Women in the construction industry
On Wednesday January 12, the first roundtable discussion took place on the subject of women in the construction industry. In response to strong demand, we have decided to provide you with an article summarizing this webinar.
As a reminder, this event was co-organized with the association "Les SouterReines" and brought together 6 talented speakers from the industry:
- Natacha Humel - My Ben
- Valérie DORE ROQUETA - Vinci Construction
- Marion Malandain - Optimiz Construction
- Julia Petit Tortorici - BTP Magazine
- Myriam Fontaine-Boullé - Les SouterReines
- Loubna Bounouré - Transamo
Richad Mitha, head of Synaxe, the event's organizer, was on hand to lead the discussion.
Many thanks again.
We hope you enjoy reading!
For those who would like to see the replay:
https://app.livestorm.co/synaxe/table-ronde-femmes/live#/
The figures
According to the Union des caisses de France congés intempéries BTP (UCF-CIBTP): the proportion of women employees in the building trades has risen from 8.7% in 2001 to 11.9% in 2018.
According to the French Building Federation (FFB): 45.3% of women are employees and technicians, 20.3% are managers, but only 1.6% work on building sites.
According to the FFB, 24% of small businesses in the construction sector are headed by women.
In the craft sector, they number 800,000, according to the network of Chambers of Trades and Crafts (CMA).
The Confédération de l'artisanat et des petites entreprises du Bâtiment (Capeb) is aiming for 13% female employees and 16,000 female managers by 2022.
In the public works sector, the figure will be just 11.6% in 2021. 20% of female managers and 25.8% of female employees, technicians and supervisors in 2021.
The number of women in the sector has risen by 1% in 10 years, from 8.6% in 2000 to 12.3% in 2020.
The causes
It was important to focus on the causes of these slight changes.
Today, the sector is full of prejudices: the arduous nature of the work, the prevailing machismo, the way others look at a profession that is not very rewarding at first glance, the long working hours that can't always be reconciled with family life, the frequent business travel that can't be reconciled with private life either, the lack of clear indications about the courses of study...
Lack of initiative from the national education system
They all agreed that national education plays a major role. This is a sector that is not given enough prominence, and is devalued because it is more technical than general. As a result, the way the sector is viewed is not conducive to development, and these professions, which are essential to life today, are sidelined. What's more, schools don't provide enough training in the subject of discrimination, leaving women unprepared to deal with these situations.
French problem?
Based on their experiences, they point to a problem that is certainly linked to the place of women in French society. Indeed, they have all noted that in Asia or Northern Europe, the place of women in the sector is far more developed than in France.
The company's vision
Job descriptions are designed by men, for men. As a result, grading criteria are more male-oriented, affecting women's progress. Despite her excellent academic results and being in a non-minority class, Loubna had to face the harsh reality once on the worksite: no women on the job! 12 years ago, Natacha confided to us that there were no women on a building site, today there are a few. We also note that, if the company's culture goes against it, this is a real brake on women's development. Jobs that are seen as more male-dominated, where power relations are a daily occurrence, and where women tend to "get eaten up". You have to prove yourself to be respected and assert your character, more than a man. Today, codes are set to evolve with a new generation of entrepreneurs and women who are driving things forward.
Bias in communication practices
The photos and images used are often of men at work; Linkedin posts (the construction industry's preferred network) rarely feature women at work, or overdo it. This blurs the message and wearies readers. Job offers lead to interviews that are often intimidating, with HR or operational men who are very settled in their positions and sometimes gruff.
Post-recruitment integration bias
In the field, male supervisors prefer to ask men for explanations; women who impose themselves in supervisory positions are not always well accepted by old-school operational teams, reluctant to obey a woman; inappropriate and macho jokes are still present when women have to exercise their skills.
Solutions
Loi rixain
To accelerate professional equality, the Rixain law, adopted on December 24, 2021, aims to establish a feminization threshold in companies. To this end, it will require companies with over 1,000 employees to have 30% women in positions of responsibility by 2026, and 40% from March 2029.
35% of companies have fewer than two women in the top ten.
Two months earlier, the agreement on gender equality had come into force, to ensure equal pay and balanced representation in positions of responsibility in all architectural firms and their representative bodies.
In addition, since March 2020, all French companies with at least 50 employees have been required to publish their overall gender equality index score each year. In 2022, of all these companies, "98% still need to make efforts to advance equality between women and men", notes the Ministry of Labor. 35% of companies have fewer than two women in their top ten.
Training
Finally, vocational training courses are becoming increasingly feminized. Women-only training courses have been set up at several training centers in France. These courses help them to learn the trade of VRD mason, for example, with a view to securing employment with public works companies. This is the case of the Généa Formation training center in Montoir-de-Bretagne (Loire-Atlantique), which last June enabled seven women to start a one-year work-study program with the Charier group. The CCCA-BTP encourages the feminization of building and civil engineering trades, through its "Plurielles. Women at the heart of the building trade".
Each of the speakers also shared what they themselves were putting in place as women in the sector.
100 des SouterReines goal
During the 22-23 school year, the association will enable 3rd graders to carry out a one-week work placement in the construction industry. Thanks to a network of members and the association's commitment to providing PPE.
Interview
Natacha sets up interviews with women on the site to learn about and share their professions.
Being a good listener
Women don't necessarily feel they belong. We need to encourage women to open up and talk about their situations at work. In particular, we need to multiply events like this one.
Inform
From an early age: enable students to find out more about the sector as soon as they start high school or college.
There's a need to provide better guidance for women who want to reinvent themselves or retrain in the building and civil engineering sector, because the opportunities are there: a wide range of different professions, including numerous management positions, digital technology and the environment are recruitment levers for anyone with digital skills and a desire to contribute to a better world.
Quotas
This is a subject that is often debated, and some of our speakers who were against it have now changed their minds. Benefiting from a law that offers opportunities to women is a real chance that must be seized. Women in construction deserve their place!
Many thanks again to the team and to all the speculators who took part in the round table.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us: marketing@synaxe.com
If you'd like to get in touch with Richad directly, to discuss how to modernize your industry, click here: rmitha@synaxe.com
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