How to Attract and Hire More Women in Construction
With record low unemployment and a high demand for new projects, attracting diverse talent in construction has never been more important. Overall, women make up half of the workforce in the United States, yet women only make up 10% of construction professionals. Hiring more female talent can help mitigate the stress of the current labor crisis, and even improve performance and revenue. Here are some tips for attracting and hiring more women in construction.
Create Gender-Neutral Job Listings
Organizations often unintentionally use gender-coded language when the write job descriptions. This can keep female candidates from ever applying to your company. To start, you want to make sure you use gender neutral pronouns in all of your job listings. Next, research gender-coded language. Words like “assertive” and “competitive” appeal more to men than women, for example. Because gender stereotypes are so ingrained in most people’s mindsets, it helps to focus on your desire to create a diverse and inclusive workplace than on desired character traits.
Be Proactive and Encourage Women to Apply
Typically, when a female candidate looks at job listings, they look for listings that match their skill set and qualifications completely, while male candidates are more likely to apply for positions in which they only meet some of the qualifications. Especially in a male-dominated field like construction, female candidates are going to be less likely to come to you, so instead, try reaching out to them. You can encourage them to apply by emphasizing that the company provides training to offset skill gaps that new hires might have. It also helps if your job descriptions don’t focus too heavily on qualifications. Think about what your company has to offer to its employees, instead.
Involve Your Female Employees in the Hiring Process
Female candidates might assume if hired they will be the only woman on the team. Some candidates might feel reluctant about accepting an offer because they can’t picture themselves working in a company with so much male energy. Including women in the hiring process, particularly the interview phase, can make a major difference. The female employee will be able to describe their experience working in construction, making it easier for female candidates to picture themselves working for your company.
As the construction industry continues to feel the pressure of the ongoing talent shortage, attracting and hiring female construction professionals is a top priority for many companies. Female candidates represent the largest pool of untapped talent in the industry. Involving women in your hiring process, being proactive in reaching out to female candidates, and creating more gender-neutral job listing can help you attract more female candidates to your company.
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