According to a recent report by the World Economic Forum, it will take 134 years to reach full gender parity in 2158. The gender gap now sits at 68.5%, having slowed down in recent years, but it has only closed 0.1% since 2023. Although the gap is closing, this is an alarmingly slow rate and one we hope speeds back up again.
The engineering sector is particularly male-dominated. A 2021 study from INWED shows that women are hugely underrepresented in the sector, with only 16.5% of the sector being women. Although this number has grown, it shows how few women work in engineering. There are several reasons for this, including stereotyping in the industry, with the sector being associated with ‘masculine work’; however, this is not the case, and many talented women work and thrive in this industry.
At D&M, 27% of our workforce comprises women. We work hard to promote an equal workforce and want to encourage women to apply for roles within the business. The women on our team perform various roles, including management roles, design engineering, accounts, sales, production management, health & safety, welding, powder coating, and CNC machine operators.
We work hard to create an encouraging and supportive environment at D&M that harbours growth and encourages success within our team, both for female and male colleagues.
To celebrate International Women in Engineering Day, we wanted to introduce you to the women who work at D&M and who are helping to lead the way and break the moulds within engineering.
Kate
Kate is our General Manager. She has worked with us for over four years and has a role that incorporates production management, quality management, and HR. Before joining D&M, Kate worked for several large companies, managing HR systems and data analytics. With aspirations to eventually join the family farming business, Kate came to work at D&M part-time, initially starting out only two days a week with three days a week at the farm. After taking on more responsibility, Kate started working for us four days a week and really enjoys the work she does.
When not at D&M, Kate can be found enjoying the outdoors, particularly hiking. She is currently working through the Wainwright Fells and has ticked off 150 out of the 214. She also loves Gin and visiting distilleries; her current collection stands at 100 bottles.
Lorridana
Lorridana is our Sales Team Manager and has worked with D&M since 2021. Having worked at her previous job for 19 years, Lorri came to D&M looking for an exciting challenge in a new industry where she would be able to add value to her role whilst learning about the business and industry.
When Lorri is not at D&M she can be found spending time with family and friends. She is involved in Autograss, which is a sport she has grown up with, allowing them to travel the country. She also loves dressmaking and crafts.
Michelle
Michelle is part of our production team here at D&M. She has worked with us since 2016 and has had several different roles within the company. She originally started as a press brake operator, then became a sales estimator, before finally joining our production team.
In her free time, Michelle can be found racing her Hyabusa Mini Pickup Autograss car, spending time with her friends racing, shopping, eating out, or walking her black Labrador Donny, one of the D&M dogs.
Grace
Grace is another part of the production team here at D&M, originally starting out as a sales estimator. She has worked here for four and a half years, including a year on maternity leave as Grace is the mother of the first D&M baby.
When Grace isn’t working, she can be found looking after her son and going to the pub with her friends; luckily, her son is a very social baby and enjoys his attention when he is out.
Zeyra
Zeyra is a Junior Design Engineer here at D&M. She came looking for a new job to learn skills in an unfamiliar area, originally joining us as part of our purchasing team. She has now made a move to our drawing office and has been working with us for 4 years.
In her spare time, Zeyra can be found either playing PC games or hanging out with her cats. She also enjoys snowboarding and going on snowboarding holidays.
Claire
Claire is our finance manager and has worked with us for nearly 14 years. She came to D&M part-time, initially only working a couple of afternoons a week, but quickly became a full-time member of the team.
When Claire isn’t at D&M, she enjoys being outdoors, walking her dog, riding her horses, or baking cakes.
Janette
Janette is our Digital Marketing Manager and has worked here for over two years. She moved to D&M for a new and exciting opportunity in a different industry.
In her free time, she likes to hang out with her two cats and two dogs and spend time with her family and friends.
Tanya
Tanya is our trainee welder, working at D&M for over two years. Tanya came to D&M after being made redundant from her office job; she decided that a career change to become a trainee welder was the right path for her and has been enjoying it ever since.
In her free time, Tanya likes to cuddle her sausage dog and loves to draw animals. She also enjoys family games night, playing the piano, and wild swimming in the summer.
Claire
Claire is our Accounts and Admin Assistant. She has been with us for nearly a year, having previously worked as a support worker in the care industry for the past seven years. Claire came here looking for a change—she liked the look of D&M and the D&M dogs, Doug and Donny.
Claire spends her free time with her eleven-year-old daughter and eight-year-old son. When she gets a chance, she loves to read and tend to her allotments and hens, which keep her busy.
Happy International Women’s Day to our amazing team!!