Expansive careers for women in construction sector

It’s Women in Construction Week, March 1-7, when we reinforce how important women are to the industry and encourage females to consider construction as a career.

Women totaled more than half of U.S. payroll jobs last December, just the second time women have outnumbered men in the workforce, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Yet while women made up just a fraction of the construction workforce at nearly 10% in 2018, that number is on the rise. In particular, we have seen an influx of women in craft professional roles, increasing from 3% of the workforce to 12% between 2013 and 2018, according to Associated Builders and Contractor’s (ABC) 2019 Workforce Development Survey.

That’s because construction offers numerous career opportunities with competitive salaries—especially compared to other industries. While women in the U.S. workforce earn an average of 81.1% of what their male counterparts make, the gender pay gap in the construction sector is significantly smaller, with women earning an average of 99.1% compared to men. In Wisconsin, the median annual salary for a construction craft person is roughly $80,000 right after graduating from an apprenticeship program.

There is no better time start a construction career. ABC estimates 440,000 workers are needed just to meet construction backlog. And at ABC Wisconsin, we are committed to recruiting and up-skilling women so we can continue to develop a diverse and inclusive construction workforce and industry.

To learn more about career opportunities, visit www.buildyourcareerwi.org.