Previous Page  49 / 116 Next Page
Information
Show Menu
Previous Page 49 / 116 Next Page
Page Background

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.