Attracting More Women to the Trades

Women Building Futures is fully committed to training women for lucrative careers in the construction industryBy Lisa Kopochinski

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in a continuing effort to attract women to the con-struction trades as a lifelong career, Women Build-ing Futures (WBF) remains extremely successful in its training and job placement services. Since open-

ing its doors 15 years ago, approximately 800 women – from 24 to 44 years old – have graduated from one or more of WBF’s programs that include welding, plumb-ing, carpentry, boilermaking, millwrights, electrician, pipefitting, heavy equipment operating and more.

“Our real purpose is to help women achieve economic prosperity, through trades training and employment,” said JudyLynn Archer, president and CEO of the Edmonton, Alta.-based organization. “Research indicates that women who graduate from our programs triple their income within two years. At the heart of it, we believe that if we’re going to work, we might as well earn a great living and really enjoy what we’re doing.”

HistoryWomen Building Futures is a non-profit, charitable orga-nization formed in 1998 by a group of women – primarily social workers – that grew out of a borrowed space from the City of Edmonton. As the years progressed, it became more successful due to small grants that enabled it to grow as an organization, hire an executive director and secure a per-manent location – an old warehouse – in 2005, which has since been retrofitted. The building is called the WBF Suncor Energy Training Centre and has one floor of training work-shops, one floor of classrooms and three floors of housing.

“Experience to this point had proven that many women cannot afford to pay market rent and go to school at the same time, especially single mothers,” said Archer. “By adding affordable housing, WBF became much more accessible to those the founders originally set out to help.”

FEATURE

“Our real purpose is to help women achieve economic prosperity, through trades training and employment.”– JudyLynn Archer, President and CEO,

Women Building Futures

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With 42 units of housing available for students – 18 which are for women with children – WBF works with out-of-town students to place them in housing or to help them find suitable accommoda-tions offsite.

At the present time, a high school diploma or GED is not necessary for admission, although pro-spective students must pass basic math and reading comprehension exams. WBF offers a Math Boot Camp to help women pass their math exam, prior to their application to the programs. Once accepted, WBF offers numerous programs of varying lengths.

“Our 17-week Journeywoman Start program is one of the most popular,” said Archer. “It is our flag-ship program. The beauty of this program is that it introduces students to a wide variety of trades to help each woman decide for herself which one really interests her. Our other most popular pro-gram is our heavy equipment operating (HEO) program – hugely attractive to women as there are many jobs in this industry.”

Also 17 weeks in duration, the HEO program provides students with theory, safety certifica-tion and seat-time training on five pieces of heavy equipment.

“Empowering more women to succeed in non-traditional careers makes sense for Canadian women and Canada’s economy. The Government of Canada is committed to making sure Canada’s labour markets meet the demands of a modern economy.”

– Rona Ambrose, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women

FEATURE

The future for gradsMost programs offered at WBF are 17 weeks in duration. Following

graduation and the offer of a construction position (WBF boasts a 90

per cent graduation placement record), apprenticeship generally takes

three to four years and includes on-the-job training under the direct

supervision of a qualified journeyman, as well as the completion of

a certain number of weeks per year of in-school technical training.

“Once you have your journeyman ticket, many employment options

open up,” said WBF President and CEO, JudyLynn Archer. “You

can continue working within your trade, pick up a complimentary

trade, move up as a supervisor or foreman or move into safety

inspection, training or management positions. There is also

the option of starting your own business. Apprenticeship in the

trades is just the beginning of a very flexible career path.”

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Mandate and visionWBF’s straightforward mandate is five-fold:• Attract more women into the construction trades• Provide trades training that meets the needs of women

and the industry• Provide mentorship and long-term support for women

entering the trades• Examine and address systemic barriers to the recruit-

ment, training and retention of women entering the trades

• Increase the number of tradeswomen instructors and mentorsThe organization also remains highly focused on its vision

of “empowering women to succeed in non-traditional careers, inspiring positive economic change for women and forever transforming the face of industry in Canada.”

A significant part of the program is preparing students to enter construction’s predominantly male workforce. Archer says that for many women, this will help them understand what it is like on the worksite and the steps they can take to become successful in this kind of environment.

“For many women, the construction sector is very differ-ent from places they’ve worked in the past,” she added.

This is definitely the case for one such graduate, a woman named Sheila, who came to Canada from the Philippines in 2008 to work as a nanny in Fort McMurray. The family she worked for was so impressed with her work ethic that they recommended and supported her in WBF’s HEO program. A quiet and focused student, Sheila was intent on learning every detail and skill offered. Her skills in operating equip-ment developed so quickly that she earned the praise of her instructors.

