Click here for the Summer 2016 issue of

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Sue Doro, Oakland CA, the editor and owner of Pride and a Paycheck Magazine is a retired
Railroad machinist, published author, and Blue Jean Pocket writers’ workshop facilitator. She is
a member of the National Writers Union, Local 1981 (UAW Affiliate), the United Association of
Labor Education Local 189 (Affiliate of CWA), Working Class Studies Association, Tradeswomen
Inc., Oregon Tradeswomen, National Assoc. of Women in Construction, Coalition of Labor Union
Women, retired member of the American Federation of Government Employees & International
Association of Machinists.
Pride and a Paycheck is edited and produced with union labor.
Thanks social media sisters and brothers who are part of the distribution team.
Pride and a Paycheck wouldn’t be reaching over
150,000 strong without you!
www.prideandapaycheck.com
484 Lake Park Ave. #315, Oakland CA 94610
To our Advertiser/Supporter network.
AND WELCOME BACK TWO RENEWING SUPPORTERS:
*Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 104 of the
Northern California Sheet Metal Industry (SMART)
AND *The Carpenters Training Program for Northern California.
Thank you for these full page ads of support to keep
Pride and a Paycheck going into 2017!
SUBSCRIBERS AND FRIENDS! If you’d like to see YOUR COMPANY and/or
UNION join these organizations in the effort to support and recruit blue
collar women TELL THEM about Pride and a Paycheck.
Email Sue at tradesis@aol.com
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4. Message From Chicago Women in the Trades
5. Support Advertisers’ Messages
10. Why Are You Here? By Cyaltsa Finkbonner
11. Thank You Claudette By Randye Hedgecoke
12. Electrical Lineman by Rebecca Howarth
13. A Letter From a Single Mom by Mykale Sutton
18. Kahla Lichti Cartoon
19. Ode to my Fathers and Brothers by Simone Robbins
20. Women’s Self Defense Training by Rebecca O’Bryan
22. Organize by Randy Hedgecoke
24. Step Ahead by Jennifer McNelly
25. Female Driver’s Experience by Ellen Voie
27. THANK YOU!
Disclaimer - Ads or resource listings in this publication and on
www.prideandapaycheck.com
do not represent an endorsement of the organization or service
by Pride and a Paycheck or its editor/owner Sue Doro.
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Thank you to everyone who attended and volunteered to make the 2016 Women Build Nations conference a
huge success this year in Chicago! We broke record attendance this year with over 1,500 attendees – read the
article in Contractor online magazine here!
The first time in its history held outside California, this year’s conference drew over 1,500 attendees, breaking
previous conference attendance records. The annual conference brought together tradeswomen from across the
nation and four countries, as well as across crafts to gather, celebrate, and build community. Thank you to our
union, employer, community, and government partners who attended this year’s conference and who work to
ensure access, opportunity and equity for women in our industry each and every day. The conference was truly a
labor of love, with many hands and hearts, to make this year’s conference a success – thank you for your
support! Chicago Women in Trades was proud to serve as the local host committee of the 2016 Women Build
Nations conference and to partner with the North American Building Trades Unions, along with other national,
regional and local tradeswomen advocates and other allies, to co-host this truly inspirational conference.
Thank you to the 2016 Women Build Nations Conference National Planning Committee:
Carolyn Williams, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; Darlene Nava Munoz, Chicago
Pipe Fitters Local 597; Debra Chaplan, State Building & Construction Trades Council of California;
Diana Limon, IBEW Local 11; Iliana Flores, International Brotherhood of Teamsters; Jackie
Townsend, Bricklayers Administrative District Council #1 of Illinois; Jayne Vellinga, Chicago
Women in the trades; Patti Edwards Devlin, LIUNA; Patty Hughan, Ironworkers International;
Prairie Wells, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftsworkers.
For more information about Chicago Women in the Trades
Click here www.chicagowomenintrades2.org
For 500 photos of this event!!! Click here:
https://drive.google.com/folderview…
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www.pipetradestraining.org
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Top left: Nksosa Barrett, 2nd Year Plumber apprentice UA Local 1 NYC
Top right: Millissa Brotherson, Plumber/Welder and Part Time Instructor UA Local 1 NYC
(Photos thanks to Judaline Judy Cassidy, UA Local 1 NYC
Below: Margarita Reese, Plumbers Local 393, San Jose CA
(Photos thanks to Carl Cimino, Director of Training Pipe Trades Training Center, Local 393
and Glena Otis, Pipe Trades Training Center, San Jose CA)
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www.smw104.org
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Carpenters Training Program for Northern California
www.ctcnc.org Description of crafts within the program
CTCNC encourages women to join the rewarding career in carpentry!
