Women are playing a key role in the construction of the $438 million Shoalhaven Hospital Redevelopment, representing around 13% of the project’s workforce.
The project is currently exceeding NSW Government targets aimed at increasing the number of women in the construction industry, said Minister for Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education, Steve Whan.
“The Minns Labor Government is committed to providing opportunities for women to build careers in construction by gaining valuable skills and experience on large-scale infrastructure projects like the $438 million Shoalhaven Hospital Redevelopment,” said Mr Whan.
“We have a long way to go to get more women working on building sites, but the Women in Construction focused Infrastructure Skills Legacy Program is making an impact. It supports women in construction across the state to develop careers while also driving cultural change within the industry to create a more skilled, inclusive and diverse workforce.
“Increasing women’s participation in construction is not only the right thing to do for diversity in construction – it’s an economic necessity that helps address the ongoing shortage of skilled construction workers,” he said.
The Shoalhaven Hospital Redevelopment is participating in the Women in Construction (WiC) focused Infrastructure Skills Legacy Program (ISLP) which is trialling increased targets for women in construction to boost skills, capability, and capacity in the construction industry and increase diversity on building sites.
The $438 million hospital redevelopment, being delivered by main works contractor John Holland, is one of eight Health Infrastructure NSW projects with a dedicated WiC ISLP officer embedded on site to support the employment, upskilling, and retention of women in the construction sector.
To date, women in trades and construction roles represent 10% of the Shoalhaven Hospital Redevelopment’s workforce, exceeding the NSW Governments trial target of 4% of women working in trade-based roles.
“I really enjoy working alongside experienced colleagues who have perfected their craft over many years. The wide variety of roles on site is also great,” said apprentice carpenter, Libby Walters.
“I’d encourage anyone to get out there and get experience! There are so many different parts of the industry – you need to work out the type of work you want to do by trying lots of different things. Use your contacts to seek out opportunities,” she said.
“Working in construction has given me the confidence to keep growing. The dynamic nature of construction provides endless challenges everyday but also encourages continuous learning throughout your career and is incredibly rewarding,” said Senior Project Engineer, Lucia Lu.
Women working on the Shoalhaven Hospital Redevelopment are contributing across a wide range of roles including Project Director, electrician, carpenter, safety coordinator, architects and engineers.
“It’s wonderful to see the significant number of women working on this incredibly important project for the Shoalhaven, which will become a health hub for the region and reduce the need for patients to travel to Wollongong or Sydney,” said Health Minister, Ryan Park.
“The Minns Labor Government is a strong advocate for ensuring women thrive in the construction industry and we’re dedicated to driving cultural change, inclusion, and diversity across the state.”
The $438 million Shoalhaven Hospital Redevelopment will become the health hub for the region, providing most emergency, critical care, acute, sub-acute, and non-admitted services locally, reducing the need to transfer patients to Wollongong and Sydney.
Construction of the new Acute Services Building is expected to be completed in 2026.
Health Infrastructure is delivering the project in partnership with Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District. The project is supported by John Holland as the main works contractor and Program Manager, Johnstaff.
