Feminine presence changes the scenario at construction work sites

Women gain room as professional construction workers through a program for training and qualification of manpower which began at a hillside ‘favela’ community in Rio de Janeiro

Cleide Sales

An innovative project is changing the lives of hundreds of women in Brazil. Project “Mão na Massa” (which, loosely translated, means both ‘getting our hands dirty’ and ‘getting down to business’) was created in 2007 with the objective of qualifying and placing women who were socially and economically vulnerable to work in construction. The project came about as a result of a proposal to conduct a diagnostic study of social conditions among women in the Morro do Jacarezinho hillside community of Rio de Janeiro envisioned by civil engineer Deise Gravina. Assuming that a female labor force could contribute substantially and bring major benefits to construction work sites, female residents of the community were asked the following question: If you had the opportunity to choose, would you train for a position in the construction industry? Over 70% of the 216 women who responded said ‘yes’. And not only did the seek qualification, but they were already used to doing a few ‘jobs’ in their own homes.

Based on this surprising outcome, a program was defined to qualify women aged 18 to 45, with levels of education from 5th grade elementary and up, by offering courses for the qualification and professionalization of lady painters, electricians, bricklayers and masons, plumbers, etc. The qualification course is free of charge and takes 6 months to complete.

Besides qualifying these women to work as professionals, the project refers its graduates to job openings, thereby promoting the feeling of citizenship and improvements in their quality of life; facilitating the education of their children and helping them to provide for their families. The “Mão na Massa” project also helps to offset and reduce the critical problem of a shortage of qualified professionals in Brazil’s civil construction industry. According to a survey conducted by the ‘Confederação Nacional da Indústria’ (CNI - National Confederation of Industry), approximately 69% of the sector’s companies face this problem. In 2011, some forty thousand positions were opened in civil construction in the state of São Paulo alone and, in the first quarter of this year, the number of job offers had already reached 20 thousand.

According to psychologist Norma Silva Sá, a specialist in Social Project Management who works in the coordination of the project, some 80% of the women enrolled for the course used to work as maids and had very low incomes and scant resources. “We refer our students to companies where they start off as ‘meio-oficiais’, with an initial monthly salary of R$ 1.030,00 (US$ 557.00). By providing assurance of a profession, Project “Mão na Massa” has become a temptation for these women,” she states.

The project has the support of several organizations such as the Norberto Odebrecht and Andrade Gutierrez construction companies, and Petrobras. Besides these companies, there is the added support of associations, unions of construction industries, technical schools and universities.

Norma reveals that companies that hired participants who had recently graduated stated they were very happy with the result. “The companies underscore that women are more organized, cleaner, more careful, do not waste construction materials, and mainly, have a high regard for norms regarding the use of equipment and safety,” she tells us.

And she adds: “We know of no construction company that has ever hired women once and never done it again. On the contrary, they always ask for more female workers.”

The program has already graduated 410 workers, formwork carpenters and electricians, and around 60% are already working in their areas. “Our aim is to qualify 600 women for work in the civil construction sector by 2013,” says Norma.

During their courses students receive training in work safety, participate in occupational exercise sessions, and learn to safely distribute the weight they have to lift and carry during their work activities. And, furthermore, they participate in classes of Portuguese, mathematics, grammar and women’s health.

In order to gain hands-on experience in construction work, the students also participate in the practical activities stage of the project with the guidance of professionals from the industry including civil engineers, building and work safety technicians, and senior construction foremen. They also visit sector trade shows, attend talks, participate in workshops and go to universities.

The practical classes in construction are given at organizations that provide social assistance or at community centers whose purpose is to provide assistance free of charge to the needy population. The organization has the benefit of the work, which is performed at no charge, and only has to purchase the materials to be used in refurbishing their facility. “The project is changing the lives of these women completely,” Denise Gravina emphasizes.

The growth of the project - with over 400 women graduating in Rio de Janeiro alone - is such that its expansion to Brazilian states is already being considered. According to the project’s creator, courses should begin in the states of Bahia, Rio Grande do Sul, Espírito Santo and Minas Gerais, besides other cities in the state of Rio de Janeiro, before the end of 2012.

Over the next few months, another 60 admissions will be opened, totaling nearly 500 women with professional qualification to work in Brazil’s construction projects.

Professionals with a different profile 
Every year, more and more women break the paradigm that a construction work site is a place fit only for the he-man. According to figures from the ‘Relação Anual de Informações Sociais’ (Annual Report on Social Information) issued by the Brazilian Ministry of Labor and Employment, the number of women who work in civil construction grew 65% in the previous decade. Over the past 18 months, their numbers have risen almost 10%, totaling 239 thousand female workers until July 2012. This trend is reflected in the interest women have demonstrated in courses that provide qualification to work in the area. Factors such as starting salaries of R$ 2,000.00 (US$ 1,080.00) and a signed workbook ensuring employee benefits are definitely attractions when it comes time to decide.

But succeeding in getting a good job is not the only reason women are betting on construction. Being ambitious, many women want to move beyond employment and open their own businesses to achieve financial independence. Women with a college degree are also betting on the segment of construction. It is estimated that, today, women occupy 35% of the vacancies in institutes of technical and higher education.

To entrepreneur Miguel Pierre, a partner at ‘Concretta Escola da Construção’ - a franchiser specialized in courses for the area of civil construction, women have stood out for their interest in operating in the market, displaying a profile that differs from that of men. “Women are more careful, concerned about details and specialists in fighting wastefulness. When they apply these characteristics to the construction site, the result is efficient service with a greater degree of perfection.”