Women in construction rises to highest level ever

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Figures have revealed that the number of women in the construction industry has reached one of its highest levels since records began.

The data, released by the Office for National Statistics, shows that the total amount of female construction workers shot up 9.9% year on year to hit 277,000 in December 2015.

It is the highest level for 20 years, with the previous record for women in the sector set in June 1996.

The rate at which female workers were taken on by construction firms was also faster than for men. According to the statistics, the number of male employees rose by 6.6% year on year in December 2015.

In an analysis of each quarter, the number of female workers in the sector increased by 1.5%, while the figure came in at 0.1% for men.

When records first began in 1978, women made up 11.9% of the sector’s workforce. The latest figures represent a significant increase, revealing that proportion stood at 19.9% in December last year.

In total, the number of employee jobs in the construction sector increased 7.2% year on year to 1.39 million.

The ONS figures come as research carried out by CITB shows that an extra 232,000 jobs are set to be created in construction over the next five years, as the industry expands.

Elsewhere, other findings have revealed that wages in the building sector may be on the rise.

According to data, there was an 8.8% rise in average weekly earnings in January this year compared to the same period last year.

Such a rapid increase in wage growth has not been seen since January 2001, though there were indications earnings fell month on month.

Source CITB