Integrating Women to Stay Competitive
17 June 2015
Read by 4530 persons
Karine is 23 years old. She is a welder. Unknowingly, her employer practiced "diversity", even if on the work site there are only three women for about thirty men. Why integrate women into mostly male jobs? What are the advantages for the employer?
When we talk about workforce diversity, it is the process that aims at the integration of women into jobs that are mostly male-dominated (and vice versa).
A job is considered non-traditional when one gender is represented by less than 33%. According to Anick Druelle, coordinator, Equity and Diversity in Employment at the Council for the Access of Women to Work (CIAFT), "Women change the culture and habits in teams, and that is very positive. In addition, their presence helps to break down stereotypes in male environments."
Diversity in Daily Life
As an employer, you want to know concretely what the presence of female workers can bring to your team? Improving the work environment is one of the main advantages: "Where there are women, we change the ways of doing things, and the atmosphere improves. Once the initial arrival phase is over, there is more conviviality within the team," underlines Cécile Demers, director of the employability service at the Montreal Women's Center.
For Anick Druelle, it is motivation and productivity that find a new lease on life when women are around: "In the case of jobs where physical strength is required," she says, "women allow for the improvement of tool design and make the work of the rest of the team easier. This results in an increase in productivity within a more motivated team." But that's not all: "Women bring other perspectives, they are often more meticulous, more cautious and attentive to health and safety," adds Ms. Demers.
These advantages contribute to healthy competition and the evolution of general working conditions that employers would be wrong to ignore. The Action Committee for Diversity in Employment in the Outaouais (CAMEO) even offers a kit and information capsules for companies wishing to integrate women into their teams.
(http://cameo-outaouais.ca/)
Diversity according to women
Mostly male-dominated jobs also face a serious labor shortage, and women are the ideal solution to address this shortage, according to Cécile Demers: "These jobs offer good working conditions and higher pay than they could get in more traditional fields."
Sandra Doyon was a truck driver for 11 years. "I did it for the adventure, the travel, the challenge, but also for job security," she explains. Her experience as a heavy vehicle driver was enriching, even if it presented significant challenges: "To succeed in this profession, and in others where there are more men, you need above all perseverance, but it's also a matter of personality."
While much work remains to be done to attract women to non-traditional jobs, keeping them employed is also a challenge, because according to the Quebec Construction Commission (CCQ), 62% of women trained in a construction trade have left the field after five years.
Annabelle Moreau.
Workopolis.com
Published April 1, 2015.
Posted online June 17, 2015.
When we talk about workforce diversity, it is the process that aims at the integration of women into jobs that are mostly male-dominated (and vice versa).
A job is considered non-traditional when one gender is represented by less than 33%. According to Anick Druelle, coordinator, Equity and Diversity in Employment at the Council for the Access of Women to Work (CIAFT), "Women change the culture and habits in teams, and that is very positive. In addition, their presence helps to break down stereotypes in male environments."
Diversity in Daily Life
As an employer, you want to know concretely what the presence of female workers can bring to your team? Improving the work environment is one of the main advantages: "Where there are women, we change the ways of doing things, and the atmosphere improves. Once the initial arrival phase is over, there is more conviviality within the team," underlines Cécile Demers, director of the employability service at the Montreal Women's Center.
For Anick Druelle, it is motivation and productivity that find a new lease on life when women are around: "In the case of jobs where physical strength is required," she says, "women allow for the improvement of tool design and make the work of the rest of the team easier. This results in an increase in productivity within a more motivated team." But that's not all: "Women bring other perspectives, they are often more meticulous, more cautious and attentive to health and safety," adds Ms. Demers.
These advantages contribute to healthy competition and the evolution of general working conditions that employers would be wrong to ignore. The Action Committee for Diversity in Employment in the Outaouais (CAMEO) even offers a kit and information capsules for companies wishing to integrate women into their teams.
(http://cameo-outaouais.ca/)
Diversity according to women
Mostly male-dominated jobs also face a serious labor shortage, and women are the ideal solution to address this shortage, according to Cécile Demers: "These jobs offer good working conditions and higher pay than they could get in more traditional fields."
Sandra Doyon was a truck driver for 11 years. "I did it for the adventure, the travel, the challenge, but also for job security," she explains. Her experience as a heavy vehicle driver was enriching, even if it presented significant challenges: "To succeed in this profession, and in others where there are more men, you need above all perseverance, but it's also a matter of personality."
While much work remains to be done to attract women to non-traditional jobs, keeping them employed is also a challenge, because according to the Quebec Construction Commission (CCQ), 62% of women trained in a construction trade have left the field after five years.
Annabelle Moreau.
Workopolis.com
Published April 1, 2015.
Posted online June 17, 2015.
