Women And The Construction Industry

Over the past few decades, great strides have been made by women in the workplace. This increased number in women in the workplace does not mean equality however. Even with equal qualifications and achievements, women are still not given all the opportunities that men have. The chapter in the textbook, “Gender at Work”, shows us more of these inequalities in the workplace. Such inequalities cause gender segregation of jobs and can be linked with the pay inequality in the labor force. Even in jobs that are predominantly filled by women, men earn more than women. Women are often stereotyped as being family focused and not as able to travel, therefore they tend to get passed up for promotions (Garson p.353). This invisible barrier that keeps women from moving up the executive ladder is referred to as the “glass ceiling” (Baxter and Wright p. 346). Women also tend to do more domestic work, or unpaid labor and caregiving. This extra unpaid work is referred to as “the third shift” and is largely rested on the shoulders of women (Gersel p. 352). Consequently, this seems to be one of the biggest things holding women back from taking on jobs that are normally considered male

According to Metz (2011), women are being deprived of opportunities and being squeezed out of organisations due to preconceptions about their dedication to a long term role, based on outdated gender stereotypes. In general, women experience higher rates of harassment at work, compared to men(McLaughlin, Uggen and Blackstone 2012).

Another demographic change we are seeing in the labor force today are changes in the men to women ratio. According to the United States Department of Labor, in 1970 women only made around 37% of the working population, leaving men to make up the additional 63% (Women in the Labor Force, 2012). By 2012, women accounted for 47% of the total working population. Although this may not seem like a large increase from 1970, women did account for more than half of all laborers within several of the industry sectors including; financial activities (53%), education and health services (75%), leisure and hospitality (51%), and other services (52%). However, when looking at jobs in the agricultural, construction, mining, manufacturing, and transportation and utilities fields, women are still significantly underrepresented. Over the years we have seen not only the percentage of women in the labor force grow, but the large pay gap between men and women has slowly began to close. As of 2012, women with full time jobs

This concept illustrates gender inequality because even in a field that is dominated by women, gender perceptions about men’s roles, abilities, and skills, privilege them and ease their advancement within the occupation. (Wingfield, p363-365)

In today’s society it is still common to assign gender stereotype to specific career paths. Careers such as a construction worker, mechanic and electrician may be gender stereotyped as a man’s career and careers such as nursing, secretary, elementary school teachers and child care workers may be seen as a woman’s profession. I chose to analyze the concept of “ The Glass Escalator” by Adia Wingfield and relate it to two different news articles “ More men enter Fields Dominated by Women.” By Shaila Dewan and Robert Gebeloff and the article “Kudos for the Black Male Nurse” by Benjamin Greeen Jr. It has been encouraged for both men and women to take on occupational fields regardless of gender and race stereotypes. In Adia Wingfield’s study she also focuses on the inequality based off of race and gender in the work field for advancement in the a workplace. I decided to focus more on the subject of men just entering these different fields as an accomplishment.

The purpose of this final report is to summarize my experiences as an intern at Anslow Bryant Construction, Ltd. I will discuss the internship orientation and preparation, activities and experiences, and the application of technology. I will continue on to the energy and environmental awareness, and sustainable construction, and communication shill enhancement. I will conclude this report with legal and ethical issue awareness, lessons learned, and the overall assessment and recommendations of the internship.

Gender stereotypes are one of the most common encountered on a daily basis. The infamous ‘Glass Ceiling’ still exists in many areas of the professional world, restricting valid promotions simply based on gender. This type of concept can be verified by looking at comparative weekly wages of other professionals in a variety of industries. Most people will generally see female dominated occupations, such as nurse, teacher and secretary as requiring feminine personality traits and physical attributes for success; whereas male dominated occupations such as doctor, lawyer, and business executive are seen to require male personality traits for success (Sanderson, 2010, p. 344).

