The NSW Government has announced an investment of $20 million over the next three years to help increase the number of women working in construction-related roles.
The initiative is part of the NSW Government’s commitment to growing the economy and creating new jobs.
Treasurer Matt Kean said the government will lead the way with a goal of women making up 15 per cent of workers in the construction industry by 2030.
“The latest estimates show that skills shortages in the Australian construction industry could top 105,000 workers by 2023,” Mr Kean said.
“Increasing the number of women in the construction industry is essential to lower the gender pay gap and ensure we have the skilled workforce required to deliver the government’s record $110.4 billion infrastructure pipeline.”
The Property Council of Australia has backed the decision from the NSW Government to commit $20.2 million in the State Budget to triple the number of women in construction.
NSW Executive Director Luke Achterstraat has backed the decision and said they had long advocated for an increase of females in the sector.
“Even though the industry has made great progress in recent years, there still aren’t enough women working in property and construction and only 28 per cent of leadership roles are held by women,” Mr Achterstraat said.
“Today’s announcement will ensure that more women choose a career in property, choose to stay and are given more opportunities to excel because there is a myriad of benefits both for them and the industry.”
Mr Achterstraat said the property industry was in the game of building better places, and good places benefit from a diversity of design and thought.
“When building design and construction has the input of a diverse range of people, we see better buildings, better communities and better towns and cities,” he said.
“This is important as our population and regions grow larger and more diverse.
“Diversity of thought also propels creativity and innovation within an organisation. Global management consulting firm McKinsey found top companies that embrace gender diversity are 21 per cent more likely to have above-average profitability than companies who don’t.
“We hope this announcement empowers more women to consider the property industry as a career choice, to boost diversity, creativity and innovation for the future.”