After graduation, Sheila returned to Fort McMurray and began her career as a heavy equipment operator with BFI Constructors. She started on the dewatering crew and within two weeks completed the necessary skills to acquire the mine drive form, allowing her to drive the duty vehicle on site when needed. In addition, her foreman praised her work ethic and

affirmed to all concerned that she was the type of motivated and enthusiastic worker the company needed. Sheila went from earning minimum wage as a nanny to $30 per hour as a heavy equipment operator.

More workers wantedFrom 2011 to 2019, it has been estimated that more than 300,000 construction workers will be needed across the country. Retiring baby boomers and global competition for workers means greater career opportunities.

According to Office of the Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women, nearly half of the Canadian workforce is comprised of women. Yet women remain under-represented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. In 2009, women represented just 22.3 per cent of Canadians with occupations in engineer-ing, mathematics and natural sciences. And in 2012, women represented only 4 per cent of those working in construction trades.

“Empowering more women to succeed in non-traditional careers makes sense for Canadian women and Canada’s economy,” said Rona Ambrose, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women, in Edmonton in March. “The Government of Canada is com-mitted to making sure Canada’s labour markets meet the demands of a modern economy.”

To this end, Economic Action Plan 2013 was formed with measures to better connect Canadians with job opportuni-ties and increase representation of women in all occupations, including skilled trades and other non-traditional jobs – many of which are experiencing skills shortage.

To help prepare women for the construction industry, WBF is also doing its part to attract women to its programs.

“We know from experience that the better prepared we are to be successful in our work, the higher the chance that we will succeed, in any type of work,” said Archer. “The con-struction industry presents an additional challenge in that it is a predominantly male work environment, so in addition to

Last year (2012) marked the completion of the WBF 2010-2012 Strategic Plan. Impressive milestones over the three-year period include the following:

• More than 8,000 women were contacted in WBF’s recruitment campaign

• More than 3,900 women participated in the WBF Career Decision Making Workshop, of which more than 1,400 were Aboriginal women

• 279 students graduated (96 per cent graduation rate)

• More than 170 employers employed WBF graduates

The number of new employers hiring WBF graduates has steadily increased. For instance, in 2012, there was a 28 per cent increase in the total number of employers hiring graduates.

Imperial Oil Limited was the first company in 2012 to tap into WBF’s new recruitment service by contracting WBF to recruit, assess and train 16 women as heavy haul truck operators. Five companies have committed considerable resources to make this training opportunity happen – Imperial Oil Limited, Emeco, Finning Canada, Mammoet Canada Western Ltd. and Lehigh Hanson. Lafarge Canada Inc. also renewed their partnership with WBF to recruit and train more ready-mix drivers. Nine women completed the program in 2012, with six of them hired and retained by Lafarge.

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having the skill and competencies to do the job, there is also a different workplace culture to understand. The more women understand the success factors, the better their chance of success. We love the construction industry and believe it to be a great place for women, and the more we can do to make sure we are successful, the better it is for everyone involved.”

All women welcomeWBF attracts women from all walks of life and ages – from the 22-year-old who wants to begin a crane operating apprenticeship program, to the 44-year-old career

changer. The organization also runs its Opportunities for Women in Construction awareness campaign annually, which attracts many women.

Open to all women across the country, many students receive 100 per cent funding into the programs, while others are partially subsidized through WBF corporate award programs. Those students from outside Alberta need to pay the full cost out of pocket.

With a job placement rate consistently at 90 per cent or greater, Archer said, “Our pre-trades graduates typically begin an apprenticeship directly following program completion. Individuals who have completed a WBF program have taken the time to make a well-informed decision

about entering the industry and know exactly what they want to do. They have the work ethic, skills, competencies and safety certification that employers are looking for and are 100 per cent

ready and eager to learn their trade. We also encourage employers to send their new female hires to WBF for the Workplace Culture Preparedness program.”Past graduates have been hired as heavy equipment operators by Suncor and Imperial Oil Limited,

while some pipefitter graduates are working for Ledcor. Apprentice crane operators have been hired by Mammoet and others are working with businesses in and around Edmonton. In all, there are more than 170

companies that have hired WBF graduates.“Construction is one of the most exciting, exhilarating, challenging and well-paying industries

out there,” said Archer. “And now is the time for women to get involved because of the aging trades workforce and the sheer volume of work on the books. Canada needs people to

build, operate and maintain projects. The time is now for women to get involved.”

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