Women in Construction Week occurs during the first full week of March and highlights the work of women construction workers. Even though construction has traditionally been seen as a male-dominated industry, that has begun to change over the past few years.

In 2018, only about 9.9% of jobs in the construction industry were filled by women, but that number increased to almost 11% in 2020. This steady increase has proven that there is indeed a future for women wanting to work in the construction industry.

This week is used to celebrate the women who currently work in construction and to encourage more women to enter this industry.

The History of Women in Construction Week

Although some people mistakenly believe that this week is a modern creation, that simply isn’t true. This misconception is probably due to the fact that people only think that women have been entering the construction field in recent years — which also happens to be untrue.

The truth of the matter is that this week was created in 1953 by 16 women who were working in the construction industry at the time. However, this event wasn’t called Women in Construction Week but was instead called Women in Construction of Fort Worth. It would take several years before this regional event would turn into the national event that it is today.

Facts About Women in Construction

In honor of Women in Construction Week, we thought that we’d list some facts about women working in construction that we feel our readers will enjoy.

• Approximately 47% of women working in construction are under the age of 45.
• Women only make up about 11% of the construction field, while women make up 47% of the overall U.S. workforce.
• In Australia, women account for almost 16% of the construction workforce.
• In 2015, approximately 47,821 women worked as construction laborers.

Observing Women in Construction Week

During this week, everyone is encouraged to celebrate the women entering the construction field. It’s also a good week to encourage girls and young women to consider a job in construction.

After all, there are a ton of opportunities for women who want to work in this industry. People can also use the hashtag #WomenInConstructionWeek to spread the word about this week online.