Reposted from Equal Rights Advocates.
Kelly just celebrated ten years of being a heavy equipment operator. Before she found her way to the International Union of Operating Engineers, she worked as a home-based child care provider while raising two children on her own. Although Kelly took pride in owning her business, she had no healthcare, leave, or retirement benefits, so she sought out a career that would provide them all.At an orientation session for women in nontraditional careers she decided to attend a ten-week pre-apprenticeship training program at Hard Hatted Women in Cleveland Ohio,.
Attracted to the work of a heavy equipment operator, Kelly pursued a 4-year apprenticeship program.. Following extensive testing, interviews, and a 3-week boot camp, Kelly the Local 18 International Union of Operating Engineers (I.U.O.E) apprenticeship program.
Kelly’s career track has not always been easy. She endured harassment, discrimination, and discouragement throughout, but has maintained her personal motto: “Don’t put up with any barriers that people throw in your way.” For instance, when she first started her apprenticeship, Kelly didn’t know how to drive a car with a manual transmission. She know has her commercial driver’s license, and is a certified crane operator). Kelly attributes her success to her strong personality and self-reliance.
Kelly credits a network of other tradeswomen who encouraged her and provided support along the way when times were challenging, especially when her children were younger and pressures of a single parent arose.
“What I love about my job is that there is no typical day – every day is an adventure,” she says. “I love meeting new people from all of the trades and the fact that I can solely provide for my family.” (Kelly advises new tradeswomen to have backup plans in place, since the industry can be unpredictable and layoffs are inevitable.)
Even though the construction industry continues to be a male-dominated field, Kelly found that her union’s apprenticeship program provided quality training and support when she needed it, and says that it truly prepared her for the job in the field. As a journeywomen, she can go back to the training center at any time for upgrades which help her maintain her skills.
Equal Rights Advocates is a proud member of the Taskforce on Tradeswomen Issues, which unites local, regional and national expertise and action to support tradeswomen and women who want access to these occupations. As part of our continuing commitment to advancing the conversation on employment issues faced by women in the trades, we are proud to announce that going forward we will be hosting a weekly feature profiling a woman in the trades. This platform is meant to provide a space for tradeswomen to provide a firsthand perspective on their careers. This week’s installment of Tradeswomen Tuesdays introduces us to Kelly, a heavy equipment operator in Ohio. Check in every Tuesday to learn more about the inspiring women of the trades.