No matter what your background is, there are many different crafts to
choose from like; General Carpenter, Acoustical Installer, Drywall,
Hardwood Floor Layer, Insulator, Lather, Millwright, Pile Driver,
Scaffold Erector and Shingler. All these crafts work in different phases
of the construction project and have different levels of expertise and
skills required to be successful. Through your efforts at the
apprenticeship you will receive college credits for the classes that you
attend and with the successes on the jobsite you will gain the building blocks to climb the
career ladder to the top. Maybe the company owner.
Sisters in the Brotherhood for more information about the Sisters or sign up NOW
at nccrc.org/sisters.
Watch these videos!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LG1Jxxwrzn4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmIhVESVcyA
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WHY ARE YOU HERE? By Cyaltsa Finkbonner
22 Years ago,
At my first appearance in front of the JATC meeting
Prior to my entry into the Ironworkers
I was asked if I could handle working around men all the time.
22 years ago, I answered:
“I grew up working on a fishing boat with 5 guys…
Yes I can handle it.”
During my apprenticeship, some of the things they said:
“Why are you here?”
“You should be a model in a magazine.”
“You should be in the kitchen at home taking care of your man,
Instead of taking the place of an honest man’s job.”
Now, 22 years later that same JATC guy asked my Journeyman self:
“Would you be interested in being our new welding instructor?
You’ve been out in the field, running with the best of them.
Kickin’ Ass and Taking Names. I think you can handle it.”
Now, 22 years from that JATC meeting, I am teaching our future how to:
Kick Ass and Take Names…and
THAT IS WHY I’M HERE!
Copyright 2016 by Cyaltsa (Cy Finkbonner, Seattle Ironworkers
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THANK YOU CLAUDETTE!!
By Randye Hedgecoke
Claudette Hendricks started talking about wanting to give back to the sisters in the trades. An ironworker
out of Washington, D.C. Local 5, she had an idea. She knew a buddy who was designing art for
hardhats. They were colorful, inventive and really different. She wanted to raffle off tickets to the IWs at
the Womens Build the Nation conference in May. But what to do with the money? How to give back?
Last year, the women ironworkers started a fund called The Silver Linings. It is a fund for women
ironworkers who have been disabled off the job. The deal was set, she would raffle hardhats to the IWs
and donate to The Silver Linings Fund. At a buck a chance, she thought she would raise a couple of
hundred dollars.
Well, the hardhats were such a hit, that not just Ironworkers wanted them.
EVERY woman there wanted a chance for these fine hardhats. She had five to raffle. Over two days,
she sold 1200 tickets...I personally saw women buying 10 at a time! Claudette felt that since she had
sold the tickets to all the trades, she wanted to divide the money and give to two worthy causes.
She has donated 600 dollars to The Silver Linings Fund. The Fund is greatly appreciative of this
donation. The other 600 dollars, she has donated to the worthy cause of Pride and a Paycheck.
This online publication is for Tradeswomen across the world and survives purely on donations.
Claudette Hendricks generous donation will ensure the continued existence for this worthy endeavor.
THANK YOU CLAUDETTE!
For more information about Pride and a Paycheck, go to
www.prideandapaycheck.com
For more information on The Silver Linings Fund, please contact Vicki O'Leary at
vickioleary@yahoo.com or Randye Hedgecoke at randyesd@gmail.com
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I’m an Electrical Lineman in Philadelphia…by Rebecca Howarth
I was hired in 2014 after a 9 month hiring process
that included background checks, written tests,
being hooked up to electronic devices that
measured my grip strength/ pulling strength / heart
rate, and interviews. Out of a pool of 1500
candidates, 24 of us were hired.
The final component of the hiring process was a
13 week boot camp called Line School. A group of
30 of us started this and when the dust settled 3
months later, 24 remained. 6 had quit or were
fired. We were a ragtag group of former marines,
Alaskan crab boat fishermen, steel mill workers,
etc. We were taught to climb pokes and perform
basic linework tasks..
