researchBuilding Up Girls! Has global and national local implications. Here are the reasons I taught girls to woodwork!
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About my Root CauseRoot Cause: Society urges girls to engaged in more dainty, feminine activities. Because of that, there are not many women in vocational careers such as construction, trades, plumbing, car maintenance, etc.
My Research: Statistics everywhere show that women are at a disadvantage in the world of employment. This is especially true in career paths such as trades and construction, as men vastly outnumber women in the fields of construction. Only nine percent of construction workers are women, and over seventy percent of those women work offsite, in sales, management, or marketing. (https://stats.bls.gov) I can count on my hand the number of women I have seen working in construction sites. Women being under-represented on the job is a problem in every part of the world. In many developing countries, such as Yemen, the workforce is primarily men. There, less than eight percent of the workforce is women. (https://www.nawic.org/nawic/Statistics.asp). Women not being represented in careers is a global problem, but it manifests partially in the United States as a disparity between genders in the construction and trades fields. Women working in all fields of work is important because it gives women more opportunities and adds new perspectives. Whether it be because of financial situation or a person’s skill set, not everyone has the capability to go to college. Women should have the opportunity to succeed, and for some women the way to their own success could be through trades or construction. Women provide a whole new point of view because of their differing experiences ( https://www.odi.org/sites/odi.org.uk/files/odi-assets/publications-opinion-files/9627.pdf ) and these different opinions help make work more efficient for everyone involved. Female representation not only helps women, but it helps everyone else! So, if construction and trades are benefitted by women, then why aren’t there more women working in those fields? The reason is because of gender expectations. In general, girls are expected to be delicate and gentle. (https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/sexual-orientation-gender/gender-gender-identity/what-are-gender-roles-and-stereotypes) Working in construction or trades is considered masculine, and girls are either directly or indirectly urged to choose a more feminine line of work. When I was researching woodworking, I came across an article called Thirty Perfect Wood-Working Project Ideas For Girls (https://cutthewood.com/inspiration/woodworking-project-ideas-girls ). When I read the article, all the suggested projects were creations such as mirrors, jewelry, and little fairy houses. The key to getting girls involved in construction and trades jobs is helping them challenging gender expectations, and I can do that by teaching girls the skill of woodworking and educating them on the different career paths related to that. Addressing My Root Cause: I was able to address my root cause by exposing over forty one girls to a male-dominated hobby, which is also closely related to careers dominated by men. Throughout the workshop, I emphasized that woodworking was an activity for girls to enjoy, not just boys! I found that in the beginning, the girls were timid or afraid to use the tools, but after encouragement and support, every girl was eager to play a part in the construction of the benches. In my experience with children, boys jump into action without fear, and girls tend hold back. In the safe environment of my workshops, I worked to inspire the girls to challenge themselves by using intimidating equipment. The girls used power tools like miter saws, electric screwdrivers, and drills; and also used fundamental tools like a measuring tape and a speed square. In each workshop, groups worked together to build two benches per workshop! I helped challenge the internal limits they set for themselves, and now the girls that encounter my project through my workshops, benches, or my assembly speech are more likely to pursue hands-on careers dominated by men. |
National and Global LinksWithin the United States, the disparity in construction and trades careers is apparent. Florida has the highest percent of construction jobs. However, in Miami-Dade county Florida, only 7.2% of construction workers were female.( http://www.miamidade.gov/auditor/library/status-of-women-2016.pdf) In Alaska, of the twenty most male-dominated occupation, all but one was a vocational career. The percent of women listed for each occupation? Less than 5%.(http://www.andvsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Status-of-Women-in-Alaska-Research-Report.pdf) In Georgia, the construction industry is booming, but the percent of women pursing those fields were still small, with just 11% of construction majors at KSU being female.(https://www.ajc.com/business/economy/women-lag-participation-the-booming-construction-industry/Oia9uej3A5hPJ477fwM5AP/)
Many countries in the world are as industrialized than the United States or more so. Places like Canada, Finland, the United Kingdom, and Denmark are all ranked near the United States developmentally. In Canada, 12% of their construction workers are women, despite a large percent of the population being employed in that area (http://www.careersandeducation.ca/industry-insight/women-in-construction-the-rising-trend-of-women-intheconstructionindustry#targetText=Despite%20employing%20such%20a%20large,percent%20of%20the%20total%20workforce.). In the United Kingdom, 8% of those working in skilled trades were women and in Finland it is reported that the small percent of women entering vocational careers has remained largely unchanged within the last forty years. The employment statistics for women in trades or construction in less developed countries are largely unavailable, but considering that the majority of these countries have significantly less female employment than male, it can be reasonably assumed that a very small percentage of women work in vocational careers. For example, in Jordan and Algeria less than twenty percent of their workforce is female. Globally, a disproportionate amount of the workforce is women, only 38%. (https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.TOTL.FE.ZS) Despite extensive research, I could not find any statistic-- in any language, for any country-- indicating that women make up an equal percentage of trades or construction occupation. None have even shown that a quarter of that workforce is women! The lack of research in itself speaks to the lack of awareness of the issue. The lack of female employment in vocational careers is an issue rarely spoken about around the world, and my project is bringing awareness to this rampant disproportion in the vital occupations of trade/construction. |