There’s a historic labor shortage, especially in the construction industry. But sexism seems to be stronger than economics.

More than four in 10 women and non-binary tradespeople who work in construction-related jobs have said they left or “seriously” considered leaving the industry’s trades — and nearly half said it’s because of harassment and lack of respect.

That’s according to new report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) and it’s bad news for an industry badly in need of more workers: It needs an estimated 61,000 new hires a month over the next three years to meet housing demand.

The current shortage should be creating a prime opportunity for job-seeking women to find construction employment, Demond Ware, director of construction for PeopleReady Skilled Trades, told Insider. But the aforementioned social issues stand in the way.

If these problems in construction trades were addressed, these jobs could be an important aspect of solving the “she-cession” that’s characterized the pandemic. These jobs paid a median annual wage of $48,610 in 2020 — slightly higher than the median among all occupations of $41,950 — and don’t typically require a college degree.

Kelly Kupcak, Oregon Tradeswomen’s executive director, pointed out that women are more likely to be in poverty, citing 2019 data from the National Women’s Law Center. “If we don’t provide not only career opportunities for women to work in high-wage jobs – many of which are blue collar — but necessary supports,” she told Insider, “we will continue to see women segregated into ‘pink collar’ jobs that perpetuate a cycle of marginalization and economic insecurity.” 

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