Line school was the most physically demanding
task I have ever completed, and I have run
marathons, so I am no stranger to physical
exertion. The most demanding exercise was called
Round Robbins. Climbing a 45 foot pole 5, 10, 15,
20 times. Up and down. This taught us to climb
and use proper technique even when we were
dead tired. Lind School was a military – type
environment, so being last was bad. By the last
Round Robbin, your gas tank would be empty and
only grit would get you up the pole.
I stepped up the pole, lifting my entire 165 pounds (20 pounds lighter than when I started) up the pole
with each step, along with about 50 pounds of tools. The air was quiet except for the sound of hooks
sinking into southern pine and tools clanging. The guy on the pole next to me was a former bounty
hunter who was reaching the top at the same time as me. “That’s fucking beautiful,” he said. I looked
at his sweaty profile as the sunlight hit it, and then followed his eyes to the east.
The sun was rising over the buildings. Beautiful.
© 2016 Rebecca Howarth
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A LETTER FROM THE SINGLE MOM
TRYING TO MAKE A LIVING. BY MYKALE SUTTON
To:
My child’s father,
To the women who should be
supportive instead of degrading,
To the men who think women
shouldn’t be here,
To the people who I used to call
friends who told me I was a bad
mom,
To my son’s school,
To
my family,
I wrote a blog about what’s it’s like to be a
third generation iron worker and trying to
build your own name. What’s it’s like to
shadow under your family’s name. What it
takes to be a women iron worker with these
things going against you.
I have met so many women who have
gotten out of prison this was their only
chance at a second chance …. And what
an amazing chance you get to a part of a
union and make a living wage . You work for every penny that’s for sure. It builds you and it molds
you into the person you are and iron worker. There are many reasons I decided to join. It’s family
blood line. I was carrying on my family name while making my own. I wanted to be something other
than Fuzzy’s daughter.
But not the most uncommon reason in women today. Is the simple fact that they are single mothers
trying to earn a fair wage working for their kid or kids.
Handsome isn’t he? This reason right here is why I decided to join the union. To be an iron worker to
do something for someone other than myself. We all relate to this: this is it for me.
I failed out of college; I barely made it through high school because well I was a young mom trying to
make ends meet. I was a teenage mom. I had shitty part time jobs. I wish I had tried younger to get
into the union. Getting into the union I sacrificed my time at home with my son to spend my next four
13
years giving my apprenticeship my all. School,
meetings, practicing and getting certs, traveling
out of town.
When work was slow like it has been the
majority of the time I have been in if not longer
for little ol Eastern, Washington …. I had to
boom out. It was an opportunity thrown my way
from an amazing local to work for (in my
opinion). Local 433 LA California. A little ol first
year apprentice …Basically this never
happens. I asked and it was kind’a on the back
burner. Then finally, I was on my way.
As a single mom and wanting what was more
stable for my son I kept him home in
Washington with his grandmother. I could
probably say it is the hardest thing I’ve ever
done. Three weeks was nothing when I went to
Benicia CA for my pre apprenticeship class.
But two and half months away from my son in
Los Angeles. Driving over 20 hours and not
knowing if this was real.
I knew nothing. I learned what it was like to live
out of my car. Having everything I own in it. Not
having a permanent place to put it or a home. I
was lucky on the second half of my journey. I
was able to stay with another single mother
journeyman iron worker who opened up her
home to me.
Know this. Not everyone is your friend. You
won’t always have a nice foreman. You can’t
trust anyone. You say as little as possible. You
go to work. You put your head down…and you
work.
But everything that happened to me became a
huge lesson. I learned more than I ever
thought I would. I met the most awesome
women and men who helped me in every
aspect of iron work and with life in general.
I spent a lot of time in my motel room curled up
in the bottom of the shower bawling. I miss my
kid. I got phone calls from the school on a daily
basis. Why most people spent their time after
work getting drunk and letting lose, I spent
more of my time on the phone fixing and
holding together my life at home. On my days
off I was on the phone all day trying to
convince the school to give my son one more
chance. Fighting with the principal trying to find
a solution being over 1000 miles away. Phone
conferences for school meetings, counseling,
doctor appointments, sending money home to
feed my kid.
