Tuesday, December 6, 2022

Chasing Your Dream

Women are entering the trades in greater numbers than ever before, from a variety of backgrounds and ages. Here’s why one woman decided to make the leap to a job in construction—and how she found success

I have often admired early explorers who had a desire to go just a little further than others, manage their fears, and conquer daily challenges that were completely foreign to them. Changing one’s career midlife may not present the same challenges and fears as those experienced by these crusaders, but it is still an undertaking full of consternation, especially if you are a woman considering a career move to the industrial trades. Amanda is one such example.

After raising three children and spending 17 years working in the human resources field, Amanda was not enthusiastic about her job and where it was leading—it was just a means to a paycheck. She would often think back to her younger days growing up on the farm. In her youth, she was always fascinated by the creative abilities of her grandfather, who was a welder, and how he could apply his imaginative skills to life.

“I loved being with him, helping him, and was intrigued by the beauty of working with metal, and his innate ability to fix metal. I just felt a connection to what he was doing. What he was able to do was utterly amazing and I always wanted to have those same skills.”

While working in the education system, Amanda would often see provisional opportunities for youth to enter the trades. But she didn’t see anything for adults until last year when LNG Canada provided Women Building Futures the funding necessary to deliver a “trades readiness” program for adult women. This program became the pivotal turning point in Amanda’s life.

Today, Amanda is employed by PPM Civil Constructors, a job that she secured through CASP, and is welding on the LNG loadout line trestle project at Kitimat, BC. Helping build Canada’s largest private sector project while learning a trade is a dream come true for Amanda. As an apprentice, she is discovering what it is like to be a welder on a large-scale industrial project.

Amanda comes to work each day with the mindset to learn, achieve, and contribute. Her general foreman has commented on her work ethic and ability to fit in. He has stated, “She just wants to learn every day and gives it her absolute best effort.”

Amanda fully recognizes that a cheerful outlook is everything and says, “I have such great mentors and journeymen leading the way, helping me with my learning goals.”

Amanda is scheduled to attend technical training in 2023. The immense scope of the LNG venture has exposed her to a world-class construction project and provided her with an experience that will well position her prior to attending school and will serve her well in her newly sought career.

This opportunity did not happen by chance. It came to be through the input and full support of the many who understand the complexity of trades and the apprenticeship journey. Key contributors to making an apprenticeship a success story for those who have shown the desire to begin this journey are:

- Matching the apprentice to a group of strong mentors who have received mentorship training
- As a company, staying true to the principles of having zero tolerance for inappropriate behavior and any who discriminate against others
- Support groups such as Women Building Futures that provide employment and apprenticeship opportunities to individuals graduating from these programs
- Providing frequent progress reports to the apprentice, outlining their growth and strengths and signifying opportunities to progress
- Incorporating these workers into the team by having them take on leadership roles
- Understanding the technical training curriculum to align work-based tasks expected of the apprentice with their level of schooling

Remember: someone once opened the door that gave each one of us the opportunity to begin on a successful trades pathway, and now it is our turn to do the same.

Dr. Lindsay Langill holds Red Seal certification in two trades and has a bachelor of education and master of arts degree from the University of British Columbia (UBC), along with a doctorate from the University of Calgary. He is an adjunct professor in the faculty of education at UBC, director of labour relations for Clough – Pacific, and chair of the Joint Line Apprenticeship Training Association (JLATA) board.

Whether you are an employer or are looking for apprenticeship opportunities, visit the CASP website for information about how you can benefit from this government-funded program.

Chasing Your Dream

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