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PROCURING CULTURE CHANGE IN CONSTRUCTION
BE THE CO-PILOT FOR THE NEXT GENERATION
My name is Jo Matai-Taylor, a South African born Construction Management professional currently employed as a Commercial Manager for Lendlease Construction Pty Ltd. I have worked my way through the fundamental positions of Construction Management over the last nine years and am qualified in Business Management, Construction Management and currently study a Bachelor of Law (Honours) part-time whilst working full-time. Outside of this, I volunteer as a Co-Chair on the NAWIC ACT Education Committee to work collaboratively with NAWIC to achieve the ‘Strategy Goals’ that align with my personal interests in advocating for women’s empowerment, development, and advancement in the industry.
A large focal point for me at this time in my career is the investment into students throughout primary school, high school, TAFE (apprenticeships) and higher education. Why is this a focal point of mine? Because we as experienced professionals are the ‘co-pilots’ for the next generation. Whilst they fly their own MiG-25 Foxbats in life; we have a duty to connect them to the industry, provide realistic insights and fine-tune their skills to develop as powerful leaders. The excuse of ‘I didn’t have this back in my day’ is weak, outdated and demonstrates a s*** attitude in my opinion.
In partnership with NAWIC ACT (Education Committee), I have been privileged to be a part of this movement over the past two years. I would also like to recognise and applaud Emma Sckrabei and Nolita Ryan for their leadership and involvement in our advancement. I have elaborated on two programs below (to just name a few) to bring awareness on the current opportunities we have created for the next generation.
The Australian Training Company (‘ATC’) is a leading provider of business solutions through the creation of education, employment, and training opportunities. Our Education Committee have worked closely with ATC and specifically with their female trainees to facilitate work-experience, provide a support structure via the ‘Buddy Program’ and to actively engage with these students by exposing them to possible pathways that suit their interest. We have additionally hosted online seminars and quarterly events to maintain the relationship with the goal to retain these young women in the industry. This subsequently will assist in increasing female participation rates within construction industry. To achieve this, we have built strong relationships with Builders, Consultants, Subcontractors, ACT Government, Education providers, and Master Builders Australia (ACT) plus many more. The value taken from these interactions have been priceless, and we have seen many of these women retain contacts, have a support structure, and be placed in permanent roles as a result.
Secondly, in partnership with the ACT Government Office for Women and the Education Directorate, our committee have launched the Understanding Building and Construction Pilot Program (‘UBCPP’), seeking to enhance opportunities and remove barriers preventing young women from choosing a career pathway in the construction industry. The UBCPP also aims to improve the understanding of the industry throughout secondary school education. Through this program, we have placed circa 120 female students to undertake work experience in the second half of 2022 within the construction industry and this is something we should applaud.
Put simply, we as construction professionals have a duty to give back to the community. We have a duty to pay it forward and open the doors for opportunity and professional development. We should be actively playing a part in building our students confidence and provide a support network that may not have previously existed. I strongly recommend all readers of this article to look into similar programs within your State(s) and get involved. As leaders in the industry, we need to be better, do better and as a result, it is inevitable that our industry will only improve. Be the ‘Maverick’ and co-pilot for our future generations. For me, one definition of success is developing others to reach their goals and ensuring this influence lasts in your absence.
Mrs Jo Matai-Taylor
PROCURING CULTURE CHANGE IN CONSTRUCTION
Our industry accomplishes inspiring feats of engineering, creating communities, building critical infrastructure and defining the skylines of our global cities. The projects with which we are trusted, are delivering cutting edge sustainability, technology and security to take us into the decades to come.
While we achieve a lot that should be celebrated, we have also been facing unprecedented times. The last few years have seen greatly increased demand, pandemic -triggered uncertainty, significant cost escalation and supply shortages that have placed pressure on an industry already experiencing challenges that hamper our ability to attract, retain and provide healthy and inclusive workplaces for our people. Our industry is under extraordinary stress at a time when the pressure to deliver the pipeline of national projects has never been as intense. The challenges to the sustainability of the construction industry are evident in our high attrition rates, poor mental health statistics, lack of diversity and in the insolvencies of multiple construction sector companies across Australia.
Australia’s construction industry is not regarded as a career of choice, particularly for women. Working hours are excessive and inflexible, the workforce lacks diversity and stress levels and suicide rates are comparatively very high. The workplace culture comprising about 88% males often fails to provide an environment where women can see a career pathway for themselves. It manifests itself in ways as basic as, in many cases, a lack of amenities for women on sites. The construction industry depends in large part on the health, diversity and wellbeing of the people delivering our projects, as well as a strong pipeline of people seeking to join the industry or upskill within it. This is particularly critical over the next few years with estimates that an additional 118,000 jobs within the industry will need to be filled by May 20231 and that 105,000 of these will be unable to be filled within this timeframe. Given Australia’s current low unemployment levels, the urgency surrounding these numbers is acute.
It stands to reason that all of us – construction firms, clients and all the industry stakeholders need to squarely address our cultural challenges, making construction more attractive to new entrants and better able to retain the existing workforce. And we must do it together.
Our research shows that addressing the industry’s entrenched long working hours, will improve productivity and catalyse the cultural change we need.
The figures behind this need for change are compelling. The building and construction industry generates more than $360 billion in revenue and produces approximately nine per cent of Australia’s Gross Domestic Product, presently employing about 1.3m Australians, nearly 90% of whom are men and of whom about 182,000 work in infrastructure construction.
Figure 1: Construction Industry Statistics It is clear that these pressures are having serious impacts on the productivity and sustainability of our industry.
1. 2018, Employment Outlook to May 2023, Australian Government, Department of Jobs and Small Business, p3.
