Women in Property

With International Women’s Day kick-starting off March, I found it fitting to deliver a bit more insight on women in the property industry. There is definitely still work to be done to boost the female presence but what may have once seemed liked a predominately male dominated sector isn’t the case anymore – women are expected to make up for 26% of the UK’s construction workforce by 2020.

The average salary for women in construction is £39,200 which has increased by over 50% since 2005. There has been a year on year rise of women in senior roles in the property industry, with females in senior management positions or directorships earning more than double the reported average salary.

Amanda Clack, the current president of the Royal Institute or Charted Surveyors (RICS) ambition to attract and retain more women in the property profession needs to start when females leave school. Females need to promote the surveying jobs that they love to help change the industry to a point where ‘females in property’ is no longer a talking point.

Amanda has also suggested the top three things needed to drive gender equality in the property industry and workplace.

1. Strong leadership and vision – starting from the top organisations through to all levels, making necessary organisational and cultural changes through effective action planning.
2. Staff retention – employers need to keep the strong talent that have by ensuring employees have the opportunity to voice any concerns such as; parental leave, career progression and flexible working and ensure these are addressed.
3. Proactive support to women – offering the correct amount of support in the forms of coaching, mentoring and networking groups.

RICS are also a key sponsor of the Women of the Future Awards; recognising the amount of talent and inspirational qualities females bring in a range of diverse sectors.

Gender equality in the workplace and the gender pay gap has become a real hot topic in recent years. However, with national organisations like Women in Property (WiP) seeking to enhance the profile of women in the construction and property sector, it seems females in the property industry are backed now more than ever.

All the support and work that can be seen to encourage women to join the sector is definitely having an impact. Foundation Recruitment specialise in the property market and we can confirm that 21% of the candidates on our system are females. Although this stat may seem relatively low, we have certainly seen an increase which is ongoing, showing the number of females in property is definitely on the rise.