Progress has been slow but steady for women in construction
Minnesota Star Tribune, November 8, 2015
Women in Apprenticeship Day is Nov. 5. President Obama declared Nov. 1-7 National Apprenticeship Week to support the proven, earn-as-you-learn job training system that “will help rebuild our middle class.”
[…]
Whether apprentice or journeyman, [Kimberly] Brinkman lost her job and eventually her home when contractors refused to hire women. She was “starved out” not because there was no work, but because the employers refused to hire women. “But,” she said, “I’m a fighter and I refused to allow discrimination to take away my livelihood.”
Her experiences were echoed in the recent survey by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. One common experience for almost all tradeswomen is being the only woman on the job site. When Brinkman attended the Women Build Nations Conference in Los Angeles last spring, she was brought to tears when she entered a room with over 1,000 tradeswomen. “What a powerful experience,” she said. “It is an act of courage and strength to work in an industry dominated by men,” she continued. “The stories inspired me … to change the status quo.”