Anyone who has ever worked in a factory, plant, or on a construction jobsite is aware of the fact that this attitude is prevalent amongst the working class. In plants and factories, engineers and foremen are hated and on construction jobsites, architects and superintendents are despised. The basis for this attitude is more than just economics; it is a mixture of economics and machismo. Engineers, architects, managers, and inspectors do not do the hard physical work; in fact, they do not actually produce anything, yet they usually earn more money and definitely more respect than those who do. They draw up the plans and designs, but they do not implement them. The

This critical review will examine and analyze the article No Longer ‘One of the Boys’: Negotiations with Motherhood, as Prospect or Reality, among Women in Engineering written by Gillian Ranson (2005) and published by the CRSA/RCSA. This article provides an overall assessment of the challenges women face in the male dominated field of engineering. Specifically, it addresses how women handle the stresses of being engineers and mothers. This critical review will analyze the content of the article, explore the strengths and weaknesses, critique the methodology and consider what could have been done differently.

Construction worker Eric Pearson was doing his typical nightly duties while his company was paving a major highway in Colorado on a clear, summer night

Stereotype threats are negative consequences about one’s race, sex, nationality, or social group. Stereotype threats are used a lot more frequently than people realize. Gender is a powerful stereotype that affects many people’s decisions and actions. The stereotype of women in the workplace has come a long way even in the last twenty years. Many businesses tend to want to diversify their demographics by making the ratio of men to women almost equal. “Demographic projections anticipate that by the year 2000 women will exceed 50 per cent of the total workforce…” (Johnston and Packer, 1987). Women were able to make their way in to the workplace when men were off at war during the 1950s. During this time, women proved their ability to do the same kind of jobs men did. Many women worked as machinist, factory workers, and clergies.

Engineering is a field dominated by men in today's society, for many reasons. When people think about engineering they think about men with glasses and never does a women come to mind. However, there have been many studies on the skills that keep women out of engineering as a career yet there is no proof that women cannot or do not possess the skills needed to be a successful engineer. Therefore, it is thought and stereotyped that women do not have the skills to have an engineering career. Due to the studies and stereotypes the questions then arise as to what makes a good engineer. Many have the same response to the question but not one skill can a women not posses. Women are stereotyped as being dumb just because they are pretty. If a

Women have experienced a historic situation of inequality in the social as well as professional aspects. Women were normally the ones that would take care of children, do the chores in the house, and in rural areas; they would work in the field with the rest of the family. However, today’s women have become more self-sufficient and independent from the predominant male figure within every historical family. Gender inequality in the workplace is becoming less common; yet, gender is a factor that affects men and women. Especially women have been subjected to a historical discrimination that has influenced society to decide which job is more suitable for women than men. However women have confronted and tried to break down the barriers that

A study on the implicit and explicit occupational gender types, Sex Roles, “Occupational gender stereotypes are activated when men and women are considered to be more suited for certain occupations based on stereotyped characteristics and temperaments” (White and White 2006). Matheus represented the following examples, “a stereotypically feminine job would be associated with attributes such as nurturing, caring, and being sensitive to the needs of others and a stereotypically masculine job would be associated with attributes such as decisiveness, coldness and toughness” (Matheus 2010). Nowadays, women are usually seen in the workforce as secretaries and nurses. Meanwhile, most doctors and construction laborers are men. In addition, Anker points out that “Occupational segregation by gender is prevalent in most if not all countries” (Anker 1998). “Women and men work in different fields and within fields at different levels” (Anker 1998). Diekman and Wilde explained that “men’s concentration in leadership and other high power roles led to the assumption that men have “agentic characteristics” such self-assertion and dominance and women’s concentration in subordinate and caretaking roles lead to the assumption that they have “communal characteristics” such as being kind and supportive (Diekman and Wilde 2005).

In striking resemblance to the aforementioned issues, women experience ridicule and other problems in the work place. As lending evidence, “According to the National Association of Women in Construction, less than 10 percent of women are in [the] industry” (Godwin, 2010, ¶ 9). Since I have worked in a few construction fields over my lifetime, I can personally attest to the mentality of numerous male workers in the business, regarding women infiltrating the ranks. Most often, men believe that women are inferior in the strength, endurance and mental abilities, which all are presumably necessary to be even moderately effective in the trade. Comparatively speaking, as much as nursing is customarily seen as a female position, due to its caring nature, construction is expected to be a man’s job, because of the assumed prerequisite of toughness.