Women
are the answer to solving the skills crisis in the construction industry, a new
report has concluded.
The Equal
Opportunities Review (EOR) not only looks at what employers can do to encourage
women to become tradespeople, but also challenges the industry to take a fresh
look at solving its skills shortage.
Construction
is the UK’s biggest industry, currently employing two million people, with
around 380,000 vacancies.
At
present only 1 per cent of the industry’s modern apprentices are women and an
even smaller percentage of women are employed as tradespeople.
EOR
researcher and report author Carol Foster said: "The tiny majority of female
workers within the construction industry have already proved they are good at
their job.
"The
challenge for employers and other employees is to overcome the stereotypes that
women don’t belong on a building site," she said.