FILL THE SKILLS GAP WITH DIVERSITY

The skills gap in the construction industry is a burning imperative that the sector has faced for a number of years.

This shows no sign of being resolved, with the CIOB estimating that the industry will need to fi nd 157,000 new recruits by 2021 to keep up with current projects. More alarmingly, specialist recruiter Randstad put the fi gure much higher by calculating that it would take an extra million construction workers by 2020 if the country is to build the necessary 300,000 homes per year needed to cope with demand.

Throughout this looming crisis, countless well-crafted articles and evidence-based reports have been published setting out a strong business case for fi lling the skills gap through greater diversity and inclusion.

Yet here we are in 2019, still wondering why, if there is evidence that there would be a huge benefi t to attracting and retaining workers from a wider talent pool, the levels of diversity across many parts of the industry remain disappointing.

At the last count, the Office for National Statistics reported that Women make up only 14% of workers in the sector, whilst only 7.4% are black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME). Accurate global fi gures for disabled and LGBT + people are more diffi cult to fi nd, but there are plenty of clues that these groups face major issues too. A confi dential survey by Construction News and the Architects Journal reports that only 1 in 7 workers who identify as gay would be uncomfortable letting their colleagues know their sexuality for fear of harassment and abuse. Whilst the picture for disabled workers is also sketchy with low adoption rates of supportive good practice to enable their successful recruitment.

Future proofing

To turn things around and to begin to future proof the industry there is a clear need for a root and branch paradigm shift to effect major and sustainable change. In fact, a ‘business as usual’ approach towards diversity and inclusion has led to box ticking exercises like the widespread creation of ineffective diversity policies, and only the lightest of toe dipping into deeply entrenched cultures through unconscious bias training. Furthermore, the perpetuation of “who you know” recruiting that pervades too many areas of the sector appears to pay only lip service to diversity and inclusion. Continuing in this way can only lead to further skills issues as an ageing population and the limiting impact of Brexit on EU workers continues to challenge the sector.

It doesn’t have to be this way

The good news is that it does not have to be this way. Since women make up approximately 47% of the UK workforce, it makes sense for the construction industry to compete with other sectors to attract more of them.

Offering more attractive working conditions would go quite a long way towards showcasing the industry as a “go to” for women and girls. Equitable pay, fl exible working, and dare I say it – support for childcare, together with a zero tolerance of discrimination and harassment at work would be key. Furthermore, the opening up of leadership role opportunities would be important to achieving sustainable and far reaching change.

Dig Deep

To meet skills shortages and generate the workforce numbers that the industry requires, there is evidently a need for urgent action to ensure that the industry digs deep to break down rigid historical barriers and build pathways to enable more women and people from diverse backgrounds to enter and thrive in the sector.

A multi-stakeholder and cross-industry approach involving the government will be critical to leading the seismic shift needed. Nothing less than setting ambitious targets for inclusion in a framework of accountability and transparency will drive change. In addition, targets need to be linked to ring fenced money to develop, retain and advance diverse talent pipelines to properly resource a sustainable strategy and prevent it merely becoming a talking shop. And as for the construction market place, a review of the procurement landscape to regulate funding streams so as to incentivise projects that build in workable models for the inclusion of workers from underrepresentation backgrounds would be ideal.

Diana Chrouch received a highly commended 2019 Wintrade Award for her work on diversity and is special advisor to the All-Party Parliamentary Group for BAME Business Owners. She is also a lead on the national UK Economic Blueprint for Women Strategy and is a speaker on Diversity and Inclusion at the Landscape Institute’s Human Skills Annual Conference in October 2019

Diana Chrouch Chairs the Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the Worshipful Company of Constructors