OPINION PIECE BY MARIANA DINIS

A few weeks ago, I was having coffee with an old acquaintance with whom I had lost touch. In between the usual conversations about our personal lives and the paths we’d both taken, we talked about our professional lives. At one point she asked me: “What’s it like being a woman on a construction site? It must be really hard, huh?” I found myself thinking about the stereotypes and associations that exist between being a woman and working on construction sites. But the answer that followed was, “It’s as easy as being a man!

I was fortunate enough to graduate from the Faculty of Civil Engineering at the University of Porto, where the number of women enrolled is practically equal to that of men, and I never felt any significant difference. I have developed my professional skills mainly at MAP Engenharia, first as a budget engineer, then as a site manager and currently in the purchasing department.

As a site manager, I’ve never been worried about my gender. It’s more about my age and experience, which are a little lower than the average for other professionals in the same positions. In the production environment, there are so many challenges: stress management; meeting deadlines and budgets; difficulties in hiring specialised labour; and managing people from different backgrounds. It was a learning experience and a challenge that I was really happy to overcome. Under no circumstances did I feel that my position was more or less questioned because I was a woman. I didn’t because, looking back, I never felt that I was superior or inferior to a male colleague. In my mind this question has never arisen, because I have always been judged on my competences, but if it did, I would even say that women have a brilliant way of managing problems with an emotional intelligence and sensitivity that is innate to them.

I do recognise that construction is still a predominantly male field, even though there are companies like MAP where the proportion of women is 26%, which is great to see! In a country where the average, according to INE data on construction in Portugal, is 7.2%, it’s a fantastic achievement. But if you were to ask me about the biggest challenge for women in engineering, I would say that it’s not accessing this market, which we already enter with unquestionable competence, but ensuring that women reach leadership positions. The thing that hurts women the most is when they try to have a family and a career at the same time. It’s so hard to find that balance!

I truly believe that the answer isn’t for women to be less dedicated to their families. It’s for men to be just as dedicated, for family responsibilities to be shared equally, so that both can flourish in their careers without neglecting their families. I truly believe that the solution is not to demand more from women so that they can succeed in both fields. It’s so important to make the men who accompany them aware that they need to give them time and space so that they can go as far as their ambition allows.

I’ve always felt that I’ve had the same opportunities as anyone else, and I’ve never once asked myself “Is it because I’m a woman?”

Read the article in Forever Young