Women in Construction

Overview

"OSHA also published two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking this summer (2023). The first seeks to clarify the personal protective equipment (PPE) standard for the construction industry by explicitly stating that PPE must fit each employee properly to protect them from occupational hazards. This change would align the PPE standard in construction with the PPE standards in general industry and maritime. Improperly fitting PPE is poor protection and can often be hazardous to workers using it. All workers, regardless of their body type or size, should be protected on the job. Access to properly fitting PPE has been a long-standing problem for women working in construction, and we are proud to be addressing the issue." – Douglas Parker, Assistant Secretary of Labor OSHA statement to Congress, 9/27/2023

Total employment in the construction industry peaked in 2007, at 11.9 million, before falling to 9.1 million in 2010 in the wake of the Great Recession (December 2007—June 2009), with smaller declines through 2012. Employment in the industry grew after 2012, reaching 11.4 million in 2019. In 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, employment dropped to 10.8 million. In 2020, women accounted for 1.2 million of those employed in the construction industry, or about 1 in 10, similar to recent years. ⁽¹⁾

How OSHA Can Help

Workers have a right to a safe workplace. The law requires employers to provide their employees with working conditions that are free of known dangers. OSHA provides information, training, and assistance to workers and employers.

If you think your job is unsafe or you have questions, contact OSHA at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742). It's confidential. We can help. For other valuable worker protection information, such as Workers' Rights, Employer Responsibilities, and other services OSHA may offer, visit OSHA's Workers' page.

OSHA will continue to conduct inspections in response to complaints and/or referrals. Workers may file a complaint to have OSHA inspect their workplace if they believe that their employer is not following the OSHA standards if there is a serious hazard. Employees can file a complaint with OSHA by calling 1-800-321-OSHA (6742) or by printing out the complaint form and mailing or faxing the completed form to your local OSHA area office. Complaints that are signed by an employee are more likely to result in an inspection.

Personal Protective Equipment

Provides information about Personal Protective Equimpment for women in construction.

Sanitary Facilities at the Construction Site

Provides information about access to sanitary facilities at construction sites.

Additional Resources

Provides additional resources for women in construction.

female construction worker with slow sign

Type: Vertical bar graph with 18 elements; three elements for the number of men and women workers, and total workers in construction (in hundreds of thousands and millions ) for 18 years ranging from 2003 – 2020.

Contents:
Year	Men	Women	Total Construction
2003	9,164,000	975,000	10,138,000
2004	9,727,000	1,041,000	10,768,000
2005	10,118,000	1,079,000	11,197,000
2006	10,618,000	1,131,000	11,749,000
2007	10,738,000	1,119,000	11,856,000
2008	9,905,000	1,069,000	10,974,000
2009	8,782,000	919,000	9,702,000
2010	8,270,000	807,000	9,077,000
2011	8,211,000	828,000	9,039,000
2012	8,162,000	802,000	8,964,000
2013	8,432,000	840,000	9,271,000
2014	8,941,000	872,000	9,813,000
2015	9,006,000	929,000	9,935,000
2016	9,389,000	939,000	10,328,000
2017	9,722,000	971,000	10,692,000
2018	10,079,000	1,102,000	11,181,000
2019	10,205,000	1,168,000	11,373,000
2020	9,613,000	1,173,000	10,786,000

¹ US Bureau of Labor. (2022). Publications, Spotlights on Statistics, Construction Industry Employees by Sex, 2003-2020, 1 in 10 Construction Workers is A Woman.