Local woman sets to redefine women in the construction industry

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – As our community continues to grow, we see more construction work happening throughout the Brazos Valley.

However, a big concern in the construction industry is the number of people who are aging out and who will replace them. Most are men, but there’s an effort to make construction work a more diverse field and a College Station woman is doing just that.

“People set limits on women. I do not. I understand that I can only allow to limit myself if I want to, and I’m not doing that,” Evelyn Lemaire, CSB Construction CEO, said.

Evelyn Lemaire was forced to grow up fast. She is the third of eight siblings who lived in a 600-square-foot home with no shower or bathroom. To help keep her family afloat, she started working at 9 years old to help pay the bills.

“Honestly, I always knew that there was more to life than I was living. There was no way, that was going to be my life,” Lemaire said.

She knew she needed to lock in and act fast, so the single mother of three started her own construction company to give her children the life she never had.

“If you want something, you really have to go after it. Fear is a liar like you just have to go like the life you ever dreamed of would be just taking a step forward and not look back,” Lemaire says.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, just around 11 percent of U.S. construction workers are women and when it comes to recruiting them, Lemaire believes stereotypes can get in the way.

“We cannot let men make us feel inferior because a lot of women are doing more than a lot of men now,” asserted Lemaire.

However, when it comes to recruiting younger workers, Michael Bellaman, the President of Associated Builders & Contractors, believes they’re dealing with a perception issue.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 20% of construction workers are 55 or older.

“When I was younger in high school and stuff, getting a construction job, that was a good job and I think that that’s part of that paradigm shift. I think maybe it’s parents that don’t see their kids — they see them going to college, gotta go to college. So we’ve got to work on that and help people understand what kind of dreams they can achieve in our industry,” said Bellaman.

Zip Recruiter, in its ’2024 Market Labor Outlook’ for construction, made a similar assumption. Noting that “younger generations are pursuing college degrees and opting for less physically demanding roles.”

Even though it was tough, Lemaire knew what had to be done for her and her kids’ sake. Now, CSB Construction has completed around 400 projects.

“I’m literally taking all of these experiences that I’ve been through to set me in the right direction. And I think that’s what I’m doing, and it’s working out,” Lemaire expressed.

Lemaire’s current project is at the Mays Business School on Texas A&M’s campus.

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