Education

12 WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2018 Jenna Nowicki graduated with her trades diploma in industrial welding from the Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology this spring. Photo by Jason Halstead By Geoff Kirbyson for the Free Press As a woman in trades, Jenna Nowicki realizes she's a rarity. But she hopes that won't be the case for long. The valedictorian from the just-graduated 2018 class of the Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology was one of just a handful of women to receive her diploma in industrial welding and she's the only woman welder at her workplace — Kustom Container Pools, a Springfield, Man.,-based fabricator that makes pools out of repurposed shipping containers. "You've got to know that you're going into a (male) workplace. Not everything is going to change for you so you've got to be adaptable. The jokes are different and the humour is different," she said. While in school, she was picked alongside two male classmates to represent MITT in the welding competition at Skills Manitoba, a competition featuring tradespeople of all kinds. She heard the whispers that she was selected because of her gender and she almost started to believe them but then she realized she was picked for a reason. "On an average day with most of the guys in my class, I was at their level or better. If anybody wants to talk (trash), let's do a weld," she said. She realizes there is pressure that comes with being a trailblazer. "You have to be on top of your game or there will be no reason to hire you," she said. It's one thing to attract women to trades and technical training and another thing altogether to prepare them for the realities of workplaces that are still largely the domains of men. According to Bev Stuart, MITT's Associate Vice- President, Business Development and Strategic Initiatives, creating that bridge is key. "Throughout the school year, we seek opportunities for our students who are women to connect with women professionals in their field of choice, whether it's an in- class presentation, a work placement or some other avenue for mentorship," she said. "The more these students see what their future can be, and the more frank conversations they can have about that future, the better prepared they are to excel once they find employment." Nowicki got the trades bug from her father, Pat, who is an electrician. She remembers him driving her around when she was just four years old and pointing out street lights around town that he had installed. "I thought, 'how did you do that? Those are 80 feet tall.' I probably still drive under those every day," she said. And whether it's building custom pools or, in the case of some of her friends, working on the massive True North Square development in downtown Winnipeg, the appeal of being craftspeople is the same. "The coolest thing is to say you were a part of something like that. Whether you're a mason worker or an electrician, a little piece of that project is you. I love that about trades," she said. Changing the perception amongst women about the opportunities they can find in trades is part of the challenge facing Marnie Groeneveld, manager of career development services at MITT. She is contacted regularly by employers wanting to have a representative workforce but who simply aren't getting the applications they'd like from women. "They see the value that having women as part of their team can bring with their complementary and diverse skill sets. It goes back to showing young women that these are viable, enjoyable, and really lucrative careers where women are very successful," she said. Groeneveld started a Women in Trades and Technology group at MITT three years ago and has had anywhere from 30 to 50 female students in it each year. One of the biggest carrots she can dangle in front of female students is the fact tradespeople are constantly in demand and that the pay is well above average. Many of them end up going into business for themselves, too. "If you look at the successful people in the community, a lot of them are tradespeople. Those careers will always be viable," she said. "Women are getting into these trades, but we need more of them. Employers are seeking the value of having women in these trades. I really like where things are going." ❚ BLAZING A TRAIL IN TRADES MANITOBA INSTITUTE OF TRADES AND TECHNOLOGY "Women are getting into these trades, but we need more of them. Employers are seeking the value of having women in these trades. I really like where things are going."

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