If you were to contemplate careers in the building trade, it would not be surprising if you envision it as labour-intensive, mainly male-operated work, subject to all types of weather. Nonetheless, the traditional view, as Ronan Murphy, apprentice training coach at construction and contracting company John Sisk asserts, is very much out of date. Murphy expresses that the trade has undergone significant transformation, with the physicality of manual labour no longer a dominant feature. He also highlights the increasing presence of women in the field.
Adding on this sentiment, Joanne Cluxton, director of HR at Mercury, a company managing building and engineering ventures, emphasizes the array of potential career trajectories. Cluxton believes that when students consider a construction career, they often misperceive that they’ll be just a labourer on a building site. However, she stresses that the industry is multifaceted with prospects in areas such as digital technology, sustainability, human resources, financial services and law. She emphasizes the range of learning and growth experiences the industry offers.
Agreeing with Joanne Cluxton, John Sweeney from Colleen Construction explains how the construction industry is a vibrant, fast-paced sector, with constant potential for advancement. Sweeney highlights the industry’s diversity and ever-changing nature as a source of constant learning and highlights the myriad opportunities for networking and making strong friendships.
Ronan Murphy further emphasizes that attitudes and attributes are vital in the field. He states that possessing qualities such as teamwork, proactive behaviour, and diligence to see a project to completion are all essential for future apprenticeships.
For students wishing to learn about the available apprenticeships, the websites apprenticeship.ie, Fetchcourses.ie, and Qualifax.ie offer detailed information on further education and university sector courses.
Conducted in 2021, the original report focused on the rapidly changing landscape of the construction industry.