The Fourth Annual Women Building California and the Nation Conference opened on April 25, 2014, in Sacramento, Calif., and the International Association of Iron Workers and IMPACT were fully represented.

General President Walter Wise addressed the gathering on April 26, leading off a conference agenda offering sessions on safety, business development, and a range of other construction industry topics.

"I was gratified to have taken part in the Fourth Annual Women Building California and the Nation Conference recently in Sacramento," said Wise.  "Members of the International Association of Iron Workers represented the largest contingent of building trades unions at the conference, with 121 in attendance. We heard amazing stories of life transformations from those in attendance, individuals who shared stories of how important it is to have the opportunity to learn a trade and have the ability to earn fair wages and benefits." 

Wise went on to say, "Our commitment is to expanding our outreach to further educate the public and the business community about the career opportunities available with Iron Workers. To this end, we have formed a Recruitment Advisory Board and pilot programs that incorporate more pre-apprenticeship programs, such as the Native American initiative that is a major priority for us."

The International Association and IMPACT are pleased to share the stories of some of our members who attended the conference.

Lisa Lockhart has witnessed a lot of change during the 26 years since she first entered an ironworker apprentice program.  For one thing, Lockhart’s skills at ironwork have refined to such a degree that she now holds multiple welding certifications. She now is an expert in worksite safety – and she was recently elected vice president at Local Union 112 in Peoria, Ill.

In addition, similar to any skilled-trades worker who has forged ahead in their craft for 20-plus years, Lockhart has witnessed her share of ups and downs in the construction industry.  She has devised personal strategies for success, however, enabling Lockhart to stay employed and healthy in an occupation that is among the toughest in world.

Learning then mastering the requirements of iron work requires focus, determination, and mental and physical strength.  “I was always kind of an optical illusion: I mean, I’m five feet five inches tall and weighed about 125 pounds when I started but Ihave always been extremely strong for my size,” says Lockhart.

It is work that she loves, which is why Lockhart proudly continues in the trade.

Now, she is among 26 iron workers from the Ironworkers Union who received a scholarship to attend the Fourth Annual Women Building California and the Nation, a leading annual conference focused on women in skilled-trades. Co-sponsored by the International Association of Iron Workers and IMPACT, the scholarships cover all travel expenses for recipients, as well as registration fees for the conference (April 25-27, 2014), in Sacramento, Calif.  The conference agenda is jam-packed with panels and sessions focused on relevant construction industry issues, including safety and training best-practices, but also topics of particular interest to women in the skilled trades.

“I was very grateful to be selected for the scholarship,”  Lockhart said. She had wanted to attend the conference, conducted by the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California, last year but the cost was prohibitive.  “These kinds of professional gatherings are important, yet it isn’t always the case that there is available support that would allow me to attend,” Lockhart  said.

She is among more than 100 women iron workers from the U.S. and Canada who attended the conference, and Lockhart believes the opportunity to meet and learn from women in other skilled trades occupations, such as electrical or carpentry, will allow her to continue improving her skills as an iron worker.

“When people find out I’m an iron worker for the first time they’re like, “WHAT?!,” Lockhart said, laughing. “Some of them can’t believe it…but most people think it is pretty cool.”

Anna Bromley started working at one of the world’s largest retail corporations at age 15 .  She grilled burgers, packaged fries, and filled soda cups for thousands of customers day after day.  Before she knew it, she had spent 20 years at the company, working for various franchises in the Pacific Northwest, her home region. And while Bromley had progressed within the company– rising to the position of a store manager by the time she reached her 30s – she felt stuck.

“After doing that kind of work for so many years, I decided I really wanted to do something more with my life,” said Bromley, of Portland, Ore.  “I wanted to do something that would make a mark.”  The restaurant work also left Bromley feeling exploited:  Despite the many years of service, the long hours and dedication to customer needs, Bromley was required to pay nearly $200 per month from her own pocket for health benefits.

At the end of each month, she had no money for savings, and seemed to be on a drab treadmill to Nowheresville.  But, thanks to the encouragement of a long-time family friend who is an ironworker, Bromley found the will to get off the fast-food worker treadmill.   With her friend’s guidance, and with the input of an uncle who is a retired ironworker, she made her way to a local nonprofit organization that focuses on skilled-trades job training, and signed up for a pre-apprenticeship course.

“I researched ironworking after my friend who is an ironworker talked with me about why he loves the job,” said Bromley. “I picked his brain, and also talked about it a lot with my uncle,” said Bromley.  Now, she is a third-year apprentice at Local Union 29 in Portland, and is proud to be part of a trade and a tradition that honors workers – and offers payment enough to allow her to plan for the future.

At first, Bromley found the learning-curve of the apprenticeship somewhat challenging but, “after a month or so, I was doing very well.”  She drew upon math skills she had acquired in school, and remained in close contact with her friend, who helped her quickly apply the lessons she received in her classes to “real world” tasks that ironworkers face on jobsites.

Once she was accepted into the apprentice program at Local Union 29, Bromley’s initial job was as a welder’s apprentice, where she started out assigned to Fire Watch duty. “It was all observation, which allowed me to really absorb how the work is done, including how much wire is needed at particular times in a given job, and all the important material and safety concerns,” Bromley said.

In March, Keith Kordenat, Apprenticeship Coordinator at Local Union 29 let her know that she had been nominated to receive a scholarship to attend the Fourth Annual Women Building California and the Nation Conference in Sacramento, CA.  It was a welcome surprise, one that further reinforced Bromley’s choice to leave the dead-end job, where she’d spent 20 years, and enter an occupation where leadership values her contribution.  Even before receiving word of the scholarship, Bromley’s outlook on life and on herself had changed for the better, she said. Now, instead of dreading going to work every day, she springs out of her home each morning and cannot wait to get to the job site.

To her family-members and friends, Bromley’s choice of a new occupation seemed odd, but Bromley did not shrink from the challenge of the work, nor was she deterred by others’ skepticism.

Bromley has earned a welding certificate, and recently wrapped up a job on the Children’s Museum in Portland; she’s confident that her next assignment will be equally fulfilling.

“I made a commitment to ironworking, and I don’t regret it for a second. It was absolutely the right choice,” Bromley said.  “I am good at this work, I want to get even better at it. Plus, my co-workers are great, we support each other, and now I am positive the work I do is making a mark.”