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Article

Put Gender on the Tender in Australian Public Projects

by
Liyaning (Maggie) Tang
1,*,
Shaleeza Sohail
2,3,
Emma Shorthouse
1,
Larissa Sullivan
4 and
Matthew Williams
1
1
School of Architecture and Build Environment, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
2
School of Information and Physical Sciences, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
3
Program IT, King’s Own Institute, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
4
Richard Crookes Construction, Broadmeadow, NSW 2064, Australia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
World 2022, 3(3), 681-691; https://doi.org/10.3390/world3030038
Submission received: 22 July 2022 / Revised: 12 August 2022 / Accepted: 12 August 2022 / Published: 7 September 2022
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Abstract

:
Australia’s construction industry throughout the last two decades has seen an increase in the number of women pursuing careers. The percentage it has increased by between 1998 and 2020 is a disappointing 0.2% despite the research, strategies, and initiatives the Australian Government has implemented during the interval. The purpose of this study is to evaluate and support the legislative notion of required gender percentages on tendering documents and how this change could increase the number of women in public projects. A systematic literature review of scholarly sources from the database Scopus was applied to develop a thematic analysis of women in the industry. The results found four themes: underrepresentation, barriers to career, education pathways, and opportunities for employment. These themes reinforced the need to introduce legislation such as gender requirements for public projects. Connections made were that gender legislation would increase the number of job opportunities, more jobs would encourage all levels of education to promote women in construction, more women in construction would improve their underrepresentation, and thus make women-centric problems in the workforce a more common issue and more likely to improve. The paper concludes that to see an increase in the number of women in Australia’s construction industry, the government must take enforceable legislative change. This change must start by creating legislation that requires organisations that want to tender with the government to have a minimum percentage of women in any proposed public works submission before it can be awarded.

1. Introduction

The Australian construction industry’s resilience throughout the 2020 global COVID-19 pandemic is shown by the industry’s current 7.4% contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) [1]. The industry is projected to grow considerably in the next decade and remain one of the nation’s largest industries [2]. The construction industry in Australia is male dominated despite the increase in women studying and working in the industry in the recent two decades [3]. Women who obtain a career in the industry are also challenged by the commonly known “glass ceiling”, where opportunities and promotions are even harder to achieve. The issues that women encounter in the Australian construction industry are ongoing and well researched with documented unsuccessful formal and informal strategies [4].
A more constitutionalised approach with stricter legislative requirements is necessary to see significant improvements for women in the industry. Changes to Australia’s government-based construction contracts are required so that the internal tender review procedures and employee specific percentages are better accommodated to allow more female employees [5]. These changes would assimilate a prerequisite for the percentage of women in public projects before tendering can be completed. This principle would increase the opportunities for women to acquire jobs while also making the problems women face while working in the industry more common and thus more likely to improve.
To encourage women’s participation in the construction industry, multiple interventions are required from the government, accrediting bodies, and the industry. This paper is a small but significant effort in proposing one policy that can push the industry to employ more women. The concept of putting gender on the tender of public projects in Australia is discussed throughout this paper. This study presents the current literature-based evidence of the reasons for low female participation in the industry and previous ineffective schemes to increase the number. This paper also explains the methods of review and discusses current organisations that support the concept and its benefits while providing recommendations on initiating the change of legislation.

2. Literature Review

This literature review section is based on 30 articles relevant to the study of putting gender on the tender. These articles have been divided into four themes: underrepresentation, barriers to career, education pathways, and opportunities. The four themes have represented both negative and positive influences on women’s attempts to be a part of and remain in the Australian construction industry. All four themes discussed further the importance of putting gender on the tender in Australian public projects.

