Yukon Women in Trades and Technology holds workshops for girls

A Yukon group is giving teenage girls hands-on experience in carpentry, plumbing and electrical to encourage more women to choose a career in the trades. 

Yukon Women in Trades and Technology (YWITT) had more than 100 Yukon high school girls in Grades 8 to 12, building, tuning and fixing in after-school workshops held last week. Women represent just five per cent of all skilled trades workers in the country, according to Status of Women Canada. 

Faith Fortier, a student at F.H. Collins, tested her electronics knowledge at a workshop at Raven Recycling.

"It began as a laptop and we're taking it apart and hopefully when it's apart, the pieces will be apart and they can recycle them," she says. 

YWITT wants to see more young women entering the trades after high school, but Fortier says there are stereotypes to overcome. 

"Lots of women feel really insecure and they don't get paid as much as men," she says, because of a belief that men are "technically more capable."

Fortier says that will change with time. 

"It's good they try to encourage more women to take these jobs."

Another workshop, this time at YuKonstruct, had students building a wooden kitchen table. 

"I like it. I like learning how to build things. I think it's cool," says Claire Campbell, a Grade 8 student at F.H. Collins.

Some students weren't as convinced. 

"I don't know about a job ... but I think it would be a fun hobby," says Emiko Teramura. 

Ayla Kempton, a carpenter and board member with YWITT, says women were few and far between when she started her career. 

"Now there are far more coming in," she says. "This [program] is an introduction to a vast array of trades, so that they can get just a taste and an interest, so they can focus where their energy will be in the future."

Kempton says there are still barriers for women entering trades but says those who pursue a skill in demand may find a stable career.