A survey by OnePoll – commissioned by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) – found that 46% of construction workers thought the gender pay gap would be less than 15% by April 2018. 

Last year, the national average pay gap was recorded at 18.1%. 

The survey suggested that the construction industry could lead the way in closing the pay gap. 

More than one in 10 respondents (12%) predicted that there would be no pay gap at all by April 2018, which marks the end of the UK government’s mandatory gender pay reporting period.

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London’s construction workers fared worse as they predicted that there would be an average pay gap of 21%.  

Overall, 42% believed companies needed to invest more money in training their existing female employees. 

Two-fifths (40%) thought that companies needed to invest more in encouraging young girls to pursue a career in construction, which would lead to a rise of the number of women in the industry. 

“Although it’s great to see the sector expects the gender pay gap to be lower than the national average, today’s findings highlight that achieving gender equality in the construction sector requires significant commitment from organisations,” said Sean Tompkins, RICS chief executive officer.

“Encouragingly, there is a collective agreement from over a third of both men and women across the industry that companies are not doing enough to attract females into the sector.

“People often tackle diversity from the perspective that it is an issue to be addressed. 

“RICS believes it should be approached from the other way round: diversity and an inclusive culture where you feel entirely comfortable being yourself in the workplace.

“This must be embedded as part of your business strategy and DNA because you simply cannot afford to not have a diverse workforce today and for the future.

“Increasingly, clients will expect it and to win the war for talent, you will need a diversity of visible role models."