2.1. Underrepresentation

The opportunities for women in the Australian construction industry have slightly increased throughout the recent decade; however, the overall representation of women is still evidently limited [6]. The labelled “male” occupation in Australia is still far from breaking down the macho stereotypes that both degrade and discourage women’s participation [2]. The construction industry as a whole has not officially acknowledged a concern for equal representation, which has the potential to resolve labour shortages [6].
Various studies have suggested the main reason for underrepresentation is due to the associated gender discrimination practices common in the construction industry, such as sexual harassment and recruiting policies [7]. These concerns are well researched especially in Australia, and multilevel government initiatives and investments have been implemented [5]. Legislation such as The Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 describes the Australian Government’s procurement policies that came into effect from 1 August, 2013. This policy requires public companies and non-public sector employers with 100 or more employees to supply a letter of compliance to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) with any tender submissions prior to contracting in Australia [8]. The report must contain information on gender equality indicators (GEIs) that include the gender composition of the workforce [8].
The GEIs shown in Figure 1 reveal that women in Australia’s construction industry accounted for 13.8% of employees in 1998 and 14% in 2020 [9]. This underrepresentation of women in the construction industry is reflected in other nations with 11.5% in Austria, 11.6% in the United Kingdom, 11.5% in Canada, 7.2% in Sweden, and 9% in the United States [5]. Despite recent improvements for women in the Australian construction industry, they are still both numerically and hierarchically underrepresented, with the majority of the women in construction situated in lower-level jobs, such as secretarial and clerical work [10]. Australia needs new legislative requirements that enforce new gender equity policies, such as setting a minimum gender percentage requirement on tendering documents for all public projects to change the female population’s representation [3].

2.2. Barriers to Career

The Australian construction industry is known for its sexism in relation to limited female job opportunities [11]. The non-traditional female career is dominated by networking influences when hiring for positions occurs [4]. The industry’s lack of gender diversity has cyclic effects that further reduce opportunities for women to enter the profession [12]. Common reoccurring barriers for women joining the industry as shown in studies are lack of training, disrespect to women, male-dominated networking, poor conditions of employment with undefined long hours, weekend work, and discouragement from taking time off [13]. These barriers are combined with a culture of unencouraged flexible or part-time work arrangements, which are associated with women’s lifestyles [2]. This un-friendly female environment pushes “male values” that encourage women in the industry to forgo potential children or family life to achieve a sustainable career [6]. On the other hand, suitable work-oriented women in the Australian industry are ideal and yet are still susceptible to negative perceptions of their capability, lack of mentors, slow career progression with fewer developmental experiences, and a lack of recognition compared to their male counterparts [14].
These barriers are still prevalent even after in 1990 Australia ratified ILO Convention 156, which obligates Australian employers to allow employees to engage in both work and family responsibilities without discrimination or conflict [14]. New legislation in the form of gender percentage requirements on public tendering documents would eliminate a large portion of barriers for women. This legislation is supported by current Australian not-for-profit organisations, such as The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), that are actively advocating for more women in construction to see change in the industry. The NSW Government in particular has recently implemented new strategies in 2021 to enhance training opportunities for women in NSW indicated in Table 1.

2.3. Education Pathways

Despite initiatives to promote women in the Australian construction industry, a primary audience of young women are unaware of the opportunities in construction [10]. All levels of education, especially schools and universities, impact the industry’s low female enrolments and discourage high female participation rates in the industry [5]. The education system should be used to introduce women to the construction industry through pathways shown in Table 2.
Universities in particular can play a vital role in increasing women in the industry as graduates are exposed to the culture of the industry and working in a male-dominated environment [2]. This exposure and methods of having female role models and mentors in the construction industry can inspire and foster attributes for more women to want to work in the industry [2]. Currently, the initiatives implemented in Australia to recruit and retain women in the construction industry and in courses such as construction management are not improving numbers [16]. New legislation requirements for public projects in Australia, such as gender submission requirements, would see an increase in potential jobs and encourage more women to participate in construction-based education [5].
Initiatives such as the Built for Women program currently run in NSW by the government also foster the idea of supporting more women in the industry through education. The strategy created 3000 fee-free job training placements for women in construction and other related fields [17]. There are 154 full qualifications and 408 part qualifications available targeted to women ages 16 to 24 [17]. This opportunity for women to have a construction career path promotes other gender equity provisions that encourage women to enrol.

2.4. Opportunities for Employment

The limited number of women in the Australian construction industry should promote better ideas on the methods of recruitment and retention that come from the industry itself [18]. It has been shown that women are rarely presented with an opportunity to work in the industry, which reflects on the employers in the Australian construction industry [2]. Table 3 describes how these opportunities could come from a national, organisational, and union level.
Opportunities within public companies in Australia would improve with action towards more women graduate recruitment and gender equality provisions in construction procurement processes [3]. Organisations such as Women in Power based in QLD also support the idea of increasing women in the construction industry. They have spoken on the potential for the government to put gender on the tender for companies competing for government jobs [19]. This idea would entail the government putting gender equality at the same level of importance as critical elements such as cost and design [19]. Employers in the Australian construction industry should recognise the benefits of gender equality and better adhere to the implemented legalisation from state and federal sex and age discrimination laws [5].
Legislation such as the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 that is administered by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency states that companies with 100 employees or more are required to report the nature and composition of gender in their workforce [10]. This is supported by the Australian Securities Exchange through non-compulsory methods for Australian publicly listed companies to disclose equality policies and gender targets or otherwise be required to present a reason for non-disclosure [5]. These opportunities encourage more women to participate in the construction industry and change employers’ cultures on women in their workforce [3].