Dealing with court threats from my kid’s dad
saying that I abandoned my kid in order to
check out and not have to parent him. Because
unless you are single mom and know what it’s
like to have this kind of career you don’t know,
fuck you probably don’t even care; but why
should you?
I got text messages and phone calls from
friends, family, and his dad on how I am a
horrible mom because I left my son to make
money.
It takes so much mental strength to leave your
kid and go to a place to make money to solely
provide for him. People mistake it for being
selfish because those people don’t understand.
I had to learn this. I wasn’t there to make
friends. I had a hard time listening to men
complain about being sore. I had a hard time
hearing about how they miss their kids when
they got to go home on the weekends. I was
called a buzzkill. Told to lighten up. I said no
man, I’m here to work. They didn’t need to
know I had a 9 year old back home in
Washington who has special needs. I got tons
of shit.
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That is why I want to tell all the people who
look at their job for a paycheck. Some of us
look at this as career. This is all we have. Look
out for each other … Especially women… stop
tearing each other down because you don’t
know what happens in that person’s life. The
people you see busting their ass never
stopping … The people who are eager to learn.
Give them a chance. Have a little more
patience. We all have our reasons.
I don’t need to hear from you that I am a bad
mom. I have to leave him to go work to put a
roof over his head that only I can provide
because I am a single mom. No one does that
for me. To provide better medical insurance for
my little boy who sees a specialist and a
counselor. Who goes to his primary once a
week to manage his meds. I choose not to tote
him around with me because he needs
stability.
There are reasons men and some women
don’t think we should be here but until you
know someone’s story don’t be so quick to
judge. This is why I feel so strongly about this.
Leave your attitude at the door. We all have
bad days. I have had plenty and blew up ….
But it isn’t everyone else’s problem. Be safe.
Look out for your partner. He may have wife
and kids. She may be a single mom with a little
human to go home to and that’s all that child
has.
So whether I buy a fifth wheel and drag him
around while I work to keep these things for
him I will always be a “bad mom” but at least
I’m not giving up on him. I’m not walking out on
him. I am showing him what you do for your
children. You work for everything you have. He
will never go without anything. He will have the
best medical care. He will have a college fund
that I worked for so he has an education. He
will learn about brotherhood and the union and
why I’m doing this. While you are busy bashing
me, he will grow up and see what you don’t
see.
If we didn’t want this we wouldn’t have joined.
We would have already quit, so stop telling us
to. I’m not here for you. I am here to make a
living. Not for you for the little boy at home who
got to see his mom once a month. She’s home
for a little bit. But work is slow again and she
might have to leave.
I have to live with the sobbing phone calls
“When are you going to come home?” Or the
lying in bed “You don’t have to leave me again
do you?”
It’s all for him.
© 2016 Mykale Sutton,
Kennewick Washington
(See another article by Mykale dealing with
her initial apprenticeship experience in
Pride and a Paycheck Volume 18, Issue #1:
“BECOMING A WOMAN IRONWORKER, I’M
NOT JUST FUZZY’S DAUGHTER”…Go to
www.prideandapaycheck.com)
PROUD TO BE A BLUE COLLAR WOMAN
ORGULLOSA DE SER UNA MAJER DE OFICIO
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Welcome to Women Build, Protect, and Move America.
Use this site to find information and resources about women accessing higher-paying
careers in transportation, construction and protective services. You can learn about
training and apprenticeship opportunities, supportive services, existing research and
tradeswomen organizations. You'll also find success stories, promising practices and
guidance on your workplace rights.
https://www.dol.gov/wb/NTO/
Fi Shewring‎to Pride and a Paycheck June 16 at 3:38pm · Miranda, NSW, Australia ·
Hi Sue and everyone at Pride and Paycheck, I thought you would be interested to see how far we
have come since our small beginnings in 2009 after I met Sue and many of you and came back to
Australia to start SALT. We have a brand new website and our first conference in August.
http://saltaustralia.org.au/ And here is the link to the conference itself!
http://saltaustralia.org.au/salt-tradeswomen-australia-conference/
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SOJO TRADIE LADY UNDERWEAR
FROM AUSTRALIA!
