DALLAS (1080 KRLD) - Construction companies are using "Women in Construction Week" to try to attract more workers.
Women in Construction Week runs through Saturday and coincides with International Women's Day on Friday.
In North Texas, companies say the growth of the area is putting demand on them, and they are having trouble finding qualified workers.
"There are a lot of trades are looking outside their usual group of people, and they're finding women are just as willing and capable to do the jobs in construction," says Krystal Atcheson, an assistant superintendent with Skanska Construction in Dallas.
Atcheson says she followed her father into the business. She says the field is still male-dominated, but construction is changing.
"Since I started in the industry, I see more and more women everyday," she says.
Nationwide, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says women account for just 3.4 percent of people who work in construction. A total of 8.3 million people work in construction across the country.
Atcheson says a lot of people left construction during the last recession and never returned. She says companies are competing with each other to find the next generation of workers.
"I think there's a perception of construction being a very blue-collar job," she says. "What they don't realize is these guys are very highly-skilled. They've spent many years in school."