A message from our Managing Director
“AcrossIreland,thegenderpaygapremainsasignificantworkforce challenge.Despiteimprovedtransparencythroughreporting,disparitiesin pay,progression,andleadershiprepresentationpersist.Closingthisgapis notonlyaboutfairness;itiscriticaltoorganisationalperformance, economicresilience,andlong-termsustainability.
AtORS,wearecommittedtodrivingmeasurablechange.Through transparentpaystructures,equitablerecruitmentandpromotionpractices, targetedleadershipdevelopment,andaward-winningflexiblework practices,weareactivelyworkingtoreducedisparitieswithinour organisation. Embeddinggenderequityintoourculturestrengthensourpeople,our performance,andourcontributiontoindustrystandards,ensuringwehelp buildamoreinclusiveandsustainablefuture.”
JohnBrennan
02 Our commitment & what gender pay gap means
Wearecommittedtoprovidingafair,inclusive,andopportunity-drivenworkplacewherepeoplecanthriveandprogressbasedonmerit,contribution,and capability.Transparencyisanimportantpartofthiscommitment.Wecommittopublishingourgenderpaygapdataannuallythroughthenational reportingplatformandourownpublicchannels.
What is gender pay gap?
Thegenderpaygapmeasuresthedifferencebetweentheaveragepayofmenand womenacrosstheorganisationasawhole.Itincludesallrolesandlevels.Itisdifferent fromequalpay,whichreferstomenandwomenbeingpaidthesameforperformingthe sameorequivalentwork.Equalpayisalegalandethicalrequirementandremainsour standardpractice.
Agenderpaygapcanexistevenwhereequalpaypracticesarestrong.Themostcommon causeisthedistributionofgendersacrossdifferentjoblevels.Wheremoremenoccupy seniororhigher-paidroles,andmorewomenarerepresentedinjuniorormid-levelroles,a paygapwillappearintheoverallaverages.
Understandingthisdistinctionhelpsfocusactionintherightareas,representation, progression,anddevelopmentopportunities.
03 Executive Summary
Our2025GenderPayGapReportprovidesatransparent overviewofpaydifferencesbetweenmenandwomenacross ourorganisation,inlinewithnationalreportingrequirements.
Asamultidisciplinaryconsultancyoperatingwithinthe broaderconstructionandbuiltenvironmentsector,we continuetooperateinanindustrywherefemale representation,particularlyintechnicalandseniorroles, remainslowerthanthenationalworkforceaverage.This sector-widechallengeinfluencestheavailabletalentpipeline andcontributestogenderimbalancesathigherpaylevels.
Our2025resultsshowamoderategenderpaygap,broadly alignedwithnationalaveragesandbelowtypicalconstructionsectorbenchmarks.However,ourdatashowslowerfemale representationinthehighestpayquartile,whichremainsthe primarydriverofourreportedgap.
Intheshortterm,wearefocusedonstrengtheninginclusive recruitmentpractices,improvingprogressionvisibility,and expandingtargeteddevelopmentsupports.Overthelongerterm, ourEDIstrategyisfocusedonbuildingsustainablegender balancethroughleadershipdevelopment,early-careerpathways, andindustrycollaboration.
Genderbalanceisnotaddressedthroughasingleinitiative—itis achievedthroughconsistent,measurable,long-termaction.This reportoutlinesthestepswearetakingtocontinuemoving forward.
“HavingbeenwithORSforfiveyears, Ihavewitnessedandalsobeenpart oftheintroductionofstrong initiativesandsystemsdesignedto supportallemployeesand specificallyenablewomentoaccess everyopportunity. TheseactionsbyORShave contributedtoaclearincreasein femalerepresentationinsenior technicalandleadershiproles.”