Endorsed by Aussie and US
women in the trades. Most
comfortable work underwear
anywhere! Every pair sold fast at
the Women Build Nations
conference, at the Pride and a
Paycheck table!
www.tradie.com
www.rosiesworkwear.com
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510-891-1243
“Things Electrical Apprentices Hear” Cartoon Copyright 2016 by
Kahla Lichti, electrical apprentice in Victoria BC. Kahla has been
documenting her apprenticeship on her blog: the secret life of an
apprentice electrician. She has recently re-discovered her creative
side with a weekly trades comic of the week, as well as other artistic
endeavors. Welcome Kahla to the pages of Pride and a Paycheck!!!
We’ll be laughing at more of her great cartoons in the coming months!
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You've seen it in movies: A girl walks through an isolated parking garage. Suddenly, a guy jumps out
from behind an SUV. Girl jabs bad guy in the eyes with her keys — or maybe she kicks him in the
groin. Either way, while he's down and out, she jumps into her car and takes off.
That's the movies.
Here's what happens in real-life:
When the girl goes to jab or kick the guy, he knows what's
coming and grabs her arm (or leg), and pulls her off balance. He’s
pissed off by her attempt to fight back, so he either punches her
in the face and knocks her out, or flips her onto the ground. Now
she's in a bad place to defend herself — and she can't run away.
Many people think of self-defense as knowing the best way to hit
an attacker. But self-defense actually means doing everything
possible to avoid fighting someone who threatens you. Selfdefense is all about using your head — not your fists.
The most important factors in self-defense are:
Number one: situational awareness
And Number two: your instincts.
Situational Awareness means being aware of more than just the people around you. Situational
Awareness is the knowledge of what is around you. Know where you can escape if necessary. Which
doors are open? What businesses are close by? Are there groups of people you can join to escape
an attack?
Think of it like this – if an attacker was chasing you, how far could you run? If you’re mindlessly
running, and not thinking about where you’re running to, you’ll eventually exhaust yourself and be
more vulnerable to an attack, because you won’t be able to fight back
Your intuition or instincts, combined with your common sense, can help get you out of trouble. For
example, if you’re walking through a parking lot and you suddenly feel like you're being watched, that
is your intuition telling you something. You need to focus on your surroundings, do a visual sweep,
and proceed more carefully.
Another important self-defense skill is called de-escalation.
De-escalating a situation means speaking or acting in a way that can prevent things from getting
worse. The classic example of de-escalation is giving a robber your money rather than trying to fight
or run. But de-escalation can work in other ways, too. For example, if someone harasses you when
there's no one else around, you can de-escalate things by agreeing with him or her. You don't have to
actually believe what they’re saying; you're just using words to get you out of a tight spot. Then you
can redirect their focus ("Here comes Sam and Larry"), and walk away from the situation.
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Something as simple as not losisng your temper
can de-escalate a situation. Learn how to manage
your own anger effectively so that you can talk or
walk away without using your fists or weapons.
Although de-escalation won't always work, it can
only help matters if you remain calm and don't give
the would-be attacker any extra ammunition.
Safety Tips for Everyday Living
Avoid shortcuts that take you through isolated
areas.
If you're going out at night, travel in a group. If you
can’t do that, program your phone with the Circle of
6 app (http://www.circleof6app.com/). You can
program friend’s and police numbers into the app,
and send them an emergency message for help
with the push of a button.
Make sure your friends and family know your daily
schedule, know where you're going, and when you
expect to return.
When riding on public transportation, sit near the
driver and stay awake. Attackers are looking for
vulnerable targets.
If you have a reason to be in the same area every
day, such as jogging, walking your dog or
attending/coming home from a job or class, you
may be targeted by a potential attacker. You need
to change things up. Don’t walk the same route
everyday. Don’t walk at exactly the same time each
day. DO remember to walk against the traffic. It’s
much harder for them to jump out of a car to grab
you if you’re walking away from them, plus you can
see what’s coming at you and be more prepared to
deal with a bad situation.
Awareness is a key factor in your self-defense
arsenal. Be aware of your surroundings. Stay
focused. Do notwalk around alone with your face
buried in your cell phone. I can’t stress this enough.
Not only is it important to see trouble coming and
avoid it, but looking alert helps to discourage
would-be attackers. Whether they’re looking to rob
you, rape you, or both, attackers choose victims
who appear preoccupied or lacking in confidence.
