While the United States continues to face a skilled trades shortage, the number of women entering the trades is actually growing. Although the trades continue to be male-dominated, the number of tradeswomen entering the field has increased by over 30% in the last 5 years. In fact, in 2022 women made up 11% of the construction workforce.
Welcoming more women into the construction industry will be essential going forward. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, between 2021 and 2031, there will be approximately 723,400 openings each year from a combination of job growth and replacing retiring workers. In 2023 alone, the Associated Builders and Contractors, a trade association dedicated to construction, reports the industry must attract an estimated 546,000 additional workers in 2023 to meet the demand for labor.
The increasing number of women in the trades is promising, but many women in these fields have still remained underserved when it comes to accessing properly fitting personal protective equipment (PPE). Generations of tradeswomen have often grown accustomed to settling for safety gear that was designed for a man’s frame such as poorly fitting boots, gloves, belts, harnesses, respirators, and more. As more women enter this workforce, these disparities have become increasingly apparent.
Everyone deserves to feel safe on the job and offering properly-fitting PPE can directly impact comfort, happiness and wellbeing, while enhancing performance on the job. When it comes to outfitting tradeswomen with PPE, this often comes down to offering the best fit.
NOT ONE-SIZE FITS ALL
PPE serves as the last layer of protection when it is not possible to eliminate workplace hazards. Given its critical role when it comes to jobsite safety, the necessity for properly-fitting safety gear cannot be understated. Unfortunately, many tradeswomen have been underserved in terms of access to properly fitting PPE for decades.
The lack of inclusivity in PPE can be traced back to its development in the 1950’s and 1970’s by the National Institute of Health and Safety, which collected data from military personnel and the general work population of that era. Now decades old, this data no longer reflects the diverse workforce of today’s trade industry, which encompasses more women, body shapes, and sizes.
Initiatives to address these disparities must go beyond offering safety gear in smaller sizes or a pink colorway—these measures ignore the anatomical differences between men and women. Additionally, the lack of accessible PPE can also send a misleading message to tradeswomen that they are either not welcome or that their safety is not valued.
SAFETY FROM THE GROUND UP
When discussing the importance of PPE, safety footwear serves as a key example of why simply scaling down to smaller sizes is insufficient. In the case of footwear, women tend to have smaller feet as well as differently shaped bones and tendons. Because of this, women’s feet differ not only in size, but also in width, shape, and overall bone structure. These differences impact how they move, walk, stand, and distribute weight. Additionally, men’s boots are often heavier to lift with each step which increases the potential for slips, trips, and falls—the leading cause of injury on jobsites.
Footwear not specifically designed for the unique anatomy of women’s feet can result in a variety of consequences beyond an uncomfortable fit. This includes hot spots, blisters, and abrasions as well as unnecessary bulk that can cause workplace injuries. In this case, properly fitting footwear enables women to focus on the job at hand rather than having to worry about her feet.
ADVANCEMENTS IN FOOTWEAR
Many recent innovations in footwear technology highlight the progress being made to offer tradeswomen a more comfortable and safer fit. For example, carbon-fiber safety toes have become popular in the industry—these caps are 15% lighter than steel, removing unnecessary weight without sacrificing safety. Additionally, carbon-fiber toes are also non-metallic, which can be beneficial to workers whose jobs require them to go through a metal detector over the course of the day.
Fit improvements such as a heel locking technology have also provided tradeswomen with footwear that offers a better fit. This technology gives workers a more customized fit by “locking in” their heel to help it prevent slipping out of the shoe, ultimately reducing friction that can cause blisters and excess wear.
Other innovations include footwear with non-marring, high-tensile strength fabrics that resemble athletic-inspired silhouettes, while still offering the protection of a safety shoe with an upper construction that can more easily form to the foot to provide stability. These are just a few examples of the many advancements in women’s safety footwear demonstrating that comfort and safety do not have to be mutually exclusive.
WHY FIT MATTERS
It should be noted that PPE specifically designed for tradeswomen is not any less durable. In the case of safety footwear, more manufacturers are seeking to design PPE for women with the same quality of leather, stitching, and materials. This means the differences between men and women’s offerings has more to do with design and fit rather than construction or materials.
With this in mind, we recommend women seek out PPE brands that design products with the biomechanics of their bodies in mind rather than shrinking down men’s PPE. In the case of footwear, this means designing footwear based on a woman’s last. At my company, we also bring working tradeswomen into the product development process. Our tradeswomen tested program utilizes the feedback of working tradeswomen on the fit and overall performance of our products. These insights are then incorporated into the initial stages of product development all the way to release.
CLOSING THOUGHT
Now is the time for manufacturers and purchasing managers to invest in recruiting women to the skilled trades. This begins with outfitting and creating a safe space for tradeswomen to work, including access to proper fitting PPE. Although there is still a long road ahead, setting a high bar for women’s PPE is a step towards ensuring everyone on the jobsite feels safe and empowered to take on the task at hand.
About the Author:
Kevin Oberle is the senior director of global insights & engagement at KEEN Utility. KEEN Utility, a leading industrial and service footwear brand, successfully exceeds footwear safety standards while combining advanced durability and innovation with the same comfort and unparalleled classic fit offered by KEEN outdoor, lifestyle, and kids’ footwear. KEEN Utility footwear is grounded in protection with the goal to make boots to fit you better. The whole you. For more, visit www.keenutility.com.
Modern Contractor Solutions, June 2023
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