Okanagan College faculty member awarded national grant to study women in the skilled trades

What helps women build lasting careers in the skilled trades?

This is the question Okanagan College (OC) researcher Dr. Emma Lind will explore through an awarded Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Insight Development Grant worth $61,875.

The two-year project, Still Here: Mid-Career Tradeswomen and the Missing Middle of Trades Research, centres on the experiences of women who have remained and advanced in skilled trades careers.

As British Columbia faces increasing demand for the skilled trades workers, increasing participation and retention in this sector has become a priority for industry, educators and government. While existing research has focused largely on recruitment and the barriers that lead many women to leave the trades, Lind’s project shifts the conversation by focusing on the women who stay.

"We've chosen to study the conditions that have led to long-term, sustainable careers for women in the skilled trades,” said Dr. Lind. “What are their success stories? Where did they access mentorship and peer support? What are the best practices that keep women contributing to these important fields? When we understand the ingredients for success, we're better able to replicate these conditions in our recruitment, programming, and support systems at the college and in the sector overall."

The study will interview women in the skilled trades who have been working between five and 15 years post-apprenticeship. The interviews will generate data about the conditions for women's resilience in non-traditional employment. In addition, the study will document the career trajectories of women in the skilled trades, noting which fields are more supportive to tradeswomen, what pathways to management include, and where formal and informal networks play a role in long term workforce participation.

The project also brings together partners from across the region and beyond, including co-applicant Dr. Maura Kelly of Portland State University, an established researcher on gender and work in the skilled trades, collaborator Dr. Luis Aguiar, professor of sociology at the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus, and the BC Centre for Women in the Trades (BCCWTT).

“Okanagan College’s participation in this project highlights the power of collaboration in applied research,” said OC Provost and Vice President, Academic, Dr. Samantha Lenci. “By working in partnership with UBC Okanagan, Portland State University and BCCWTT, we are examining personal experiences that can be applied to address real challenges while also creating meaningful opportunities for students to participate in research.”

Student involvement is a key component of the research project. Student research assistants from Okanagan College will work collaboratively with graduate students at UBC Okanagan and Portland State University to interview tradeswomen, analyze data, and draft plain language briefs to share broadly through British Columbia’s trades sector. These briefs will help to inform colleges and polytechnics with how to more effectively recruit women into their trades’ programs.

“While much of the conversation has focused on recruitment, understanding why women stay and succeed in the skilled trades is equally important. Women represent almost 50 per cent of the labour force, yet only 6.8 per cent of workers in underrepresented trades such as construction, manufacturing and transportation.” said Caitlin Hartigan, Dean of Okanagan College’s Trades and Apprenticeship programs. “By learning from tradeswomen who have built successful, long-term careers, we can create stronger supports and more inclusive workplaces that benefit both workers and the industries that depend on them.”

The award adds to the growing portfolio of nationally funded research at Okanagan College. Together, the projects reflect the College’s important role as an applied research institution, advancing collaborative research that responds to community needs and informs public policy.

More information about Okanagan College’s applied research initiatives is available at OC’s applied research web page and information on Women in Trades is available at the women in trades page.