DeirdreMcShane
AssociateDirector, BuildingSurveyingLead
Gender Pay Gap 2025
Hourlypaygap
Thisindicatesthatthemean/medianhourlyearningsforwomenare approximately8–9%lowerthanmenacrosstheorganisationoverall.Median andmeanfiguresarecloselyaligned,indicatingarelativelyconsistentpay distribution
Paygapincludingbonus
Thewidermeangapwhenbonusesareincludedindicatesthatwomenare approximatelypaid13%lowerthanmen.Thisreflectshighermale representationinseniorandbonus-weightedroles.
Mean Median
GenderDistributionbyPayQuartile
Womenarerepresentedacrossallpaylevels;however,representationreduces atthehighestpayquartile.Thisdistributionistheprimarycontributortothe overallreportedpaygapandreflectsbroadersectorrepresentationpatternsin seniortechnicalandleadershiproles.
Female Male
UpperMiddleQuartile
What has influenced our gender pay gap?
Our2025genderpaygapremainsprimarilydrivenbythedistributionofmenand womenacrossdifferentrolelevelswithintheorganisation.Asreflectedinourpay quartiledata,femalerepresentationisstrongeracrossearly-careerandmid-level roles,whileseniorandhigher-paidpositionsremainmoremale-represented.This structuralpatternisthemaindriverofboththehourlypayandbonusgaps.
Thewidermeanpaygapwhenbonusesareincludedreflectsthehigher concentrationofmeninseniorleadership,technicalspecialist,andcommercially accountablerolesthatattracthighersalaries.Thispatternisconsistentwiththe broaderconstructionandbuilt-environmentsector,wherefemalerepresentationat seniortechnicallevelsremainscomparativelylow.
Since2023,ORShasalsoexperiencedsignificantorganisationalgrowththrough acquisitions.Asacquiredfirmshavebeenintegrated,anumberofseniorleadersand vendorprincipalshavejoinedtheorganisationatestablishedmarket-alignedsalaryand incentivelevels.Astheserolessitpredominantlywithintheupperpayquartileandare predominantlymale-represented,thishashadameasurableimpactontheupperquartile genderbalanceandoverallpaygapmetrics.Thiseffectreflectsbusinessgrowthand structuralworkforcecompositionratherthanpayinequalitywithincomparableroles.
Wemaintainamorebalancedgenderprofileacrossgraduate,professional,and developingcareerstages,andwecontinuetoseeincreasingfemaleparticipationin thesecohorts.Sustainedprogressingenderbalanceatseniorlevels,therefore,depends ontheprogressionandretentionofthisemergingpipelineovertime.
Asourworkforceevolves,year-to-yearchangesingenderpaygapmetricscanresult fromorganisationalgrowth,hiringpatterns,andchangesinworkforcesize.Fora consultancyofourscale,relativelysmallchangesinseniorrolecompositioncanhavea visibleimpactonreportedaverages.Wethereforeassesstrendsovertimealongside representationindicatorstounderstandunderlyingprogress.
Closing the Gap
In2025,wecontinuedtostrengthenthesupport,visibility,anddevelopmentpathways availabletowomenandtheunderrepresentedacrossORS.Ourapproachfocusedon attraction,support,andprogression.
FamilySupport LeadershipOpportunities
AtORS,ourvaluesreflectastrong commitmenttosupportingthefamilyunit. Werecognisethatfamiliesarebuiltinmany ways,andwearededicatedtoensuringour peoplefeelsupportedateverystageofthat journey.Ourfamilysupportbenefitsinclude maternity,paternity,surrogacyandadoptive leavetop-ups,aswellaspaidfertilityleave availabletoeveryoneatORS.These supportsaredesignedtoprovidethetime, securityandflexibilityourpeopleneedto carefortheirfamilieswhilecontinuingto growtheircareers.
OurCareerBuilderframeworkprovidesa clearandstructuredapproachtocareer growth,outliningtheexpectationsand opportunitiesateachstagesothat everyoneunderstandshowtheycan progresswithintheorganisation. Alongsidethis,wehavedevelopment programmesinplacetosupport employeesatdifferentstagesoftheir careers,ensuringthateveryonehasequal accesstoleadershipdevelopmentandthe opportunitytogrowintoleadershiproles atORS.
