“Clearly, as a society, we still have pending tasks to create an environment where women have better incentives and benefits. To that, we must add our responsibility as a sector to offer the necessary mechanisms that guarantee safety and health in the workplace, something that should be accessible to all workers without any kind of discrimination.” Jorge Montalvo.
SANTO DOMINGO– The gap in women's participation in the construction industry remains wide. Although it has narrowed somewhat with the entry of many professionals into the industry, some of the careers inherent to the field are still seen as exclusively male work.
The topic was extensively analyzed yesterday by a group of experts, in the panel “Women Who Build”, organized by the Association of Housing Builders (ACOPROVI), thus closing the month in which Women's Day is commemorated.
“The first thing is that being a woman already makes a difference because she has a vocation for protecting, caring, and balancing work and family. It's not that they do it better or worse, but rather that diversity makes us stronger. We have a saying at the company that together we find solutions that transform,” explained Ingrid Lapaix, Director of People Management and Corporate Sustainability at GERDAU METALDOM.
He said that at METALDOM, only five percent of its workforce consisted of women, a figure that today rises to 11%, "in a predominantly male company"; an increase achieved through a recruitment program specifically designed to hire women.
According to architect Vivian Reyes Roca, Vice Minister of Standards, Regulations and Procedures at the Ministry of Housing (MIVED), women still have a long way to go to achieve equality, because when university enrollment is observed, the number of female graduates does not correspond to the insertion seen in the labor market.
She shared her experience at INFOTEP, where, she says, she was surprised to find a section full of women studying carpentry, a trade still traditionally reserved exclusively for men. She states that construction is a minefield of work for women, but the key is being welcomed and accepted on a construction site.
“Our universities are full of women studying architecture, but go out and walk around the city and see how many buildings have been designed by them and how many by men. For me, that is the most palpable reality,” declared architect Yermys Peña.
She lamented that many cases occur due to women's lack of self-confidence. She called on women to take the next step and stop blaming the system, because often it's a matter of willpower. "It's not easy to put on boots to visit a construction site and sweat," said the CEO of YP Estudio.
Rosanna Ruiz, executive president of the Association of Commercial Banks of the Dominican Republic (ABA), highlighted the impact of women on the economy, stating that more than 50% of savings accounts in Dominican banks belong to women.
She believes that universities and homes must re-evaluate their learning methods. “At home, we need to break down paradigms of unequal opportunities and different skill sets, and universities need to be more creative because many women don't study engineering because they're afraid of math,” Ruiz stated.
The meeting
“Women Who Build” was the first panel sponsored by ACOPROVI and is intended to be an annual space to recognize the role of women in the industry.
Jorge Montalvo, president of the entity, highlighted that increasing the number of hires in the construction sector is a challenge that concerns everyone, given that 10% of the workforce hired in the sector were women, according to data from the National Statistics Office (ONE).
“Clearly, as a society we still have pending tasks to create an environment where women have better incentives and benefits. To that we must add our responsibility as a sector to offer the necessary mechanisms that guarantee safety and health in the workplace, something that should be accessible to all workers without any kind of discrimination,” said Montalvo.
The event was attended by the Dominican Republic's ambassador to Brazil, Patricia Villegas de Jorge. The panel was moderated by engineer Jaime Oscar González, Vice Minister of Social Development at the Ministry of the Presidency. Other panelists included engineer Annerys Meléndez, Second Vice President of ACOPROVI, and Katherine Méndez, Director of Fixed Network Operations at Altice Dominicana.
The event included a posthumous tribute to engineer Susy Gatón, for her honorable professional career and for being the first woman to hold the presidency of the Association.
