Navigating barriers faced by women in leadership positions in the US construction industry: a retrospective on women’s continued struggle in a male-dominated industry

Abstract

Purpose This investigation examined the challenges faced by women in leadership positions in the US construction industry. The overall purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the challenges, and identify suitable practices, strategies and suggestions to support the employment and retention of women in the US construction industry. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative approach, the authors distributed a survey to the target audience composed of women leaders in the US construction industry, and 14 participants completed the survey. Findings The outcomes of the study revealed the following challenges: negative perceptions of women in the industry manifested through discrimination and hostility; a stressful work environment that does not promote a good work-life balance; and a lack of role models that impacts women’s retention and career development in the construction industry. Originality/value This study discusses possible strategies and recommendations for women in construction to rise through the ranks of power within the industry.

The structured interview's resistance to gender discrimination under cognitive load

“…Previous research on gender‐typed jobs suggests that there may be differential effects for men in stereotypically feminine jobs versus women in stereotypically masculine jobs (Lekchiri & Kamm, 2020; Punshon et al, 2019; Yavorsky, 2019). Because the present study included both a stereotypically feminine job (i.e., childcare worker) and a stereotypically masculine job (i.e., electrical powerline apprentice), we decided to explore whether the effect of gender‐(in)congruence on hiring decisions may also vary between the two job types.…”

“…In both studies, there was also some evidence of discrimination based on cognitive load; however, the effects were inconsistent between the two studies. for women working in male-dominated jobs (Lekchiri & Kamm, 2020;Punshon et al, 2019;Yavorsky, 2019). That is, a female applying for a male-dominated job may be seen in a qualitatively different manner than a male applying for a female-dominated job.…”

Changes in Job Situations for Women Workforce in Construction during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Oo, Liu and Lim (2020) asserted that the underrepresentation of women and the underutilization of women's abilities and talents are compelling reasons for researchers to examine the attraction, retention and experiences of women in the industry. A major collection in the literature is on the barriers faced by women workforce in the industry, and it is rather common for researchers to identify a long list of barriers (e.g., Menches and Abraham, 2007;Navarro-Astor, Román-Onsalo and Infante-Perea, 2017;Lekchiri and Kamm, 2020). In Navarro-Astor, Román-Onsalo and Infante-Perea's (2017) systematic literature review of 60 publications between 2000 and 2015 on career barriers affecting women in construction, difficulty with work-life (or work-family) balancing ranked 1 st with 32 (i.e., 53%) literature examined cited this barrier.…”

“…This can partly be explained by the fact that increasing number of respondents had went back to normal workplace or worked partly in normal workplace and partly from home as reported earlier. It should also be noted that some respondents had indicated they had worked more hours than usual even in the pre-COVID period on the 1 st week of February, which seemingly indicates the nature of jobs in the industry that require long working hours (Lingard and Francis, 2004;Lekchiri and Kamm, 2020). However, to further shed light on these changes in work location and working hour, the respondents were asked to indicate their reasons for not being able to WFH, and the reasons why they had been required to work less (or more) hours pre-and during the pandemic times as examined next.…”

Women Workforce in Construction during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Challenges and Strategies

“…Needless to say, women in construction would have to face various challenges and difficulties in addressing career barriers, which are generally presented in a long list in the literature. Correspondingly, researchers have examined the various strategies to overcome career barriers and success factors for women's career in the construction industry (e.g., Fernando, Amaratunga and Haigh 2014;Francis 2017;Rosa et al 2017;Lekchiri and Kamm 2020). However, there are relatively fewer studies on proposed strategies and/or guidance on career progression compared to a large collection of literature on career barriers (Menches and Abraham 2007).…”