Leaders in both construction and government shared strategies for both coping with setbacks and celebrating their successes at a recent conference for women making their way through the industry.<\/p>\n
The Vancouver Regional Construction Association (VRCA) and Canadian Construction Women (CCW) held the LEAP conference on March 7 with a fireside chat session moderated by both VRCA president Jeannine Martin and Singleton Urquhart Reynolds Vogel LLP partner and CCW past-president Seema Lal.<\/p>\n
Turner Construction project director and VRCA chair Regina Marklund, SkilledTradesBC CEO Shelley Gray and provincial Minister of Infrastructure Bowinn Ma were panellists at the fireside chat.<\/p>\n
In her introductory remarks, Ma said British Columbia\u2019s rapidly growing population required more schools, hospitals, roads and other infrastructure and that \u201cit doesn\u2019t serve companies, communities or families well to have the construction sector closed off from hiring half of the population.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ma also praised both the VRCA and CCW and \u201cwomen like you (attendees) who refuse to stand down on your right for nothing less than equal standing in the workplace.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lal asked what obstacles the panellists have had to face in the industry, with all three noting similar experiences.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m comfortable sitting at a table with males, but as I get further in my career I have experienced micro-aggressions that are sometimes hard to address,\u201d Marklund said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIndividuals sometimes don\u2019t know they have that impact, but it\u2019s the persistence of just showing up, doing the work and not letting it bother me too much. It\u2019s not about me and it\u2019s probably their problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe world I\u2019d seen previously as a COO was a lot of fist pounding on tables,\u201d Gray said.<\/p>\n
While it took time for her to build relationships, she saw being female as an advantage.<\/p>\n
\u201cWomen make those connections and foster relationships, even when nothing changes, you\u2019re still building relationships and can go from there,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Ma pointed to previous experiences in her construction career of men being praised by co-workers for picking up children after work while if a woman did the same they were seen as \u201cjust not dedicated.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a lot of ways being judged by men is almost not as hurtful as being judged by other women. That lack of allyship can make for a toxic workplace,\u201d Ma said.<\/p>\n
When asked to give advice on seeking and delivering mentorship, Gray said to not restrict oneself to the workplace.<\/p>\n
\u201cFind your inner circle, (which) could be a person you work with or a parent on the playground. If there\u2019s someone you want to learn from, send them a note, nobody will not give you 20 minutes for coffee,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Marklund advised to find people who \u201cwill bring you up and out of someone else\u2019s umbrella.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re a high performer your manager might want to keep you and you have to be able to fly above that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Ma advised working women to find an inner circle when they need to express themselves.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt also applies to politics and lets you let out frustration with a safe group of people, so it doesn\u2019t eat away at you,\u201d Ma said.<\/p>\n
Martin remarked that work-life balance doesn\u2019t resemble what it looked like pre-COVID and asked the panellists how they were able to carve out time during demanding careers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like the phrase \u2018work-life integration.\u2019 There\u2019s time\u2019s work needs you and times you have to be at home,\u201d Marklund said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know if we\u2019ve done a disservice to women by appearing to be perfect but that\u2019s not the reality. It\u2019s messy and in my own organization I try to be authentic about it,\u201d Gray added.<\/p>\n
\u201cBlock time out on your calendar. It\u2019s still hard to take time for yourself, but I remind myself no matter what happens with work, at the end of the day my family will still be there,\u201d Ma said.<\/p>\n
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