THE Equal Opportunities Commission has published a report criticising the construction industry for not making enough of an effort to attract women recruits.
I do believe we have to attract more individuals into this industry’s training programmes to secure the future of the industry, but please note that use of the term "individual" - not men or women!
Various projects running within schools are aime
d at giving young people the opportunity to experience our industry before they leave full-time education. These schemes encourage male and female students alike.
Attitudes within older generations do have to change. It is all well and good persuading school-age girls that construction is a good career move, but when they return home and dad or grandpa wax lyrical about the terrible conditions working within construction (misguided although these often are) we lose another potential recruit.
Contemporary working practices - prefabrication, automated processes and clever design - all point to an industry where brute force is no longer a prerequisite. Health and Safety legislation ensures that sites are decent places to work. These advances are as beneficial to the men working for us as the potential female recruits.
To some degree I agree with the EOC: construction does have to ensure that female applicants are treated no differently from males. And there lies my next point. No differently!
Women today who wish to work in construction within the trades are more than welcome. But they should not expect the red carpet treatment.
If they apply and pass the selection procedures, then they are on their way. An apprenticeship will be the next hurdle.
Successful completion of this would see them fully time served and ready to join the industry as a fully qualified joiner, brickie or slater to name but a few.
These hurdles are the same for all recruits, and although we should not add any hurdles to a female applicant, neither should we remove any.
In construction, workers have to travel, they have to make the most of daylight and hours reflect this. That might not suit childcare arrangements or school hours, but that’s life. Many single fathers face the same dilemma - if you want the job you accept the demands.
In an ideal world anybody could pursue any career. However, humans, while all being equal are all different - and we have to accept that.
Someone suffering from vertigo is unlikely to be a successful scaffolder no matter how much they wish it.
The law provides protection under disability, sexual orientation, religion, race and sex discrimination legislation. Age discrimination legislation should be with us in 2006. It is right and proper that people have protection from blatant discrimination - but we have to keep it real.
As an individual I expect not to be discriminated against on any grounds, but have to realise that I should not expect positive discrimination of any sort either.
By positively discriminating in favour of one sex, we are disadvantaging the other.
The money being spent on attracting women into construction could be better spent enhancing training opportunities for all.
In Scotland, we registered 2303 apprentices during 2004. Training is close to our hearts and, as a sector, we have never lost sight of the value of apprenticeships - even when they were out of fashion politically.
We support and develop young people through our apprenticeship programme and have in the last few years added an adult apprenticeship programme to ensure that there are access routes suitable to all.
This requires resources and while funding "women into construction" projects may score brownie points with the establishment, it does nothing for us on the ground.
Give us access to this funding and let us create more college places, additional grants for employers of apprentices and many other adjustments that will ensure this industry has a future.
Alyson Morrow is head of human resources at Scottish Building
The full article contains 666 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