3. Methodology

A systematic literature review was conducted to identify the recurring themes in relation to women in the construction industry. A systematic review was initially completed to accumulate potential literature sources from the database Scopus. These potential scholarly sources were filtered through different phases of review. A total of 56 relevant sources were obtained, as shown in Figure 2, from the 9 keywords and phrases outlined in Figure 3.
The limited number of sources (56) is likely due to the innovative nature of this study, as there is little documented information on effective change for women in Australia’s construction industry. The identified sources (56) were then screened for title and abstract. This meant that the research papers (56) had to be presented as an article with a structured summary synthesised to present an overview of the research and its relevance to women in Australia’s construction.
The screening eliminated 26 articles from the potential 56 for reasons such as no viable connection to women in Australia’s construction, no relevant characteristics, outdated sources of information, and assessments that have been surpassed. For the remaining 30 articles, eligibility criteria were assessed where the full text was assessed for relevance to both women in construction and building on the idea of putting gender on the tender. A further 5 articles were excluded from the 30 for having no potential links to the objective of this study.
A second screening was then conducted on the 25 remaining sources whereby the references of the sources were systematically reviewed for new potential articles. From the 25 articles an additional 7 likely sources were identified, screened, and assessed for eligibility where 2 of these new sources were excluded. The final sample size for the literature review was 30 articles as shown in Figure 2.
Figure 3 shows the keywords and phrases used for the Scopus database were developed through trial and error whereby the 9 most successful and useful keywords and phrases were utilised.
The 30 scholarly sources were collated from the years 1999 to 2021 in a 22-year timeline that is shown in Table 4, which revealed an obvious sequence of limited change for women in Australia’s construction industry.
The two decades worth of research was sourced from a variety of journals with differing methods of research. The 30 articles had similar points of origin with recurring journals represented in Table 5; this showed there was repetition with the ongoing issues with women in construction or the lack thereof.
The volume of evidence was thoroughly analysed to establish four themes that reflected the impact the construction industry has had on women. These themes also provide the connection between what the Australian construction industry has been like for women and how change such as putting gender on tender legislation could improve the current environment (Table 6).

4. Discussion

4.1. Evidence

There are no current legislative requirements for any of the sates in Australia to have gender considered when tendering. This means that a holistic approach must be taken to identify gender as a factor in any public project. Currently, there are the Workplace Gender Equality Procurement Principles introduced in 2013 by the Australian Government intended to amend legislation around gender equality.
However, the principles only encouraged organisations that were compliant to the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 to submit a letter of compliance with proposed tender submissions to work with the Australian Government. Potential public projects’ letters of compliance are required to include gender equality indicators, such as the composition of women on proposed works, but there are no requirements on the number of women or female representation [34].
As there is no current prerequisite for tendering public projects anywhere in Australia that includes gender as a consideration before approval, there is a need for change. Changes to legislation, such as implementing gender minimum requirements on tender documents for public projects, would need the approval of the Office for Women. The Australian Government’s “Office for Women” provides policy advice and support to the minister for women and the prime minister. The OFW works on behalf of the government to deliver policies and programs that improve both gender equity and the lives of women in Australia [35].
The Australian Government announced at the Women’s Budget Statement 2021–2022 that they were seeking feedback on the current Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 to reconsider gender indicators, legislation, and employer reporting obligations [36,37].
The focus was on how the next ten years could achieve gender equality, and input was welcomed from a variety of sources:
  • Employers
  • Human rights institutions
  • Women’s sector
  • Non-government organisations
  • Academics
  • Government departments of all levels
A total of 155 submissions were received on the close of feedback on 24 November 2021 [38,39]. This recognition by the Australian Government proves that change is needed for gender equality and creates the potential for new legislative employer reporting obligations, such as introducing a minimum standard of women when a tender is proposed before it can be approved on any public works.

