1. 16 THE NAWIC JOURNAL 2016 GUEST CONTRIBUTOR
G E N D E R I N E Q U A L I T Y I N A U S T R A L I A N
B U S I N E S S – A C S R P E R S P E C T I V E
Words Rebecca Jinks, Senior Consultant, Australian Centre for
Corporate Social Responsibility (ACCSR)
As a woman who worked in a corporate social responsibility (CSR) team within
the property and construction industry for several years, I have seen firsthand
how difficult it can be to succeed against conscious and unconscious gender
bias. I have regularly asked myself why the strong, intelligent and driven women
around me aren’t reaching those senior executive positions, and whether I will
also be victim to the same obstacles.
R
ecent research by Bain & Company found
that as women gain more experience
and exposure to upper management,
their confidence plummets significantly (by
50 per cent), while men in similar stages of
their career experience far less reduction
of confidence (10 per cent). I, and many of
the women I’ve worked with, can attest to
this experience, and the lack of support and
encouragement from management to forge
forward against that inner voice constantly telling
us we can’t do it.
Bain & Company also found that stereotypes
regarding women’s working style played heavily
into their assumed ability to lead. This may
be why women feel they do not have equal
opportunity – women’s natural collaborative
style is perceived as less effective than men’s
promoting style. Similarly, both men and
women were twice as likely to rank men above
women as the most effective problem solvers,
playing into the underlying belief that men are
stronger leaders. If you work in an industry like
property and construction, you’ve undoubtedly
seen or experienced this. Our leaders, male and
female, are constantly mentoring us to change
the way we lead or engage.
Why can’t we create an environment that thrives
with the diversity of two leadership styles, rather
than the requirement of one solution that fits all?
Haven’t we, as a community, already accepted
that workplaces with gender-diverse leadership
groups are significantly more effective and
productive than those lacking diversity?
The April 2016 Australian Government’s
Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA)
report showed that construction has a lower
representation of women than any other
industry, at 11.7 per cent. This should be
an incentive for anyone working in this field
to kickstart the conversation about gender
diversity as a key focus of the industry. Many
other industries have been tackling this problem
for years, and so there are lessons already out
there for anyone willing to take on the challenge
in this industry.
Rebecca Jinks

2. THE NAWIC JOURNAL 2016 17GUEST CONTRIBUTER
Figure 1. SDG
Dashboard
– Australia’s
progress towards
the SDGs
GENDER EQUALITY AND
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
In 2015, the United Nations announced the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,
comprising 17 Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets. They seek
to build on the Millennium Development
Goals and fulfil what these did not achieve.
They apply to both the developed and the
developing world, and to business and civil
society, as well as to governments. These
goals address the three dimensions of
sustainable development: economic, social
and environmental dimensions.
The Sustainable Development Goals will make
a big difference to the challenge of gender
equality, and the following goals are particularly
relevant: #5 Gender Equality, #8 Decent Work
and Economic Growth, and #10 Reduced
Inequalities (Figure 1).
In mid 2016, the Sustainable Development
Solutions Network (SDSN), a global initiative of
the United Nations, launched the SDG Index
and Dashboards, which rank countries against
each of the 17 goals, and against each other.
Australia ranked 20th, and compared with
our disappointment about coming 10th at the
Olympic Games and our pride at claiming the
world’s most livable city again this year, our
SDG ranking has received little media coverage.
Alarmingly, of the 17 goals, only three ranked
‘green’, with six ranking ‘red’ and the remaining
eight being ‘amber’ (refer to Figure 1).
Of these amber goals, which contributed
heavily to Australia being ranked 20th, #5
Gender Equality and #10 Reduced Inequalities
were listed. If we focus on SDG #5, we find that
Australia ranks below average specifically for
the sub-targets ‘women in national parliament’
and the ‘gender wage gap’.
Further, ACCSR’s 2016 Annual Review of the
State of CSR in Australia and New Zealand
found that when confronting gender equality,
most companies plan to tackle the problem by
reporting progress, with very few committing
to new policies or action plans. Gender
equality did not rank in the top three goals for
the construction industry, even though it was
the most important goal for six out of the 14
industries surveyed, and despite WGEA listing
construction as the industry with the greatest
level of gender inequality in Australia.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR AN
INDUSTRY LIKE CONSTRUCTION?
The call to action is clear. We need to start
with the basics – CSR consultants and people
managers need to focus on building and
nurturing the confidence of women at all stages
of their careers. Businesses in all industries
must create an environment that embraces
all working models and styles, and they must
break down the societal stereotypes around
female leadership. There is also a need to
promote broader acceptance of flexible career
paths to help women manage critical life events
effectively, while still succeeding in their career.
Based on the research conducted by ACCSR, it is
also clear that CSR managers in the construction
industry need to advocate for gender equality.
If the industry isn’t considering the issue,
then there is no way that the aforementioned
suggestions can begin to be implemented. It
is the responsibility of those in the industry to
encourage and promote these conversation.
Tackling these issues won’t be a walk in the
park. It will be reliant on shifting unconscious
stereotypes and behaviours with strong,
committed leadership to sustain action over the
long term. But we are on the right path, and we
can turn those amber SDGs to green!