The push to attract more women into construction jobs is ramping up. With the sector suffering a serious skill shortage and its biggest recruitment period approaching, advocates say more needs to be done to encourage young people, especially women, into the building trade. A three-year project, jointly commissioned by the Ministry for Women and Ako Aotearoa - which supports training in the tertiary sector - aims to increase the participation and success of women in construction and engineering related trades. Recent industry-lead research shows only 3% of workers in the industry are female and that only 17 percent of male employers employ women tradies. Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation Chief Executive Warwick Quinn tells Kathryn Ryan male employers need to have a complete change of mind-set. Also joining, Anna Winskill-Moore, a building apprentice with Dunedin-based construction company Osborn Brothers and a winner at last year's National Association of Women in Construction Excellence Awards.
Apprentice with Osborn Brothers Building and Construction Ltd, Anna Winskill-Moore. Anna won the Student of the Year award at the National Association of Women in Construction Excellence Awards 2019. Photo: Supplied
