Around 500 women have completed the courses run by this company: these include training in bricklaying, plumbing, carpentry, electrical work… all trades related to the construction industry.
We visited a building site in Madrid to interview Laura Baquero, founder of the company Ella Construye, and we confirmed what is no surprise: the building trade remains a male-dominated field—bricklayers, electricians, plumbers… where there are few professions ending in ‘-ess’.
It was this reality that led this architect to found the company Ella Construye in 2017. Working as a technician on her own building sites, she realised there were no women there, so she thought: ‘What if I train them myself? In all my years in the profession, I had never come across women working in construction, on a building site, or in a trade. But whilst working on renovation projects, I did come across a few, and I started looking for more women willing to learn this trade. I realised that as there weren’t many, perhaps we needed to teach them. So I began offering free workshops on my own renovation projects exclusively for women, to encourage them to get to know the site and perhaps work with us,” says the technician.
That was the start, and since then nearly 500 women have passed through the company. What training courses do you offer? “Bricklaying, general construction, tiling, electrical work, carpentry, plumbing – basically everything related to the building trades.” Which ones are the most popular? “Training in cladding, tiling, and things like that—which are more decorative—tend to be quite popular. Carpentry and bricklaying are also usually very popular. Well, actually, our training courses are quite popular,” adds Laura.
Ella Construye works with companies linked to the construction sector “that have a certain demand or want to contribute in some way to equality and diversity in construction. We also work for institutions and local councils that want to give women opportunities to work in construction. By offering courses exclusively for women, they feel more comfortable learning from scratch and making mistakes. These are introductory courses to construction, and we create an environment where they can feel more confident and not in competition with men who may already have more experience.”
Three profiles of women in the construction industry:
What sort of women sign up? “Many come looking for new job opportunities; there are also female engineers and architects who already work on building sites and want to learn more about construction. And there are women who want to become more self-reliant when it comes to repairs, because there’s such high demand for professionals in the sector that sometimes it’s very difficult to find an electrician to fit a socket. So why not do it myself?”, says Baquero.
Are there job prospects after the training? “These are introductory courses to the construction industry; approximately 90% of the women who come continue their training. Around 20% go on to find employment in construction because, unfortunately, there still aren’t that many opportunities for women and there isn’t much confidence in them. “Hiring people with no experience isn’t really what construction companies want. Given the choice between a man and a woman with zero experience, they tend to hire the man. But it’s true that builders are increasingly open to hiring women,” explains Laura.
The million-dollar question: why is the construction industry still a male-dominated field? “Construction has traditionally been a male-dominated environment. An environment that is hostile towards women. And I think that’s why, when we’re looking for a job, we don’t see construction as a place where we can feel comfortable, and that’s why we focus on other types of professions.” Baquero continues: “Construction has always been seen as a sector where physical strength is required. In most cases, physical strength isn’t needed, but in others you do need certain physical abilities. Not just anyone can be a doctor or a bricklayer because you need certain skills and, above all, a lot of motivation. You can’t romanticise construction either.”
Returning to career opportunities, Ella Construye has just signed up for some training courses with Obramat, which start this March and offer job prospects: “We’re launching a very interesting course. It’s a basic electrical course for women that comes with a job opportunity, and we’re launching it with Obramat.”
It’s very interesting because there won’t just be a selection process for women to attend the course; instead, everyone who completes the course will be able to enter a recruitment process to be hired on building sites. It’s a wonderful initiative and the perfect way to provide opportunities for those who want to get started in construction, and specifically in the electrical sector. “There is a high demand for electricians and it is a job that currently pays very well,” says Baquero. How much can an electrician earn? “I come from a family of electricians and I can say that demand is very high right now; they are doing very well; it is a fantastic trade where you can earn a lot of money,” concludes the expert.
Obramat’s courses will be held in Madrid and Barcelona during May, and those interested can sign up on the Ella Construye website.