One of the biggest challenges facing today’s construction industry is the declining number of trained and skilled tradespeople available to do the work. With Boomers aging out and more tradespeople retiring, there is an ongoing reduction in not only available bodies but also a loss of valuable knowledge vital to training the next generation to take careers in the trades.
There are efforts being made by organizations like the United Brotherhood of Carpenters (UBC) to recruit more women into the trades. According to Amy Charette, Project Manger of the Sisters in the Skilled Trades Apprentice Support Program with the Canadian division of the UBC, there are a variety of programs that are helping to increase the flow of women into the skilled trades.
“We are now working on a number of women’s initiatives, trying to help women get in and stay in the trades,” said Charette, who spent close to three decades as a skilled welder. “There is the recruitment piece and the retention piece. For example, we did a Women’s Employment Readiness project last year that saw 123 women in six provinces enter the trades through pre-apprentice programs with UBC. Sisters in the Skilled Trades Apprentice Support Program is the retention piece. This is to basically remove barriers to women advancing in their apprenticeship.”
The importance of efforts to attract more women into the trades has never been greater, given the skilled trades shortage in Ontario and across the country. Charette said the exodus of older tradespeople is being felt across all sectors.
“It’s called the Grey Wave. It’s getting scary out there in so far as the gap being left behind. When I started my welding career nearly 30 years ago the national average for women in the trades was five percent. We’re now 29 years later and the national average is still five percent. It’s not that we’re having trouble putting women into the trades, it’s that we’re not keeping them.”
Through the efforts of the UBC and the Sisters in the Skilled Trades Apprentice Support Program, women in midst of their apprenticeship are receiving the support they need to be better prepared for employment and gain the necessary skills to be successful in the industry. Outcomes of the program include increased progression of women in an apprenticeship program, better awareness with employers of the barriers women face in the industry, and improved worksite culture thanks to training for both women and men.
“We’re removing one of the main common barriers to attending apprenticeship training which is the financial barrier. If you’re a single mom, how do you pay childcare while on EI for two months?” Charette continues to explain how women take an average of six years to complete a 4-year program due to such barriers as these which means they are working for longer at a lower rate. The Sisters in the Skilled Trades Apprentice Support Program provide resources to take care of women apprentice’s childcare, provide tutoring and travel amounts, as well as reimbursements for textbooks, tools, and PPE required for class. Additionally, each of the participants does a course called Financial Toolkit to help them plan for their next block. Finally, this program works with the UBC national mentorship program to connect apprentices to mentors. “Having a good mentor can mean the difference between staying or leaving, and we don’t just want them to stay, we need them to stay.”
Charette acknowledges that there is still a lingering perception amongst women considering career choices that the trades are too hard or too dirty and that women aren’t welcome. One of the biggest barriers women face is job site culture, which can be intimidating for women working in an industry traditionally populated by males. Another barrier is the education system, which often continues to perpetuate stereotypes of what careers are appropriate for women. “Girls aren’t being told they can be carpenters at age five and six like little boys are.”
“We’re getting employers on board through our local halls across Canada, tackling issues around workplace culture. It tends to be like a football locker room. The Don’t Be a Bystander program was created by men for men to give them the tools they need not just to sit and watch stuff happen but to say something and do something on site. Every time a man goes through the program, they come out shocked. They don’t know how pervasive such behaviour can be on site. When there only a few women on site it changes that lens that men see them through. It’s a long game but it needs to start somewhere.”
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