29% ofattendeesonour2025
LeadershipDevelopment Programmewerefemale
06 Closing the Gap
InvestorsinDiversity
ORSisaproudholderoftheSilverInvestorsin Diversityaccreditation,reflectingourstructured andmeasurableapproachtoEDIandour commitmenttobuildinganinclusiveworkplace wherepeoplecanthriveandcontributefully.
2025Graduates werefemale
42%
Hybridandflexibleworking
ORSsupportsflexibleandhybridworking, recognisingtheimportantroleitplaysin helpingemployeesbalancetheirprofessional andpersonallives.Ourapproachisdesigned tosupportthefamilyunit,givingourpeople theflexibilitytomanagefamilyresponsibilities whilecontinuingtodeveloptheircareersand contributetothesuccessofthebusiness.
ExpandedBonusEligibility
Basedonfeedbackfromouremployees, ORSexpandedeligibilityforourbonus schemetoensurethatallemployeeshave theopportunitytobenefitfromcompany performance.
Theframeworkisdesignedtoensurea clearerlinkbetweenindividualcontribution, companyperformance,andrecognition.A keyfeatureofthischangeisthe introductionofabi-annualperformance bonus,basedonclearandtransparent performancemetrics.Byexpandingaccess tothebonusschemeacrossthe organisation,weaimtoprovideamore inclusiveapproachtorewardwhile supportingemployeeengagementand retentionasthebusinesscontinuesto grow.
EmpowHERForum
TheEmpowHERWomeninConstruction Forumwasaninitiativedevelopedby DeirdreMcShane,AssociateDirector,and oneweareveryproudtosupportatORS. Createdtobringwomeninourindustry together,theforumprovidesaspaceto shareexperiences,buildconfidence,and supportoneanotheraswenavigatethe opportunitiesandchallengeswithin construction.
ThefirstEmpowHEReventwelcomed womenfromacrossthesectortoconnect, hearinspiringperspectives,andtakepartin sessionsfocusedonconfidence,personal development,andprofessionalgrowth.We areexcitedtoseetheforumcontinueto growasaplatformthatencourages collaboration,visibility,andsupportfor womenacrosstheindustry.
Our Approach to EDI
OurapproachtoEquity,DiversityandInclusioncontinuestoevolveas ourbusinessgrows.Weremainfocusedonensuringthatopportunity, supportanddevelopmentareaccessibletoeveryoneacrossORS.
Representation AnInclusiveEnvironment PositiveInfluence
Byattractingtalentfromawiderangeof backgroundsandexperiences,we strengthenourteamsandcreateamore balancedandrepresentativeorganisation.
Creatinganinclusiveworkplacemeans ensuringthatpeoplefeelsafetoshare theirperspectives,developtheircareers andthrivewithinORS.
Weaimtouseourvoiceandpartnerships tosupportpositivechangewithinour sectorandthecommunitiesinwhichwe operate.
Women in Leadership
SeniorPeople Lead AssociateDirector BuildingCompliance
SeniorFinance Manager
HeadofMarketing Workplace OperationsManager
AssociateDirector
AssociateDirector
FireSafetyLead IntegrationsLead FireSafetyLead
WorkplaceOps
Transportation Lead
FinanceManager
Health&Safety Advisor
Looking Forward
AtORS,we’reincrediblyproudtohavestrong femalerepresentationacrossourteams.The talent,leadershipandperspectiveour colleaguesbringeverydaymakeour organisationstronger,andwe’refortunateto workalongsidesomanyinspiringwomenacross thebusiness.
ThroughourEmpowerHerWomenin ConstructionForum,ourpledgethisyearisto promoteopportunitiesforourteamtosupport womenandunderrepresentedgroupsthroughout theORSGroupandthroughvolunteering.
Wearecommittedtomentoringandinspiringthe nextgenerationbysupportingwomenin leadership,careerdevelopment,andthose experiencingbarriers.
RachelMurray DirectorofPeople&Brand
