Women Into Construction have is truly inspiring. The work that they do is something that we want to promote and support and you should too!

The Highways England Passport Scheme

Read our course page here.

The Highways England Passport Scheme is an initiative that is has been launched by Highways England. The scheme is a momentous step on the road towards the vision ‘One Industry One Card’.

Highways England are leading the charge towards this vision. A Smart Card will be have to be held by all of the supply chain and employees who attend Highways England sites.

The scheme aims to make work ‘Safer Smarter and Simpler’. There are over 50,000 industry people who need to hold the card and complete the ‘Common Induction Training’ training by April 2019.

Why?

Across the Highways England network there can be hundreds of active projects at one time. These projects are delivered by a very large workforce comprised of many different suppliers and partners. So, it is crucial that this workforce stays safe whilst working on these projects.

There are currently a large number of active ‘Highways England Motorway Pass’ cardholders and an estimated 50,000 workers in the strategic road network. The Passport Scheme will integrate both groups and align the process.

The passport will be the admittance card to any Strategic Road Network sites and there are many benefits to the new card being introduced. Some of the main benefits are;

• The reduction of site registration times using smart phone technology.
• Quick and effective and accurate verification of people accessing the sites credentials ensuring that they are authorised to do so.
• The technology provides an accurate register of the personnel and also the skills that are on site at all times.
• The improved management of risks associated with fatigue.
• Organisations such as Network Rail will be aligned with the scheme allowing information to be shared when required.

 

The Highways England Passport Scheme is headed up by Simon Jones who states:

“Our smartcard and common training will help road workers maintain their basic statutory health, safety, environment and also wellbeing requirements. It also provides a great opportunity to work collaboratively with the supply chain to improve standards across the Highways industry.”

“I believe modernising the process which enables workers access to our network is the right thing to do. It will improve how we work; it will allow us to report in real time and above all shows our commitment to safety, our workforce, their families and our customers.”

“For our workers, the scheme means that they won’t have to repeat all elements of safety induction if they move between sites. However, the common induction does not replace site specific inductions applicable to schemes on the strategic road network.”

How?

We (Fencing and Construction Training) are one of the first approved providers of the Highways England Passport Scheme ‘Common Induction Course’. We can provide training at your venue, a venue near you or one of our centres.

Upon completion of this one day course a record will be stored on the candidates smart card. The course and card are requirements for anyone who will be entering a Highways England Site.

We realise that with over 50,000 people to be trained you will want to book the course early so you can beat the rush and be qualified before the deadline of April 2019.

If you need any advice or have any questions please give us a call or an email and we’ll help you out.

Get in touch for more details!

Or call us on 0121 476 4731

Read our course page here.

We have a massive discount on our SSSTS course that is being held on the 14th-15th of November. It will take place at our Birmingham training centre which has accommodation facilities if required. The price is now only £250!!

The SSSTS course is required to renew Gold FISS CSCS cards.

Furthermore, it is the standard requirement for supervisors on all Build UK sites.

Please give us a call to book your place ASAP as there are very limited spaces!

0121 476 4731

An automatic gate installer has been jailed for 42 months for causing the death of Jill Lunn, a grandmother who was crushed by a falling gate. The ruling from the court states that the installer was guilty of manslaughter through gross negligence.

The gate was installed in March 2013, but the installer failed to fit the simple stopping device that prevents the gate from falling when operated manually. The jury was told that the death of Ms Lunn was a ‘wholly preventable tragedy’. Ms Lunn, who at the time was in her car with her grandchild, attempted to operate the gate automatically using her remote control. Unfortunately, this failed to work and Mrs Lunn got out of her vehicle to shut the gate manually. Tragically the gate fell on to Mrs Lunn crushing her and causing her death.

In addition to the installer receiving a prison sentence, his employers were fined  £12k  after admitting three counts of failing to comply with a requirement under the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations.

The founder of Gate Safe, Richard Jackson, commented that “This is a landmark ruling as it is the first time an individual installer, rather than just a company has been found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence – resulting in a prison sentence and sending out a clear message to the installer community.  It highlights the importance of understanding what constitutes a safe and legal automated gate installation and will possibly set a precedent for all installers to be held individually accountable for their actions.  We urge all professionals working in the automated and manual gate sector to ensure they have undergone the relevant training. First and foremost, to avoid any further tragedies occurring, but also to safeguard their reputation and business from the serious financial and legal repercussions of an accident.”

FaCT provide Gate Safe training, get in touch for more details or to book a course!

Mental health in construction is an area the needs attention. It is an issue that has been ignored for too long! The statistics don’t lie, we’ve created the infographic below to draw attention to the issue.

Please share this wherever you can so we can raise awareness of the mental health issues in the industry.

This is a problem that can be ignored no longer and needs addressing now!

Mental Health in Construction – The Stats

Mental health in construction is clearly an issue. It is a horrifying fact that the number of people suffering mental health issues in the construction industry is twice the national average.

There were 1,419 suicides in the industry from 2011-2015, this was much higher than any other profession. To put that into context, construction workers are 63% more likely to die by suicide than the UK national average.

Furthermore, it is also believed that construction workers are ten times more likely to die by suicide than a work accident.

The Health and Safety Executive reports that 400k working days are lost each year due to mental health issues. One quarter of current workers are considering leaving the industry due to high levels of stress and a poor work/life balance.

What’s Happening Now?

Many of the UK’s top construction firms have signed up to provide mental health first aiders.

Earlier this year was the launch of initiatives such as ‘Mates in Mind’ and ‘Stop. Make a Change’.

Evidently, the industry is waking up to the issue of mental health and making positive steps to counter it. We need to all get behind this movement and tackle it together!

Raising awareness is a key part of tackling the problem. So please share this to make people aware of the issue!

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