Construction industry’s 31.8% gender pay gap highlights “urgent need to change”

The gender imbalance in Australia’s construction sector shows an “urgent need to change”, the head of a leading industry organisation says, as new Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) data shows a median total remuneration gap of 31.8% between men and women.

The WGEA unveiled a massive trove of gender pay gap data on Tuesday, showcasing how different industries, and individual employers with over 100 staff, remunerate their workforces.

Construction was the standout sector in terms of the median total remuneration gap, surpassing any other field.

Across all occupations in the construction arena, men are likely to earn nearly $40,000 more than their female counterparts on average per annum.

Women comprise just 26% of the total Australian construction workforce, and are far more likely to work in the lowest-earning quartile of construction workers (47% of workers) compared to the top quartile (12%).

Source: Workplace Gender Equality Agency.

Women are also far less likely than men to work as labourers (24% of the workforce), machinery operators and drivers (9%), and technicians and trades workers (6%).

Although the report only represents ventures with 100 employees or more, the data speaks to trends long observed across the construction industry, including at small businesses.

Responding to the data, Annabel Crookes, president of the Australian Constructors Association (ACA), said gender diversity remains a significant challenge for the sector.

“The gender imbalance is one of the toughest problems we have to solve, because it gives rise to so many other cultural issues which are blockers for improving diversity for all,” she said.

The ACA, which represents industry giants like Built, Lendlease, and Icon, said the gender disparity is no surprise to leaders in the sector.

The “urgent need to change” prompted the ACA to encourage each member to appoint at least one female director five years ago, a move designed to “instil leadership discussions with diverse perspectives,” Crookes said.

Further, most of ACA’s 18 member organisations intend to achieve WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality certification by 2028.

Doing so will “help the industry close gender pay gaps faster and shift the industry to one that provides opportunities for all regardless of their gender,” Crookes said.

The release of new WGEA data coincides with the official launch of BuildSkills, a new Jobs and Skills Council established to meet future workforce challenges — including the underrepresentation of women.

Speaking in Canberra, Alex Waldren, national director of industry policy for Master Builders Australia, said outsiders “see an industry that’s dated for the most part”.

BuildSkills is “interested in research that looks at how we might dispel the myths that surround the industry – that it’s still a man’s industry, that wages are poor, that career longevity isn’t possible”.

Ultimately, the sector must create a “culture that is sustainable, adaptive, inclusive and strong,” he added.