National Equal Pay Day: Women in Male-Dominated Career Industries
Since it is National #EqualPayDay what a better time to shed some light on the wage gap within the building industry, especially in construction. According to the Census Bureau, women make an average of about 79% to the dollar when compared to men.
This gap is especially apparent in industries that are male-concentrated. Although we are seeing a lot of women entering into positions that were once completely male-dominated, there is still a significant wage gap that should be addressed.
What is the wage gap?
A 2017 study performed by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research found a considerable wage gap in occupations commonly held by men. Among many career options, including software development, truck drivers, and construction laborers, they found a significant difference in wages amongst men and women.
The study found that women in construction earn about 95.2% to the dollar when compared with their male counterparts. Check out the chart below!
| Women’s median weekly earnings | Women’s earnings as a % of men’s | Men’s median weekly earnings | Share of female workers in occupation (%) | Share of male workers in occupation as % of all male workers | Share of female workers in occupation as %of all female workers |
All Full Time Workers | $770 | 81.8% | $941 | 44.4% | 100% | 100% |
16 Most Common Occupations for Men | ||||||
Truck Drivers | $589 | 73% | $807 | 4.9% | 4.3% | 0.3% |
Construction Workers | n/a | n/a | $667 | 3% | 2.2% | 0.1% |
Retail Supervisors | $639 | 71.7% | $891 | 42.4% | 2.2% | 2.0% |
Freight Movers | $500 | 84% | $595 | 17.5% | 1.9% | 0.5% |
Software Developers | $1,543 | 82.8% | $1,863 | 18.4% | 1.9% | 0.5% |
Retail Salespersons | $523 | 74.3% | $704 | 38.8% | 1.8% | 1.5% |
Janitors | $481 | 83.8% | $574 | 28.8% | 1.8% | 0.9% |
Cooks | $436 | 90.6% | $481 | 37.1% | 1.4% | 1.0% |
Carpenters | n/a | n/a | $789 | 2.2% | 1.4% | 0.0% |
Chief Executives | $1,920 | 79.5% | $2,415 | 27.6% | 1.3% | 0.6% |
Maintenance Workers | n/a | n/a | $526 | 3.7% | 1.3% | 0.1% |
Automotive Technicians | n/a | n/a | $764 | 2.0% | 1.2% | 0.0% |
Production Workers | $570 | 79.6% | $716 | 26.7% | 1.0% | 0.5% |
Customer Service Workers | $637 | 89.5% | $712 | 65.6% | 1.0% | 2.5% |
Accountants/Auditors | $1,065 | 76.7% | $1,389 | 78.4% | 1.0% | 4.4% |
Elementary/Middle school Teachers | $987 | 86.7% | $1,139 | 78.4% | 1.0% | 4.4% |
Why is the wage higher for men than women?
Construction laborers can earn different wages based on their skill set and seniority. Wages can also depend on location and level of experience (from apprentice to journeyman, to master). Earnings can also be determined by the industry.
Heavy commercial contractors may make more money than residential contractors because of the volume of the project. This means that a man in California may get paid more money than a woman in Virginia just because he’s been working as a master electrician for 12 years.
Are there prejudices within the construction industry?
It is evident that many women are not holding some of the higher paying positions that men do. There is a significant discrepancy in construction jobs held by women. Some positions that require a certain skill set, such as welding and electrical engineering are not as evenly spread out as other positions, like heavy equipment operating.
It may also be true that people have a prejudiced perception over the expertise and quality of work of women in this industry. Perhaps people just don’t place the same value on women as they would a man in the industry.
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