'I had to work a bit harder': Women in the building industry leading the charge for change

Despite being the second largest industry in Australia, women make up only 11 per cent of the building and construction workforce.

However, as long as the buildings we rely on – hospitals, schools, universities, restaurants and homes – are spaces women live and work in, it seems only logical that women ought to be a part of designing and building these venues.

Thanks to initiatives like Women Building Australia, via Master Builders Australia, women are being supported to enter and sustain careers in building and construction. The Lady Tradies is also providing a platform for female tradies to list their services.

Whether new to the industry, or having paved their own way over years now, these are the women worth seeking out for residential and commercial building projects.

Rachael Turner

Rachael Turner, founder and director of Front Porch Properties, transitioned from a career as a classical pianist and music teacher to a career in construction. As a business owner in both careers, she came to construction with nuanced business, time management and leadership abilities.

“It’s often the wife and mother who is most concerned about the home, so I feel women are often better at interpreting a client’s vision and bringing it to life. Women are also great communicators, multitaskers and excel at team building and camaraderie on site.”

For Turner, she’s had a mixed bag of reactions from clients and colleagues, but ultimately it’s been a positive experience. “Perhaps in the early days of my career, I had to work a bit harder to prove my worth but now that my business has some momentum, I feel I am treated and respected equally.”

As designer and builder, Turner oversaw six full-time carpenters along with various other tradies and construction professionals to renovate a 1930s pre-war home into a modern farmhouse in Coorparoo, Brisbane.

“The renovated home was carefully planned to ensure the new home buyers had a very comfortable, relaxed and easy lifestyle. It now has five bedrooms, three bathrooms, two living areas, four separate entertaining decks and a pool,” she said.

Within a year, the property had been renovated and sold as planned and was bought by Brisbane Lions player Lachie Neal and his wife, Jules.

Rebeka Morgan and Kribashini Hannon

After 14 years of various management roles in commercial construction, Rebeka Morgan founded BuildHer Collective, along with Kribashini Hannon, to enable women to project manage their own building projects.

Morgan grew up in the family floor coverings business, going on to multiple management roles in commercial construction.

When not working on BuildHer Collective, or fulfilling her role as CEO of Beirin Projects (high-end renovation and construction in Melbourne’s inner north), she’s a tutor at Swinburne University.

BuildHer Collective runs an online course that provides women with the knowledge and skills to project manage their own builds, while also providing access to trade accounts and blueprints.

“In our experience, we see so many women leading their renovations and builds, proving they are incredible project managers. Generally, women seem to be really connected to the end vision, to the use of the space so that it’s a more emotional experience for them and for us,” Morgan said.

Two recent projects Morgan and Hannon are most proud of include residential homes in Northcote and Alphington.

The brief for Northcote was to build an interesting, modern home that paid respect to the heritage facade. The Alphington project, Alpha House, was to design a family friendly home for sale.

One of Hannon and Morgan’s BuildHer Collective clients, Linda, was seven months’ pregnant and living in her first family home when she approached them. She’d successfully applied for a planning permit to subdivide but didn’t know her next steps.

After taking the online course, Linda worked with Hannon and Morgan to tweak the drawings of her planned renovation and, within an hour, had perfected her floor plan, ready to build. A year later, Linda had a newborn and her first home as an owner and builder.