Young women taste the trades at networking dinner

Eva Veitch (right with the black sweater), a mining equipment desinger from Cementation Canada, talks with high school girls during a networking dinner at Canadore College's Aviation Campus.

Young women from area high schools got a taste of what a career in the skilled trades has to offer during a networking dinner at Canadore College’s Aviation Campus.

The networking dinner was designed to introduce young women in high school who are interested in the skilled trades and technologies to women that are currently working in a related career field.

Gail Smyth, Executive Director for Skills Canada, explains that women are still under represented in the skilled trades.

“Everybody still thinks it’s a man’s job and this (the event) hopefully will change their perception,” Smyth said.

Sixty-five high school girls attended the event and 14 mentors were on hand to talk to the girls about the trades.
Eva Veitch, a mining equipment designer for Cementation Canada, was enthusiastic about the event saying that there aren’t very many women in the trades to start with but for young women who are thinking about getting into a trade - go for it.

“Don’t be afraid. Step out of your shell and see what’s out there. There’s a lot out there,” Veitch said.

“The trades are great, it’s interesting and you’re learning on a constant basis, Veitch added.”

The goal of the event was to foster a positive environment in which young women had the opportunity to meet role models who provided them with advice, guidance and inspiration.

“There are lots and lots of opportunities for women to get into the skilled trades. There are lots of employers looking for young women to go in but young women are not going that way,” Smyth explained.

Barbara Taylor, President of Canadore College, said that there is a huge shortage of people taking up trades and the old stereotypes of people thinking that the trades are dirty, demeaning and that you have to be a hulk to do it are not true.

“If we are only recruiting from half of the population, we’re going to have an on-going challenge as a college in graduating the numbers of skilled trades people needed by business and industry. The employers we serve are also going to have huge difficulties remaining competitive if we aren’t providing adequate number of grads,” Taylor said.

Taylor explained that the average age for people in the skilled trades is now well into the 50’s.

“We really need to be recruiting more men and women,” Taylor said.