Chances are if you’re a young woman thinking about doing an apprenticeship or traineeship you’re thinking about becoming a beautician, hairdresser or childcare worker. But girls can make it big in any industry – even the ones that seem like they’re just for boys.
Eastern Girls in Trades
If you go by the figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics it’s men that work in 90% of all trades and related jobs. The Eastern Girls in Trades project has been set up to change this.
Eastern Girls in Trades is a national project facilitated by the Equity Research Centre in partnership with the Australian Industry Group, Eastern Industry Education Partnership and the Gateway and Outer-Eastern Local Learning and Employment Networks.
Project coordinator Jenny Gardner says the message is that “girls can do it – they can handle the work... and they offer something to these industries that men don’t."
www.girlsintrades.org.au
As part of the project female students from four Victorian secondary schools interviewed women who work in non-traditional trades and created a website about their findings: www.girlsintrades.org.au (new window).
The roles of the project were shared among the schools:
- Senior students at South Oakleigh Secondary College spoke to women who have jobs in areas like mechanics and spare parts interpretation
- Fairhills High School students explored trades like painting, printing and horticulture
- Templestowe College English students collected and presented information on the Transport and Logistics industry
- IT students at Mater Christi College developed the project website
Bringing something different
“The men we include in our interviewing all indicate that they like having women on staff and appreciate the skills and different perspectives they bring," says Jenny. “Girls are often more reliable and easy to manage. Other comments are that girls are more detailed; they can multi-task so work faster and... are ready for more learning as it comes along."
So what’s so good about doing a trade? As Jenny explains “having a trade means being able to travel anywhere and get work, being able to head towards having your own business if you want it, and earning a good income – most offer overtime, and you get paid while learning."
So what are you waiting for? Check out the rest of our Jobs & Careers section for more about the different industries and what's on offer.
Links
Girls in Trades
Meet some inspiring women who are working in non-traditional trades and industries.
Australian Apprenticeships
The Federal Government's apprenticeships and traineeships scheme (formerly New Apprenticeships).
Skills Victoria - Apprentices and Trainees
A range of guides and resources about apprenticeships and traineeships in Victoria.
