SIR Robert McAlpine, in partnership with City of Glasgow College and Equate Scotland, is helping construction businesses attract and retain more women in the industry.
The ‘Inclusive Value’ project, funded by the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre (CSIC), delivers a free online self-assessment tool to support construction businesses to identify ways in which they can adopt more inclusive workplace practices.
The tool is is accompanied by support materials including a best practice guide, case studies and industry benchmarking data.
Paul Hamer, chief executive of Sir Robert McAlpine said, “We are proud to sponsor the ‘Inclusive Value’ project. We believe this is an important initiative that will truly benefit the construction industry as a whole. Currently, only 11% of the construction workforce are women, and, within this, women make up only 1% of modern apprentices and site workers. This is something that needs to be addressed.
“With a growing skills shortage, organisations within the construction industry need to act now to encourage more women to view this as a great career choice. At Sir Robert McAlpine, we are committed to leading by example on inclusion and inspiring industry wide change.”
Jennifer Smart, business relationship manager, CSIC, added, “In an industry where there is demand for new housing and infrastructure provision to meet government targets, it is essential that companies develop the right culture to attract and retain women to address the gender gap. This CSIC-funded project with Sir Robert McAlpine, City of Glasgow College and Equate Scotland have created a toolkit to support this journey to a more diverse and inclusive workforce.”
Douglas Morrison, associate director of innovation and STEM at City of Glasgow College commented, “The construction industry has been tackling sector attractiveness issues for some time. The progressive approach that Sir Robert McAlpine are taking to catalyse meaningful change in the gender diversity of the industry is truly inspiring. This project will support a wide range of construction businesses to make meaningful and impactful change that will support both current and future employees to realise the benefits of a career in construction.”
The self-assessment tool can be found at https://inclusivevalue.co.uk
