Gender pay gaps still exist in digital construction and men are more likely to feel more positive about their careers in the sector than women, new research has found
The 2024 Digital Construction Global Work Survey by Women in BIM found that women are more likely to feel that they are not being paid appropriately for their level of responsibility, skill and experience.
Women are also more likely to feel less clear about their future career progression.
Despite these barriers, many women hold senior roles in digital construction.
Many of the women in senior and leadership positions also have primary caring responsibilities, which presents challenges in managing work-life balance in a rapidly changing industry.
The global picture
Both genders have a median salary average in the band ranging from $49,000-$60,999 (£40,000-£49,999; A$70,000-A$86,999).
However, a noticeably higher proportion of men secure the highest salaries compared with women.
The survey found 31% of men secure salaries in the highest band (more than $85,000) compared with only 21% of women.
Regional disparities
Women in BIM said the picture became starker when examining the data to pay disparities in global regions.
There was insufficient data to make meaningful comparisons for Europe, Asia, the Middle East and After but in the remaining regions a disparity was clear.
From the data available, the largest pay disparity between women and men in digital construction existed in South America.
In North America there was no disparity, with the UK and Australia and New Zealand indicated that a gender pay gap evidently exists.
Gender and job level
One explanation for the gender pay gap might be that women do not progress in their careers as far as men.
Previous research has indicated that women are more likely to leave construction careers than their male counterparts and this could explain why a higher proportion of men obtain the highest salaries.
However, when examining the salary data in relation to the job level that men and women achieve, this appears not to be true.
A statistically significant correlation exists between the job levels that men and women attain indicating, no meaningful difference.
It would be reasonable, therefore, to deduce that in digital construction, men may well be paid more than women for doing the same job, the report said.
Career progression
Looking at career satisfaction, the data indicates that men are more likely to feel more positively about their careers than women.
Nearly 70% of men feel positive about their careers in digital construction, whereas just over half of women feel the same.
Conversely, only a quarter of men feel negatively about their careers, while women exceed this figure.
A threat to the industry’s future
In the report’s foreword, Rebecca De Cicco global chair and founder of Women in BIM, wrote: “Globally, the construction industry is evolving rapidly and we are seeing an influx of new roles, new requirements and new responsibilities that are percolating across our projects. As a result, the way in which these roles are understood and defined is a key component to how we, as women, progress in the industry.
“This is not a gender-based problem, but what persists is the global gender pay gap which still poses a threat to our industry as a barrier to fair reward and celebration of women in the digital construction sector.”
