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A pilot program offering supported pathways for women in construction navigating parental leave and an innovative project to provide hygiene facilities for women onsite have earned NAWIC’s 2026 Bright Ideas Grants.
Samantha Grant from New South Wales was awarded the $30,000 Bright Ideas Individual Grant for her Crib Shift: Building a Better Way Back pilot program designed to address the urgent need for structured, supported pathways for women in construction navigating parental leave and returning to work.
Crib Shift is a research-informed, industry-specific, and community-powered program responding to a gap identified in NAWIC’s Boosting Retention of Women in Construction parental leave research project, which highlighted the absence of cohesive, consistent frameworks to retain and support women during this transformative life and career stage.
Samantha says the program is also inspired by her lived experience and at its core, Crib Shift is primary prevention, creating the conditions where women can thrive in the construction workforce through supported leave transitions, employer capability uplift, and peer-driven community care.
“When women exit quietly after becoming mothers, it signals to others ‘you can’t be both successful in your career and a mum here’. This is not about 'fixing women’, it’s about building infrastructure around a natural life transition and helping workplaces evolve in tandem,” Samantha said.
“The Australian construction industry is at a tipping point. We are navigating a historic workforce shortage and an urgent need to grow and diversify the pipeline of talent. Yet, we are failing to retain one of the most capable, skilled and untapped segments of our workforce - mothers.
"Crib Shift is beyond a wellbeing initiative, it’s a primary prevention workforce solution. This program doesn’t exist anywhere else. It’s informed by lived experience, guided by research, and grounded in reality.”
The program will include:
- Mothers on Leave Stream: accessible peer circles and reflective tools support women to stay connected to their identity, ambitions and industry during leave, without pressure to perform or plan.
- Returning Mothers Stream: For women in their first two years back at work, this stream offers facilitated sessions and access to shared stories, frameworks, strategies and community; supporting a sustainable, confident return.
- Employer Stream: This stream offers targeted, practical tools to build confidence among employers and managers.
- Dedicated resources for dads and partners: Recognising that women are best supported through this transition when there is a broader ecosystem around them that understands and shares the load.
The $20,000 Bright Ideas Business Grant has been awarded to The GO Company in Tasmania for their Hygiene for Her Project. The funding will be used to develop, produce, and distribute GO Sanitary Site Bundles, ensuring smaller and regional construction businesses have access to practical, affordable hygiene facilities for women on site.
Co-founded by electricians Jasmyn Smith and Logan Barnett , The GO Company is dedicated to supporting women in underserved industries by providing essential sanitary solutions.
Jasmyn says many smaller construction businesses and remote sites do not have access to basic hygiene amenities. This leaves women without suitable facilities, impacting their comfort, health, and sense of belonging in the workplace.
“Women are often forced to leave site to find a usable toilet or change their underwear after unexpectedly getting their period,” she said.
“There are very few practical or consistent solutions addressing the hygiene and wellbeing needs of women in construction.”
Logan says the aim is to offer workplace solutions that make hygiene accessibility simple, affordable, and standard across all industries.
“As qualified female electricians with years of experience on site, we’ve lived through the lack of access to proper facilities, the discomfort of managing hygiene needs in unsuitable conditions, and the feeling of being overlooked in a male-dominated environment,” she said.
“We’ve turned that experience into action.”
By delivering ready to install hygiene stations, the Hygiene for Her Project aims to:
- Eliminate reliance on basic or unsuitable portable toilets and ensure consistent access across sites of all sizes.
- Enable women to manage their hygiene needs safely and privately without needing to leave work which will reduce downtime, improve productivity, and demonstrate that the business values its female workers.
- Encourage healthier, more sustainable work environment, supporting women’s long-term health, helping them maintain their careers without compromising wellbeing or family planning goals.
NAWIC CEO Cathryn Greville said the Bright Ideas Grants provide an important opportunity to support innovative projects for women in construction that focus on retention, career progression, leadership pathways, and cultural change.
“I congratulate both of this year’s Bright Ideas Grants recipients for their innovative projects to support women in construction and I look forward to seeing the positive outcomes of their efforts.
“Driving gender equity through culture change is at the heart of our organisational strategy and it’s inspiring to be able to support projects like these that help to create fair, inclusive and respectful workplaces where everyone can thrive.
“It was pleasing to attract a total of 36 applications across both categories this year. My thanks go to our judges who noted that the overall high quality of the applications made the assessment process quite difficult.”