Display “non-victim” body language.
Keep your head up, walk with purpose, and make
it obvious you’re paying attention. Look like you
know exactly where you’re going and move like
you’re expected to be there now. Your body
language says that you are not an easy target.
Don't be embarrassed to yell, be rude, or make
a scene to attract attention to yourself if you
suspect danger.
Physical confrontation is always the last thing
you should choose to do. However, if all else fails
and you end up in a confrontation, you only have a
few seconds and a few moves to try before the fight
may be decided. Before an attacker has gained full
control of you, you must do everything you can—
conserving as much energy as possible—to inflict
injury so you can get away.
This is no time to be civil. In a physical
confrontation that calls for self-defense, it's hurt or
be hurt. Be nasty! Gouge, kick, bite!! Kick knees or
shins, stomp on the instep (shoelace) area of their
foot. Whatever you choose to do – keep yelling!
Attract attention and get others to come help you.
Don’t fight in silence. Remember, if you fight in
silence, you fight alone. No one knows what’s going
on, and no one will come help you if you don’t
make a lot of noise!
Again, I want you to remember – it is more
important for you to be aware of your
surroundings, and avoid the situation to stop
an attack before it starts. It is much more
important for you to avoid a confrontation than
it is to get into a physical fight with an attacker.
Defense-ability is located in Silicon Valley. We are the only mobile self-defense training class in the
area. We teach women’s self defense classes customized for our clients needs. Whether it’s
basic Urban Self Defense, College Safety and Awareness, or Mother/Daughter Self
Defense classes, Defense-ability teaches you how to avoid potentially dangerous situations, and
how to defend yourself and disable an attacker so you can escape. www.defense-ability.com website
info@defense-ability.com contact us
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When I first signed up for the Organizing class at City College, I thought I needed
to be taught how to organize.
Every week we were introduced to guest speakers who actively practice organizing. We watched
Norma Rae, Jimmy Hoffa, Bread and Roses and Cesar Chavez to inspire us. We read about the
Chicago Teachers Union and the community that organized itself. Many times I felt anger at the
battles the workers were fighting. I was angry because I see those same battles being fought across
our nation in 2016. Living wages, health care, pension and representation are all part of the struggle..
How could I organize?
Then I hit me......I was already organizing within my local and
International.
I was making contact and reaching out to my fellow Union
members to get out and vote at the Local Union election. I
started paying attention to the other organizing that
sisters and I had been doing with the help of our
International for the annual Women Build Nations
Conference. Now, I had a format for what I was really doing.
I am going to lay out the basics so you can see how easy it is
to do your own organizing. (Even at home).
Step 1 is Introducing yourself. I send out private messages
to over 400 women doing exactly that.. Introduction is who I am, what is happening and why I am
reaching out.
Step 2 is Get their story. I ask questions about how long have they been in the trade, what kind of
work they do. I check in with a lot them throughout the year. Maintain relationships.
Step 3 is Share the vision. Do they know about the conference? Are they interested in attending?
What could they get out of the conference?
Step 4 is Assess and move to action. Encourage them to seek sponsorship from Local. Apply for
scholarships. Save money and pay your own way.
Assessing
A Identify your leaders - sisters who will go before their Executive Board / membership to ask
for sponsorship. Sisters who will step up and gather their own support from within the
membership. Talk to your brothers and sisters.
B The followers. Totally supportive of the leaders
C The maybes. You can encourage them but don’t use a lot of time.
D Anti and work against the conference…….move on. You won't change their mind. (yet)
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Step 5 is Inoculate. This is tricky. Prepare them for the off-chance that their Local will not support
the conference and what avenues are open to them. Ask your company to sponsor, write a grant.
Most important, reach out and don't give UP.
Our International has sanctioned this particular conference so that is leverage. Something to say
when you are just being ignored. It helps when you have support within your local, District Council
and the International.
This is the basic outline for organizing....
Every sister reading this can make a choice to organize. At the very least be a follower. Don't be
afraid to step out of your comfort zone and step up to leadership positions. Organize for yourself and
for the future of our Unions.
Looking back at the class, I realize that organizing is a challenge worth the time and effort you will be
spending. It is your voice and your future.
