49 / 116
www. e l e c t r i c a l c o n n e c t i o n . c om . a u
49
considered becoming an electrician. In
fact, it was only when I met my now-
husband, who is a qualified electrician,
that it truly became a possibility. He
encouraged me to really question
the status quo – if I wanted to be an
electrician, then what was stopping me?
Today, women make up 46.2% of all
employees in Australia. In a country
where the demand for technical
proficiency and manual dexterity is on
the rise, it makes sense for the number
of female electricians to grow with the
industry and the good news is there
are more opportunities than ever for
women wanting to break into the field.
Yet if we want to tap into one of the
nation’s biggest assets, our female
workforce, we need to close the gender
gap; both the perceived and the actual.
By perceived I mean the mental
barrier that women feel to starting an
apprenticeship. If beginning a trade
apprenticeship had been presented
to me as a viable option, I would have
jumped at it. As female electricians
today we have a responsibility to young
girls to not only be more visible but to
be more vocal. Most young women don’t
know a female electrician, which is a
huge reason they don’t feel like they can
be one. That’s one of the reasons why I
became a brand ambassador for Clipsal
– to raise awareness of my career as a
female sparky in the hopes of inspiring
the next generation. Also as a mother, I
want to be able to set the best example
for my daughter by demonstrating
that no barriers should stop you from
reaching your goals regardless of the
career you choose to pursue.
In terms of the actual gender gap, I
am referring to the double standards
women face in the workplace. Across
the workforce full-time average
weekly earnings for women are 16.2%
less than for men and it’s only more
pronounced for sparkies. In fact, the
electrical distribution trades industry
has the third biggest pay gap between
men and women with males on a
salary of $93,377 and women $48,390.
Women need to be treated equally in
the workplace both in regards to the
attitudes of their co-workers as well as
numerically.
The truth is, despite having a foot in
the door, I still faced resistance for being
a woman. One of my early experiences
of discrimination was as an apprentice
when one company refused to have
any females on site because it was ’too
much hassle‘ or because someone might
refuse to pay for the job. I also found
that builders could get iffy about having
a woman on site for no other reason
than they weren’t used to it. This was
difficult to face regularly, even if I was
following my passion.
So what can we do about it? The
reality is that men are crucial to the
cause – without their support and
willingness to adapt, female tradies
like me will keep on telling the same
story. As shown in a recent survey, men
perceive the challenges of women in the
workplace in a very different way to
their female counterparts. Interestingly,
men believe that a woman’s greatest
challenges are feeling included,
achieving work-life balance and dealing
with childcare issues. Women, on the
other hand, perceive promotions and
pay as being the top obstacles they face.
There are many factors that
contribute to this perception; namely
the fact that women are outnumbered
in many industries, such as the
electrical industry, and that there’s
an under representation of women in
management positions. This perception
misalignment is something that must
be taken seriously; it can impact how
male managers manage women or even
how they interact with their female
colleagues. Until we’re all on the same
page, we will continue to have issues
with gender stereotyping and equality.
It’s my hope that by sharing my story
more women will feel empowered to
undertake an electrical apprenticeship
regardless of the adversity they might
face. As you can see from my story, it
hasn’t always been smooth sailing.
But after trying many different roles
I knew where my interests lay and
I had to get there. Unfortunately,
gender stereotypes still exist today
and while many in the industry are
far more open-minded, it would be
misleading to say you won’t face
challenges because of your sex. As
with any career, you will have times of
hardship but it’s up to you to decide if
you’ll struggle to feel engaged in a role
you feel you should be in or if, like me,
you’re willing to persevere for a career
you’ll find rewarding.
I’ve faced many obstacles during
my years as a sparky but do I regret
pursuing the profession? Absolutely not!
It’s a really rewarding job and I couldn’t
be happier in my career. If you’re a
woman who’s thought about a career
in trade but quickly brushed it aside I
want to encourage you to reconsider.
If you’re a business who hasn’t been
open to accepting female apprentices
I want to encourage you to reconsider.
The biggest lesson I’ve learnt from my
experience is to put passion before
gender and whether you’re a business
or an individual I’d like to ask you to do
the same.
The stereotype that being a tradie was only for men
meant I never really considered becoming
an electrician.