Get women into construction by scrapping apprentice age limit, says Overbury

Citation

(2002), "Get women into construction by scrapping apprentice age limit, says Overbury", Facilities, Vol. 20 No. 3/4. https://doi.org/10.1108/f.2002.06920cab.001

Get women into construction by scrapping apprentice age limit, says Overbury

Get women into construction by scrapping apprentice age limit, says OverburyKeywords: Construction industry, Apprenticeships, Women

London and Bracknell-based Overbury, the UK's leading office fit out company, wants the age limit restricting funding for construction apprenticeships to under-25s scrapped to get more women into the industry and help tackle the skills shortage. According to the Construction Employment Training Forecast 2001-2005 by the CITB (Construction Industry Training Board), the industry needs 74,000 new recruits each year from now until 2005.

Currently funding from the CITB and the Learning and Skills Council is limited to trainees who will complete their modern apprenticeship by the age of 25. But, says Overbury, this discourages employers from taking on older entrants – particularly women coming to construction as a second career – because they are more expensive to train.

The 2000 Labour Force Survey, carried out by the Office for National Statistics, estimated that women, including those in administrative jobs, make up 10 per cent of the construction workforce. The survey found that just 0.8 per cent of all craft workers in the industry were female while women make up only 1.8 per cent of plant and machine operatives.

"In my experience, women tend to come into the industry at a later stage in their careers," says Overbury's managing director, Steve Elliott. "The problem with the age limit restriction on funding for apprenticeships is that it greatly increases the costs for employers seeking to take them on. We believe this is one of the biggest obstacles facing women looking for a career in construction. It denies them the opportunity to gain a thorough grounding in craft skills while construction companies are missing out on the chance to tap into a valuable source of new recruits."

Overbury is a member of construction brands group Morgan Sindall plc, which operates a national network of fit-out, construction, affordable housing and infrastructure services divisions.

For further information contact: Liz Coyle-Camp/Ragan Beale, E=MC2. Tel: +44 (0)1747 871752.