07 Mar Women in Construction week

This week of the year marks an important time for the construction industry as we celebrate women working in construction. Women still only make up about 12-14% of the workforce in our industry. Whilst the stats are improving yearly we all still have a long way to go to bridge the gap.

At MiCiM our female workforce makes up almost 30% of our business, with a number holding leadership, senior, and frontline construction positions. We have a group of like-minded people who make up our Women in Construction committee that falls under our Diversity and Equal Equality strategy. The committee meets regularly to strategize how to bring change and improvement and empower and inspire women to join MiCiM and progress their careers with us as we aim to bring our gender split to 50/50.

It all starts by encouraging younger girls to consider careers in construction, by studying STEM subjects, we also regularly meet and give talks in schools and at careers fairs to show them construction isn’t just for men. It is also vitally important that we support and encourage women back into work after motherhood, we offer enhanced maternity packages and guarantee your position when you choose to return to work. For the mothers that work with MiCiM, we also offer flexible working hours and childcare support. This year we are also looking to introduce a menopause policy to offer support for all women throughout their lifecycles.

We see that women promote the diversity of ideas and innovation, and it is proven that men’s and women’s brains are wired for different optimisations.

Having a diversity of ideas supports the construction industry’s need for problem-solving.  Women can significantly contribute by introducing new ideas, methods, and approaches. These benefits flow through to society in general, as greater equality promotes social stability and supports further economic development.