4.2. Benefits

Gender equality is represented as Goal 5 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, where Target 5.C highlights the importance of enforceable legislation and the promotion of gender equality [40]. The United Nation’s sustainable development Goal 5 should be better promoted by the Australian Commonwealth as the Australian Government’s procurement of public works is a large economic contributor to the GDP. Government tenders are a high value economic influence that have the potential to improve gender diversity in construction.
The Victorian Government has recognised the value government projects have by introducing the 2020 gender equality policy. The policy mandates at least 3% female representation for trade roles, 7% for non-trade positions, and 35% for management and supervisory positions [41]. The policy represents action that must be taken by the government to mandate and enforce minimum female participation in public works. If the Australian Government took initiative from the Victorian Government by creating new legislative policies that put gender on the tender of public works, there would be several benefits [41,42]:
  • More women in construction to advocate for programs such as apprenticeships and scholarships;
  • More opportunities for women to obtain higher positions and be in a place to mentor;
  • Workplace gender inequity cultures of sexism and stereotyping more likely to be campaigned;
  • Would attract different levels of education to encourage young women to join construction with the promise of more female-specific jobs;
  • Traditional “pipelined” male networking for employment would no longer be sufficient for potential public works;
  • Discriminatory practices in the hiring process, such as deeming construction work too difficult for women, would be irrelevant;
  • Increasing the prominence and visibility of women in construction would make female work-related issues more of a concern for the majority;
  • Diversity in the workforce to bring different perspectives and methods on work;
  • Rigid workplace practices that do not value a family/work–life balance would gain more attention;
  • Current occupational health and safety hazards for women, such as inadequate bathroom facilities and inappropriate clothing, would become more likely to be addressed;
  • More women exposed to the construction industry would lead to better possibilities of retention.
The increase in potential jobs for women in the Australian construction industry would create overall leverage for change. Putting gender on the tender would start to introduce more women into the industry, thus also bringing to light the issues that have prevented women from obtaining a job in the industry.

5. Conclusions

There has been significant research conducted around the disadvantages and issues women in the Australian construction industry continue to face. Despite the reoccurring themes that affect these women, there is little research on strategies that would effectively improve the construction environment for them. The culture of the Australian construction industry that deters and prevents women from entering is unlikely to change within the next decade.
This study highlights the need for affirmative action to be taken by the Australian Government. To date, there are several bodies of research that suggest a combination of changing legislation and repercussions for non-compliance would be the most effective measure.
The results of this study suggest that including gender as a requirement on tenders, such as a minimum representation percentage of 2–5% before they can be approved by the government, would be the change the industry needs. This requirement would need both a change to the legislation and to be enforced to be effective. The trends of Australian construction shown in the literature review predict the industry will grow in both jobs and economic value. This means that changes to legislation must occur soon to benefit all the parties of interest.
The literature review methodology of this study did have some limitations, which included the present-day nature of the research meaning there was a shortage of relevant previous studies. The referenced sources were also influenced by their origin, as articles sourced from Australia were favoured. This also limited the outcomes of the study as the research is only relevant to women in Australia’s construction industry.
To overcome these limitations in future research, the scope of the study should be extended to other countries or nations. A larger scope would increase the potential sample size and create a better projection of the trends regarding women in the construction industry. It is recommended that future research be conducted on topics such as the Australian Government’s commitment to increasing women’s participation in construction, the impacts modern Australia’s construction industry could experience from an increase in women, and the required Australian state-specific legislation that promotes women in construction. The recent changes observed in parliament around the Workplace Gender Equality Act from late 2021 to early 2022 demonstrate the government’s ability to make legislative change and promote the need to see an increase in women in the Australian construction industry. Another direction could be researching how hegemonic masculinity affects professions in construction. Moreover, in comparison with the glass ceiling effect for women in construction, the glass wall effect, which may prevent women from entering and obtaining jobs in the construction industry, may also be worth exploring in further research.

