Construction and Skilled Trades Month: Supporting Women to Build New Paths in the Trades

According to B.C.’s Labour Market Outlook: 2025 Edition, 72,000 job openings across 15 skilled trades are expected by 2035.  These occupations require on-the-job and in-class training and offer strong earning potential. Despite the need, women remain significantly underrepresented in the sector.

For many women, this gap is not about ability, it is about access. Financial constraints, limited support systems and ongoing stigma in traditionally male-dominated industries can make it difficult to take that first step.

April is Construction and Skilled Trades Month in British Columbia, a time to recognize both the demand for skilled workers and the importance of creating pathways for women to access these opportunities. As the month comes to a close, we’re taking the opportunity to highlight one woman’s journey into the trades with the support of YWCA Higher Ground. 

Robyn's Journey Into the Trades

For Robyn, the journey into the trades was not an obvious path and she faced many of these challenges.

Like many women, she had considered the trades for years. She had always been hands-on, a do-it-yourself person, but moving toward a new career felt overwhelming. Without strong support that change felt out of reach for a long time.

“I had quite a few challenges in my life and, especially nowadays with the high cost of living, I was in dead-end jobs, just not making enough money,” she says. “No matter how much I worked, I was always scraping by.”

Still, the idea stayed with her.

“I thought, maybe I’ll try the trades,” she says. “But I thought about it for years and didn’t move forward because it felt overwhelming. Having the support of the Higher Ground program made a huge difference.”

That support became a turning point.

“They’re there for you in the classroom and out of the classroom,” Robyn shares. “There are financial supports, healthy food and someone to talk to. Every day they asked how you were. It was about how you’re doing just as much as what you’re doing.”

Through the Lather (Interior Systems Mechanic) Apprenticeship hands-on training, offered by Higher Ground in partnership with the Finishing Trades Institute of BC, combined with guidance and practical supports like transportation and tools, Robyn began to see a new path forward.

“There were quite a few moments where I realized this was changing everything,” she says. “The feedback I was getting was really supportive, and it made me feel like I have a future in this.”

“Sometimes you want something, but it’s just too hard to get everything together, especially with the cost of living. Learning new skills and achieving things right in front of me built my confidence quickly, I just kept feeling better and better.”

Robyn also sees the value women bring to the trades workforce.

“My class had a really good attitude and everyone was hardworking,” she says. “Women are used to managing a lot and multitasking. That’s really helpful in the trades. We also bring different strengths that add to the team.”

As we celebrate Construction and Skilled Trades Month, stories like Robyn’s remind us of what’s possible when women are given the tools, support and opportunities to succeed. That’s why programs like Higher Ground are key to building a stronger, more inclusive workforce across the province.

“Women can really do anything,” Robyn says. “Trades offer higher pay and job stability, things that are hard to find these days.”

To learn more about YWCA Higher Ground, visit the program page.

Thanks to Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation for making stories like this possible.