The creation of an industry-funded parental leave scheme is among the recommendations from the first comprehensive Australian study into boosting the retention of women in construction.
Women make up just 13.6 percent of the construction workforce and only 3 percent of trades workers in Australia.
Despite growing investment in creating pathways for women into the sector, many leave construction careers once they reach the stage of establishing families because the sector falls short in supporting women through pregnancy and parental leave. This represents lost return on investment and contributes to a persistent skills gap.
To help address this problem, the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) commissioned research from the University of Sydney Business School to better understand the unique challenges faced by women as they navigate pregnancy, parental leave and returning to work.
The researchers found:
- Pregnancy and parental leave transitions are career-breaking.
- Women are modifying their reproductive decisions to fit the job.
- The sector's strong health and safety culture doesn't extend to pregnant workers.
- Stigma and discrimination persist.
"Many of the women we spoke to were the first in their workplace to take parental leave and received little support from managers who lacked knowledge and experience. In fact, they reported serious issues including forced disclosures, withheld promotions, demotions and redundancies," said study co-author Dr Natalie Galea .
"Even in supportive workplaces, there are widespread issues including inadequate health and safety policies, lack of basic amenities such as women's toilets and lactation rooms, and lack of clear and transparent parental leave policies. The employment practices haven't caught up with having women as part of the workforce - or even allowing men to take on caring responsibilities.
"We urge the NSW Government to consider an industry levy to fund parental leave, especially for small businesses and sole traders. This would encourage more women to take up a trade and enable skilled workers to remain in the industry, helping to address Australia's construction skills shortage now and into the future."
Despite growing investment in creating pathways for women into the sector, many leave construction careers once they reach the stage of establishing families because the sector falls short in supporting women through pregnancy and parental leave. Pictures: National Association of Women in Construction
The research, run out of the University of Sydney's Australian Centre for Gender Equality and Inclusion @ Work , was conducted in three parts:
- A literature review encompassing the existing research on how women transition between the workplace and parental leave,
- An industry scan of the current policies and practices in the construction sector, and
- A lived experience report based on interviews with 37 women in the construction industry who had taken pregnancy leave and/or returned to work within the past five years, and with 15 stakeholders with policy knowledge and experience.
The researchers found entrenched rigid work practices including inflexible hours and six-day work weeks prevent women from returning to hands-on roles, especially in regional areas with limited access to childcare.
They have produced a toolkit with detailed recommendations to help retain women through pregnancy, parental leave and the return to work.
"The employment practices haven't caught up with having women as part of the workforce - or even allowing men to take on caring responsibilities."
Dr Natalie Galea Senior Lecturer, University of Sydney Business School
"Progress in this area will require coordinated efforts from trade unions, employer groups, employers and government," said study co-author Associate Professor Myra Hamilton .
"There is inadequate support for women in frontline roles during pregnancy and after the birth of their child, especially for sole traders and those in small businesses - and this is an industry dominated by small businesses.
"We encourage the sector to think creatively about how to better support this important and growing part of its workforce."
Down the full report and toolkit: Boosting retention of women in construction: Supporting women through parental leave.
Declaration
This research was funded by the NSW Government's Women in Construction Industry Innovation Program.
