Construction company targets gender diversity

A fourth-generation construction company in York encourages women to join its ranks, offering them positions in a male-dominated field.

Wagman Inc. has about 500 employees, more than 40 of whom are women.

And they are actively recruiting more to fill a number of vacant positions.

Lisa Wagman Glezer, president, who represents the fourth generation of Wagman Inc., said, “We are looking for more women to join our team.”

She invited all the female employees to tour three sites earlier this month to build camaraderie and showcase what the company is working on.

“We have offices in Pennsylvania and Virginia,” Wagman Glezer said. “This tour is to connect all our females within the company so they can get to know and support each other.”

The tour, which covered Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia sites, allowed the women to not only see current projects, but gave them a chance to bond.

“We heard a lot of neat stories on the tour,” Wagman Glezer said. “There is a lot of growth from where some of these women started to where they are now.”

Zabrina Bixler who works as an office administrator, started with the company when she was 21 as a bulldozer and off-road truck operator.

“A lot of guys didn’t expect us in the industry,” she said. “They were hesitant at first, but I proved them wrong and proved I was a top end operator. They wanted to work with me.”

Bixler said she learned a lot about the job from watching. “What looked like a challenge, really wasn’t because the guys helped me learn.”

Bixler said women make great heavy equipment operators because they pay attention to details and what is around them.

As part of the tour, Bixler was able to visit the site of The Lodge, a four-story independent living apartment building in Frederick, Maryland, which she worked on in its early stages several years ago.

Wagman is currently working on an expansion of the original project, adding 73,000 square feet to the existing facility.

“It was really cool to get to see a project I worked on,” she said.

Now, with her experience in the field and connections she made on the job, she is able to help others on site achieve success by providing them with what they need. The road to female leadership

George Wagman started the company in 1902 producing concrete sidewalk slabs and ornamental products.

Wagman’s brother Fred became his partner in 1909, and G.A. & F.M. Wagman was formed. After Fred’s death, George’s son Francis Wagman, became a partner, the company said.

Following George’s death in 1952, Francis took the reins and started building bridges, interchanges and overpasses.

Francis’ son Rich Wagman joined the company, marking the third generation.

Wagman expanded operations into the Lancaster market when it acquired Consolidated Construction, after which Wagman Construction Inc. was formed with Joe Wagman as president, the company said.

In 2001, Wagman Glezer, and her husband Mike Glezer, joined as part of the fourth generation at Wagman.

Wagman then acquired a geotechnical construction services company in Virginia along with Key Construction Company, Inc. and its subsidiaries, D.W. Lyle Corporation and Key Constructors, Inc.

G.A. & F.C. Wagman, Inc. became Wagman Heavy Civil, Inc. in 2015 and today, Wagman, Inc. serves as the management and holding company of Wagman Heavy Civil, Inc. and Wagman Construction, Inc.

Wagman Glezer said she is not only proud of being the first female president but is proud of the progress the company has made in attracting women to the field.

“When my dad and uncle ran the business, women were mostly secretaries. Now they are in leadership roles and succeeding,” she said. “What could be a better way to support each other.”