Experts say female workers are needed to meet a big shortfall in Victorian construction. 

Victoria's construction industry has been warned that it needs to hire more women, or risk a workforce shortfall that is forecast to reach 26,000 vacancies by 2040, according to a report by Incolink, the state's industry body. 

The report states that if employers could increase the number of women in construction by 0.4 per cent each year until 2040, it would cover the shortfall and raise the proportion of women in the industry to 19 per cent of the total workforce, or 81,500 workers. 

The report recommends measures to achieve greater visibility of women in construction, including having more senior women in leadership positions, better career information for women, and more mentoring opportunities for women. 

The study surveyed 131 female construction industry workers, and highlighted the need for employers to implement small incremental changes to plug the gap. 

“Bringing more women into this is like compound interest,” says Incolink's chief operating officer Ashleigh Dalmau. 

“When you start small, it has a big impact.”

However, some experts argue that a strategy of incremental change is insufficient and that deeper structural changes are required to enable greater female participation in construction. 

Natalie Galea, a senior research fellow at the University of Melbourne, argues that long work hours are a key hurdle that effectively exclude anyone trying to balance a career in construction with caring responsibilities. 

“There are long work hours that rule in some people and rule out others. Generally those with care responsibilities are ruled out,” Dr Galea has told reporters. 

The report also warns that immigration cannot plug the gap, as there will be a decline in the skilled permanent migration intake into the state from 5,208 in 2030 to 1,721 in 2040.

The proportion of women in the industry has barely shifted from 11.5 per cent in 1984 to 11.8 per cent last year, despite efforts to influence culture and make worksites more accessible over the past seven years, according to the report. 

With no intervention, the full-time female workforce is predicted to total only 34,500 full-time positions by 2040, out of an estimated total workforce of 369,000.

The Construction Industry Culture Taskforce, a separate industry body, also cites long hours as a key issue that discourages women's participation in construction. 

The taskforce recommends restructuring construction contracts to encourage a five-day working week for projects, rather than the six-day pattern that is the industry norm. 

The Incolink survey respondents ranked a five-day week as ninth on the list of measures for improvement, after other measures such as family-friendly schedules, better bathroom and breastfeeding facilities, and more opportunities to work part-time.

According to Dr Galea, barriers to women's advancement in the sector remain a significant issue. 

Only half of the survey respondents, including labourers, technicians, traffic workers, machinery operators, and managers, believed that men and women had equal chances of promotion or advancement. 

Additionally, less than half (46 per cent) said family commitments were not a barrier to success, while 29 per cent said they were and 25 per cent were undecided.

The report concludes that unless issues of work-life balance and flexible work are addressed for both men and women, it will be a challenge to fill the existing skills shortages in Victoria's construction industry. 

Currently, only 52 per cent of construction vacancies are filled, the lowest percentage nationally, the report says.