The very first lesson is:
You can't lose if you don't give up....Time is on your side.
Good Luck and Organize, Organize, ORGANIZE
© Randye Hedgecoke 2016
randyesd@gmail.com
Pat Williams (Tradeswomen Archive Fame) rode Amtrak from LA to Chicago to attend the Women Build
Nations Conference and took photos along the way! Here is a couple she took of a sister Railroad Laborer in
Raton, New Mexico, standing out due to the pink hard hat! She said she doesn’t like the pink but the men
always took her hard hat and got it dirty and greasy. Since she got the pink hard hat, they leave it alone
because they won’t wear the pink color! Pat is one of the founding mothers of the Tradeswomen Archives in
Long Beach CA. Thank you Pat for documenting our herstory so others know what we have accomplished!
Document your history so others know what you
have accomplished
http://www.tradeswomenarchives.com
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U.S. manufacturers today face a tremendous challenge finding quality talent to stay competitive in the
global economy. Part of the solution is to attract an untapped but talented demographic of people who
are already making significant contributions to the field of manufacturing: women.
STEP Ahead has mobilized more than 500 women leaders in manufacturing telling their personal
stories. From C-suite to the front line, these women are making a difference in their company and in
the U.S. manufacturing economy.
Every year, STEP Ahead Honorees and Emerging Leaders make a pledge to help advance women in
manufacturing and promote the importance of a diverse workforce. These women commit to advocate
for the manufacturing industry, mentor young women/girls, engage employee resource groups to
generate ideas and share best practices, promote personal development, and/or lead as
ambassadors for manufacturing education.
The Manufacturing Institute’s new toolkit, LEAD: Becoming an Impactful Voice to the Next Generation
of Talent will help women achieve these goals. The toolkit is designed for women in manufacturing to
reach the next generation of talent by being ambassadors for the industry, and it provides everything
women need to begin engaging with female students and other young women in their region who will
be entering the workforce.
STEP Ahead honors women in manufacturing for making a difference in our lives and the lives
around us – whether it may be small or large. Manufacturing is everywhere, and The Manufacturing
Institute is thankful for the strong women leading the industry.
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trainer. Unfortunately, the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) determined
that the longer waiting period for women to be
assigned to a female trainer constituted
discrimination. Now, women are assigned to
the next available trainer regardless of gender.
This means that men and women must share
bunk space while out on the road. Private
activities such as changing clothes, personal
hygiene and other intimate routines are no
longer secretive. This could create a very
uncomfortable environment for a woman who
is struggling to learn how to drive a tractortrailer in heavy traffic, shift gears and back into
tiny loading docks.
The mission of Women In Trucking
Association is to increase the percentage of
women employed in the trucking
industry. While we represent all careers in
transportation, much of our work focuses
on the professional driver’s
challenges. Specifically, we look at
obstacles that might keep women from
considering a career in transportation.
Many carrier’s representatives have bluntly
stated that they don’t “care about the gender of
their drivers.” They remark that they hire men
and women and treat them equally. If that is
true, then why are there twenty men to every
woman behind the wheel?
Instead if ignoring the fact that men and
women are physically and emotionally
different, let’s embrace the differences and
work on making the environment better for all
drivers. This means we need to look at our
hiring and training practices more closely.
One carrier felt that a same gender training
policy would address harassment issues by
allowing women to be trained by a female
If the woman is married or has a close
relationship with someone who might not
understand the situation, this could create even
more stress during her training.
Recently a new female recruit contacted me
about her training experience at a school. She
was expected to sleep in a bunk house type
environment with the male students at the
training facility. She was not told about this in
advance. Instead, the school recruiter told her
she would have lodging during her stay.
When she arrived at the school, she was
shown her bunk in the sleeping quarters
occupied by all men. She offered to stay in a
hotel at her own cost, but was told this was not
an option. She left the school and found
another place that didn’t expect her to sleep in
a room with men. “The importance of allowing
female trainees to obtain a private hotel room
for themselves even if it means paying out of
pocket without reimbursement (is important),”
she said. “If I was given this option before
arriving or once I arrived I would very likely
have stayed for training and currently
employed there despite the vague description
of boarding I was given,” she added.
25
While I was familiar with opposite gender
training while on the road, I was surprised to
hear that some schools treat all of their
students the same, to the extent they have to
sleep in the same room.
