CONSTRUCTION BUSINESSES

Figure 2: Cost of Doing Nothing Report Headline.

BIS Oxford Economics recently calculated the cost of the negative aspects of the culture of construction industry. Without taking into account lost economic opportunity of women, the cost of attraction and attrition, and wage escalation through acute labour shortages, the Cost of Doing Nothing Report shows that the total costs nationally were about $8bn per annum.

In addition to the costs identified in this report, and when considering the significant skills shortage, our industry’s diversity statistics are a cause of increasing consternation: with industry bodies and unions - has been working on a way to achieve systemic, step change by leveraging the government infrastructure procurement process as a powerful agent to drive culture reform.

Since August 2018, the CICT has been working to develop a Culture Standard, proposed to be included as part of the procurement process of governments across Australia, which will lift productivity and performance and address the major issues holding back our industry – excessive work hours and fatigue, poor mental health, and failure to attract a diverse workforce.

The Culture Standard provides a framework for clients and contractors to work together on infrastructure projects to support a construction industry where:

⋅everyone has a place and feels valued, ⋅ wellbeing is prioritised across all job roles, and ⋅ everyone has access to flexible work options and caps on working hours, so they have time for life.

⋅Construction currently has the lowest female representation of any employment sector at 12%, with less than 2% of site-based roles currently occupied by women. ⋅ Construction currently has the widest gender pay gap of any industry at 30.6%. ⋅ Women are exiting our industry 39% faster than men. ⋅ According to the 2021-22 NSW Intergenerational Report findings, if women’s participation in the workforce increased to be the same as men’s in the next 20 years, the economy in 2060-61 would be eight per cent larger. ⋅ A desktop survey of sixteen of the leading infrastructure companies operating in Australia found there were no women in non-traditional executive level roles (for example, with P&L responsibilities)2 and a third had no women on their boards. It seems to underscore the muchquoted truism that “you can’t be what you can’t see.”

A culture standard for the construction industry

The Construction Industry Culture Taskforce (CICT) - a partnership founded in late 2018 between the NSW and Victorian governments, the construction industry, including the Australian Constructors’ Association, and a team of leading academics and independent contributors and working closely The three focus areas of the Culture Standard, Time for Life, Diversity and Wellbeing, aim to improve the experience of construction workers to enhance productivity, attraction, retention and the sustainability of the industry.

Based on our research, the CICT believes it is impossible to disassociate the gender imbalance in the industry from its long and inflexible working hours and the consequential psychosocial pressures on construction workers.

Addressing the excessive hours worked in the construction industry (including routinely, Saturdays) would play a significant part in unlocking the industry to many women and improving wellbeing, particularly the high incidences of poor mental health in construction.

Emerging evidence both within Australia and internationally strongly suggests that flexibility and capped hours increases productivity (or at least creates no material negative impacts on program or budget), and that working hours are inextricably linked to diversity and mental health outcomes and increase the attractiveness of our industry to women.

Addressing working hours is one significant part of the solution that the Culture Standard puts forward, however in isolation this will only take us so far. Tackling working hours, diversity and mental health and wellbeing in an integrated,

2. This has changed for the better in the past 12 months with two women holding P&L responsibilities in leading infrastructure firms.

Time for Life: Ensuring our workforce is provided adequate time to rest and pursue life activities outside of work. • Better working hours • Flexible working arrangements Wellbeing: Ensuring the occupational health and mental wellbeing of our workforce is prioritised. • Support mental health • Proactive managment of health risks • Schedules that enable wellbeing Diversity & Inclusion: Ensuring the industry can attract and retain a diverse range of people to work in our industry. • Everyone can feel welcome and included • Provide suitable amenities • Address gaps in pay and representation Figure 3: Culture Standard Overview

systematic way through the procurement process, will harness much good work that has been done over decades by organisations like NAWIC and Mates in Construction, by unions and by industry associations.

Focussing on these three interrelated cultural issues in a holistic way and in partnership between industry, clients and our unions, will give us the best chance of securing enduring change. And leveraging the government procurement process is the best vehicle to make this happen.

The policy landscape is changing

Our work on the Culture Standard is taking place in an environment of great policy change. The Building Equality Policy in Victoria, the Women’s Economic Opportunity Review in NSW, the recent federally-led Jobs and Skills Summit and the establishment of the National Construction Industry Forum, two construction specific gender trials in the ACT and WA as well as the emergence of psychosocial health regulations across several states, demonstrate the level of focus our industry is receiving from policy makers and the desire for change.

These initiatives are strongly commended and supported by the CICT. The basis for our work is that our government clients must become part of the solution by requiring a methodical focus on culture as part of the evaluation of bids during procurement, included alongside cost, experience and capability, design, timeline and social procurement outcomes.

To strengthen the evidence base for the effectiveness of the Standard, the CICT has partnered with Australia’s leading workplace academics and has commissioned five pilot projects, supplemented by case studies and a cost/benefit analysis to test the impacts of flexible and capped working hours, mental health programs and implementation of plans aimed at increasing female participation.

The collaboration and vision from industry, government, unions and other critical stakeholders to affect real and lasting culture change has been key to securing these pilot projects. We are grateful for the work to date and recognise that the projects represent a big step towards driving change across all Australian jurisdictions.

To ensure a construction industry that attracts, develops and retains the best talent, we need a tangible shift to a culture that balances commercial outcomes with the needs of our workforce, supporting gender equity, mental and physical health and flexible work practices that maximise productivity.

Many industry players and government clients are becoming early adopters of the Culture Standard and are already implementing the requirements. While the Culture Standard is not a silver bullet, its adoption into procurement policy will level the playing field among construction firms and transform a great industry into an even better one for all who work in it, and for all of us who benefit from its contribution to our quality of life. AO, Chair of the Construction Gabrielle Trainor

Industry Culture Taskforce

As a non-executive director and advisor, Gabrielle Trainor has had a 25 year career on the boards of public and private sector entities. Her current positions include the Victorian Government’s Major Transport Infrastructure Authority, ACT City Renewal Authority, WAM Global, the Western Parkland City Authority, and Built Group Pty Ltd. She is a Commissioner of the AFL.