GTA non-profit introduces women's cohort in construction training program
Seven women in the Greater Toronto Area are on their way to new careers in the skilled trades, thanks to a local, specialty training program.
Blue Door's Construct program graduated its first cohort of all women last month — a milestone moment for the housing and employment non-profit, which aims to create more opportunities for women in the skilled trades.
"I really enjoy using the machines and being able to create something with my own hands," said Nikki Wallis, who recently completed the program in Aurora, Ont., funded in part by the federal government's Canadian Apprenticeship Strategy.
"I'm not a very confident person, I'm quite shy, but learning the trades I was able to open up more and try new things," she said.
The eight-week program includes in-class training, on-the-job work experience and wraparound supports to help vulnerable people secure long-term, well-paying careers in the construction trades.
Since women made up about five per cent of construction workers on-site nationally in 2024, according to the Canadian Association of Women in Construction — and despite industry efforts to hire more women — the program's leaders are hoping the women's cohort will create more opportunities to bring women into the industry, while learning in a safe space.
The Construct program is expected to have around 270 participants total this year, says Emmy Kelly, chief operating officer of Blue Door, and the next women-only cohort is slated to begin in June.
"We want to increase the number of women who have the opportunity to move into the labour trades and to do so this program provides support with child care, with transport, with any other needs that they might have to engage in the workforce," she said.
Kelly says the program also recognizes a void in the labour market, with the federal government saying in a March news release that the construction industry needs to recruit more than 350,000 new workers by 2033 to meet the demand of infrastructure, housing and industrial projects.
Employers need to focus on retention, women in the industry say
More programs that support training and recruitment have been making strides the last few years, but industry leaders say employers need to prioritize retaining female employees as well.
"Often women have the caregiver role in a family and so that can prevent them from engaging meaningfully because of barriers that are put there by employers," Kelly said, adding that the hours and lack of flexibility can make it difficult to support a family.
Constanza Maass, an environmental specialist, says she co-founded Women on Site to help address this issue.
The non profit's website said it was founded in 2022 by four women in the industry who recognized the need for connection and support within the building industries. The group encourages women and gender diverse individuals to stay and thrive in their male-dominated careers through networking, mentorship and community building opportunities.
"Once we all got out into the field and started working, we realized that all the support that we had once we were done training wasn't really there anymore," Maass said, adding she was close to leaving to industry.
"Women need to feel like they have a community, support and people that they can talk to, so that we're not losing all these people that we spent a lot of work and money and effort into training," she said.
Narin Ismail, who also graduated from the first women's cohort last month, says her goal is to become a carpenter — something she says she would have pursued earlier if more programs like this existed. But she says when she was in high school, there wasn't the same push to get women into the trades that there is now.
She encouraged any other women interested in the field to check out Blue Door's program.
"If you're a woman and you want to get into the trades, it's not too late," she said. "I think there are many opportunities for women out there, we can do it."
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