Are we really attracting women into the
trucking industry with policies like these?
The Women In Trucking Association Facebook
page has nearly 10,000 folks who share their
expertise when asked. I created a poll and
asked the female drivers to respond to the
following question. “Did any of you have to
share sleeping space with males during
training (not in the truck, but at the school or
carrier’s facility)?”
I was surprised to learn that ten percent of the
respondents were provided a shared sleeping
facility with men. Some of the drivers stated the
names of their training provider. Many of these
are members of Women In Trucking
Association.
This is truly unacceptable and could be a
reason some women won’t succeed as
professional drivers if they are concerned
about their safety, or their personal items in a
non-private area.
Even the men agreed. A male driver
commented about sharing a space with anyone
because he’s “be nervous (about) them
stealing his belongings.” Another male driver
said his wife would not have accepted the
arrangement.
We have a long way to go before we’ve
addressed the challenges women face as they
consider a career as a professional
driver. However, personal safety and privacy
while in training should be the standard for all
drivers.
Men and women are not the same and carriers
that ignore gender differences are not creating
a positive environment for the demographic we
are trying to attract. If you are a training facility
that expects all of your students to share
sleeping quarters, we ask you to consider
whether this would be acceptable if that
woman was your own daughter, wife, mother
or sister. If not, then change it.
© Ellen Voie CAE, President/CEO
Women In Trucking Association, Inc. P O Box 400 Plover, WI 54467-0400
Ellen@WomenInTrucking.org 888-464-9482 920-312-1350 Direct
Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube
Save the date: 2016 Women In Trucking Accelerate! Conference takes place Nov. 7-9 in Dallas, TX
26
THESE SISTERS AND BROTHERS DONATED TO PRIDE AND A
PAYCHECK IN THE LAST THREE MONTHS. THANK YOU FOR
KEEPING PRIDE GOING STRONG INTO 2016!
Bobbie Kierstead, Lincoln, NE
Carpenters Training Committee Northern CA, Pleasanton CA
Collette Claudette, Washington DC
Deborah and Mary Black, West Chicago IL
Elizabeth and James Barton, Luebbering MO
Jamie McMillan, Hamilton Ontario Canada
Janet Zandy, Rochester NY
Jeanne Brosch, Eden Prairie, MN
Marjean Clements, Cypress CA
Melanie Malcolm, Bremerton, WA
Pat Williams, Los Angeles CA
Penny Estey, Windsor Ontario Canada
Pipe Trades Training Center, San Jose CA
Rachel Behar’ Construction Jewelry, New York City
Randye Hedgecoke, San Diego CA
Red Ants Pants, White Sulphur Springs Montana
Rudy Mulligan, New York City
Russell Hrouda, Phoenix AZ
Sheet Metal Workers’ International Association Local 104, San Ramon CA
Stephanie (Blue) Coble, Phoenix AZ
27
DONATION FORM.
If you do not want to use the PayPal option on our website
to make your donation, and would rather send a check, please make it out to
Pride and a Paycheck and mail it to: 484 Lake Park Ave. #315, Oakland CA
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ANNOUNCING A TEAM EFFORT! WOMEN IN TRUCKING ASSOCIATION HAS
ADDED PAT WILLIAMS’ UNIQUE TRUCK EARRINGS TO THEIR “WIT MALL” ON
www.womenintrucking.org
You will be helping Women in Trucking and Pride and a Paycheck
simultaneously! When you go to their website and click on the Mall, you will be
referred to www.prideandapaycheck.com to leave the PayPal donation of
$21. You can select a color and style by typing it in the Special Instruction box
(after you type in $21 amount). If you don’t want to use PayPal for this offer,
you may send a $21 check payable to Pride and a Paycheck, and mail to 484 Lake
Park Ave. #315, Oakland CA 94610. Email Pat patjwilliams4@aol.com
or PM her on Facebook to discuss a design and color choices.
https://www.facebook.com/pat.williams.37051?fref=ts If you order the earrings
directly from Pride or get referred through WIT, the donation is still shared.
Whichever starting point you use!
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If you don’t want to use PayPal for this offer, you may send a $21 check payable to Pride and a Paycheck, and
mail to 484 Lake Park Ave. #315, Oakland CA 94610.