Record number of women worked on Quebec construction sites in 2022

Construction cones are shown at a construction site in Montreal, Tuesday, April 25, 2023. The Quebec government has vowed to remove the cones after 72 hours of inactivity. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

A record 7,218 women worked on construction sites in 2022, according to the Commission de la construction du Québec.

This compares with 6,250 in 2021. The new figures come from the CCQ's just-released report for 2022.

While the number of 7,218 seems impressive at first glance, in reality, it represents just 3.65 per cent of the total workforce in the industry.

There were just 515 in 2000, 1904 in 2010 and 2,289 in 2015.

The women who worked in the construction industry also worked more hours than in the previous year: an average of 818 hours, compared to 1,071 hours for men in 2022.

In 2021, women had worked an average of 765 hours and men had worked 1,038 hours.

The trades with the most women are painter (1,712), carpenter (1,423), labourer (1,268) and electrician (627).

They are followed by plasterers, tilers, surveyors, pipe fitters, tinsmiths and roofers.

The drop-out rate for women in the industry remains higher than for men. After one year, the drop-out rate for women is 21 per cent, compared with 13 per cent for men. After five years, the drop-out rate is 52 per cent for women and 32 per cent for men.

This is of concern to the construction commission, unions and employers. The industry has set up a Women's Equal Opportunity Program to increase women's representation on construction sites.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on June 2, 2023.