International Equal Pay Day: Working towards parity and fairness
To mark International Equal Pay Day 2024 (Wednesday 18 September), it's important to highlight and acknowledge the gender pay disparities that persist in our industry.
The UK's construction and civil engineering sectors, traditionally male-dominated fields, continue to grapple with significant pay gaps despite progress in recent years.
How bad is it?
Recent data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that:
- Women in construction earned on average 12.8 percent less than their male counterparts
- The gap is slightly narrower but still significant in engineering, at 10.3 percent
- Just 14 percent of the UK's engineering workforce is female (lowest in Europe)
- In construction, this drops to 13 percent (with just two percent working in 'manual' trades)
These stats highlight not just a stark pay gap but also a clear representation inequality that exacerbates the issue.
What is the cause?
There is no single factor that is to blame for the gender pay gap in construction and civil engineering.
Rather, several issues persist in contributing, including:
- Occupational segregation - women are often concentrated in lower-paying roles within these industries
- Lack of flexible working options - this can disproportionately affect women with caregiving responsibilities
- Unconscious/unacknowledged biases in recruitment and promotion processes
- The 'leaky pipeline' effect - where women are more likely to leave these sectors mid-career due to workplace culture issues
Is any progress being made?
Despite the sobering stats above, there are some recent signs of encouragement to feel positive about, such as:
- The fact that the construction sector's gender pay gap has narrowed by 2.1 percent since 2019
- More and more employers and organisations are creating Women's Networks to support mentoring and career development and progression
- High-profile campaigns like #NotJustForBoys have raised awareness and encouraged more women to consider careers in these areas
What else can be done to close the gap?
There's still plenty of progress to be made in order to continue to narrow and ultimately erase the gender pay gap in our sector, with just some of the recommended actions including:
- Employers to implement transparent pay structures (incorporating regular remuneration audits and potentially making salary ranges public)
- Skills/competency based recruitment practies (broadening the talent pool by hiring outside 'traditional' career paths)
- Flexible working policies (implementing and actively promoting such arrangements for all staff)
- Women leadership development (investing and researching in initiatives that prepare and equip women for senior industry positions)
- Culture improvements (implement zero tolerance policies for harassment and discrimination)
- Collaboration and knowledge sharing (data and best practices to drive improvements across the board)
- Target educational establishments (early engagement with schools and colleges to highlight opportunities for women
The CICES viewpoint
If steps like those detailed above and more aren't taken to attract talented women to the construction, civil engineering, surveying and related sectors, then the current skills gap will continue to grow.
Other sectors and industries that are more proactive in addressing the gender pay gap will prove a better proposition to those individuals with the most potential.
But the more women are vocal about what they're entitled to - namely, 'equal pay for equal work' - the more the needle is likely to move, as explained by CICES Council of Management member and Women's Network co-ordinator, Genna Rourke:
'Women in construction - and in every industry - know your worth!
'Don’t shy away from asking for what you deserve - your time, skills and contributions are valuable and you should be compensated fairly.
'If you feel you’re being underpaid, don’t stay silent - raise the issue and seek help if needed.
'Employers have an important part to play, as many women find it difficult to ask for the pay they deserve, which can lead to unfairness and ultimately see them leave an industry that needs more diversity and fresh perspectives.
'In 2024, ensuring women are paid equally isn’t just about fairness - it's about building a better, more inclusive construction industry for everyone.'