Women in the refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pumps industry

Over 15 million people are employed worldwide in the refrigeration sector, which means that almost 5 workers out of 1000 have a job linked to the manufacturing, installation, maintenance and servicing of refrigeration equipment. The need for engineering and technical staff is currently increasing due to the growing demand for refrigerating capabilities, along with the unique skills required from refrigeration-related professions in the field of energy and environment. Women are significantly and visibly under-represented in the refrigeration industry. The preliminary evaluation demonstrated that 6.13% of women are members of national refrigeration associations/organizations/institutions. This paper is an update of the IIR preliminary state-of-the-art of women in the refrigeration field collected from national RACHP institutions and associations. It focuses also on new national, regional and international incentives to promote refrigeration to the younger generation including minority groups such women/girls.