National organization looking to empower women in the construction industry

Women holding jobs in the construction industry are being celebrated ahead of International Women's Day on Saturday.

Advocates are recognizing the contribution women make in the construction industry and encouraging more to consider it as a career as part of Canadian Women in Construction Week.

Lisa Laronde, president of the Canadian Association of Women in Construction (CAWIC), says the intent of her organization is to inspire the next generation of women to take up leadership roles within the construction industry.

“Because really, that’s how change is going to happen,” she said.

“There is only a small percentage of women that are in the construction industry nationally, and that’s actually global as well; if you look at the stats, it’s five per cent and Alberta is actually higher than the national average for women in skilled trades at seven per cent.”

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Laronde attributes that to a concentrated effort about a decade ago in Alberta to target women and provide a welcoming environment that was a success.

She says it’s an indication that if the industry can focus on women and bring together industry, education, unions and associations, the bar can actually be raised.

“Nationally, we’re doing a pretty good job with attracting women to the industry,” she said. “We’re not doing as good of a job at retaining women in the industry, and I think what starts to happen is that obviously it’s harassment and discrimination and we haven’t actually changed that.”

Nicole McIntyre, senior project coordinator with Anthem Properties, has been in the industry for 17 years.

She started off in interior design and then learned drafting. Now she’s on the construction site coordinating trades and schedules and supporting the project managers at build locations.

“Seventeen years ago, I was one of very few women in the office. If a woman was in the office, it was more in an admin position; I was the only one in the construction side of it,” she said.

“Now 17 years later, we have young women from SAIT and those kinds of schools coming and learning and getting their hands-on experience and so I’m really proud to help mentor them and bring them through the ropes.”

McIntyre says she encourages new women on the job site to make sure their voices are heard and not to be shy.

She says if they have a question, she always encourages them to ask, because that’s how they can learn. McIntyre adds that she tells them they have to toughen up and have a thick skin.

“My biggest hurdle was when I was having children and deciding if I was going to be a stay-at-home mom or continue and balance both life with children and work life,” she said.

“I chose to balance both, and some people had opinions on that, and I just let it slide off my back and kept going. Ten years later, after I’ve made that decision, I’m not regretful that I did that.”

Savana Singh, construction project coordinator with Anthem Properties, has been in the industry for three years and says there weren’t many other women enrolled in construction at SAIT when she was there.

“When I first started, I’d say there were only two women and then it went down to one for my first two years,” she said. “Then I had a couple more females join me, and I graduated with a couple women by the end of it.”

Singh says she loves the challenge of working in an industry like construction that is male-dominated and likes to gain the trust of the tradespeople.

“In the office I’m dealing with change orders, invoices, getting people paid; that’s the most important thing,” she said.

“Then sometimes you’re on site making sure we’re on schedule, budget, on time and making sure everybody’s happy, which is not always easy, but we get there.”

Singh says shining a light on women in the industry for Canadian Women in Construction Week may encourage others to work in the field.

“Just because it’s male-dominated doesn’t mean that women can’t be in the field just as much as men,” she said.

“Diversity can just be a pair of fresh eyes because sometimes men and women see things in a different light, but then when you come and put the ideas together, we can merge it and make something (great).”

Megan Starke, Anthem’s marketing director, has seen change in the industry in the last five years with more women in construction roles.

“And I know it’s just going to keep getting better,” she said. “I just want to encourage women; whether it’s physically being on the construction site or just being in the construction industry, there’s so many places for you here, and it’s a great industry to be a part of.”

Learn about careers in construction online.