Author Contributions

Conceptualisation, L.T., S.S. and L.S.; methodology, L.T. and E.S.; writing—original draft preparation, E.S. and L.T.; writing—review and editing, S.S., L.S. and M.W.; supervision, L.T.; funding acquisition, L.T. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This research was funded by the Summer Research Internship Scheme of the College of Engineering, Science and Environment at the University of Newcastle.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

Not applicable.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the reviewers and editors for providing comments to improve the quality of the paper.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

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Figure 1. Total percentage of women in the Australian construction industry from 1998 to 2020 [9].
Figure 1. Total percentage of women in the Australian construction industry from 1998 to 2020 [9].
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Figure 2. Method of final study sample for the literature review.
Figure 2. Method of final study sample for the literature review.
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Figure 3. Keywords and phrases used when sourcing relevant articles.
Figure 3. Keywords and phrases used when sourcing relevant articles.
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Table
Table 1. NSW Government recent strategies for improvements for women in construction [15].
Table 1. NSW Government recent strategies for improvements for women in construction [15].
StrategyDescription
Trade Pathways ProgramTAFE NSW providing free certificates in participating trades with previous experience
The Trades Pathways Program Women’s StrategyTAFE NSW providing women free certificates in participating trades regardless of previous experience
Infrastructure Skills Legacy ProgramAs of 2020, construction contracts over $100 million must have 20% total workforce as apprentices and attempt to double number of women from more than 1–2%
Connecting Women to Trade Grant Funded projects will offer an introductory experience and targeted support for women considering a career in trades
Table
Table 2. Methods of involving women in construction through their education [16].
Table 2. Methods of involving women in construction through their education [16].
Education LevelPathway
ChildcareTools to build, i.e., Lego, blocks
Primary SchoolCurriculum-based subjects, take your child to work day, promote STEM
High SchoolCareer events, site visits, placements, apprenticeships,
University university sponsorships, mentors
Table
Table 3. Examples of opportunities that would benefit women in construction [2].
Table 3. Examples of opportunities that would benefit women in construction [2].
LevelOpportunity
National Better regulated legislation and policies
Organisational Targets to increase the number of higher management positions held by women
Union Aim for more flexible working hours and conditions for everyone
Table
Table 4. Number and years corresponding to journal articles.
Table 4. Number and years corresponding to journal articles.
Year202120202019201820172015201420102009200720042002200120001999
Article No.623234111121111
Table
Table 5. Article journals and methods of research.
Table 5. Article journals and methods of research.
Journal TitleMethod(s)No.
Construction Management and Economics [6,10,12,14,19,20]Systematic review, interviews, literature review6
Engineering, Construction, and Architectural Management [4,21]A phenomenological philosophy,
Open-ended grounded theory		2
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management [22,23]Quantitative survey, literature review2
International Journal of Construction Education and Research [16,17]Surveys2
Journal of Management in Engineering [24]Evaluative study, interviews1
Construction Economics and Building [25,26]Questionnaire survey, interview2
Australian Journal of Civil Engineering [27]Questionnaire1
Journal of Construction in Developing Countries [2]Questionnaire1
Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion [3]Interviews
Content analysis		1
Journal of Engineering, Design, and Technology [7]Literature review1
American Political Science Review [28]Literature review1
Journal of Construction Research [29]Content analysis1
Journal of Management Development [13]Review1
Women in Management Review [30]Focus group interviews, questionnaire1
Gender in Management [31,32] Interviews2
Career Development International [33]Literature review1
Gender, Work, and Organization [34]Literature review1
Journal of Engineering Education [5] Semi-structured interviews1
International Journal of Construction Management [35] Online survey questionnaire1
Total number30
Table
Table 6. Themes related to women in the Australian construction industry.
Table 6. Themes related to women in the Australian construction industry.
ThemesNumber of Studies
1. Underrepresentation6
2. Barriers to career8
3. Education pathways7
4. Opportunities for employment9
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Tang, L.; Sohail, S.; Shorthouse, E.; Sullivan, L.; Williams, M. Put Gender on the Tender in Australian Public Projects. World 2022, 3, 681-691. https://doi.org/10.3390/world3030038

AMA Style

Tang L, Sohail S, Shorthouse E, Sullivan L, Williams M. Put Gender on the Tender in Australian Public Projects. World. 2022; 3(3):681-691. https://doi.org/10.3390/world3030038

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tang, Liyaning (Maggie), Shaleeza Sohail, Emma Shorthouse, Larissa Sullivan, and Matthew Williams. 2022. "Put Gender on the Tender in Australian Public Projects" World 3, no. 3: 681-691. https://doi.org/10.3390/world3030038

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