When electrician Jessica Loney came out as a gender-diverse transwoman in 2019, she faced negativity and harassment on construction jobsites so through a social media campaign with like-minded people in construction she formed a grassroots movement to combat hate.
On Facebook, Instagram, X and other platforms they shared work experiences and surprisingly the initiative saw a global response, with European, North American and even Australian construction workers weighing in on their situations.
“It was about being Queer in construction and it culminated when Pride flags started flying on construction sites during Pride season,” says Loney, who has been in the electrical trade in Alberta for 18-and-a-half years.
The success moved Loney and her colleagues to expand the initiative, naming it Pride in Construction, to cover a range of underrepresented groups including Indigenous, visible minorities and other members of the 2SLGBTQI+ communities.
After a lot of back end work, last year they went public with the DiversiTrade Resource and Connection Centre, a registered not-for-profit society supporting diversity in the trades and the building industry.
The society has partnered with a number of organizations including Women Building Futures and The Office to Advance Women Apprentices Alberta and provides them with resources and connections, she says.
“It is like a one-stop shop if you are looking for unions, work apparel, consulting or job boards. It is a way to connect communities.”
In June DiversiTrade will present its second annual Pride in Construction event. In partnership with SAIT Polytechnic in Calgary the day-long session will feature a fireside chat about inclusivity in the trades. There will also be vendor booths and a luncheon.
Loney says the industry has a come long way in the past 20 years. When she started her apprenticeship in 2007, the field was still “hyper-masculine…a toxic environment.”
Today more young women and other underrepresented communities are choosing construction.
“I think a lot of that old-school mentality is literally starting to retire.”
Women still face barriers such as child care and accessibility needs but the environment is more welcoming and inclusive to them and other communities.
She says the changing demographics onsites benefit all construction workers.
“A lot of the recruitment campaigns now are starting to show gender diverse people, women and racialized people.
“I think it is fantastic that the general contractors, owners, consultants are all taking it seriously, not just for inclusivity but also for sustainability and retention efforts and just the overall happiness of workers onsite.”
Loney says having a wide range of viewpoints in the industry helps drive innovation.
Coming out of high school she didn’t see construction as her ticket because schools in the 1990s-2000s promoted college and university education, not the skilled trades.
“I always liked working with my hands and I thought electricity was neat…but I didn’t realize it was a really good career path.”
Loney is a master electrician with a raft of certifications including a national construction safety officer designation, professional gold seal certification for construction safety and electrical safety code officer. She currently works for a major municipality as an electrical inspector.
In DiversiTrade’s inaugural year in 2024, she was honoured with three awards for her leadership skills in construction, including one of the top 100 of Canada’s Most Powerful Women in the skilled trades category presented by the Women’s Executive Network.
Advice she gives young underrepresented people considering a career in the trades is to tap into employee resource groups, such as the online Alberta Women in Trades Facebook group and societies such as Pride at Work Canada, Women Building Futures and DiversiTrade.
“Construction is fantastic way to be able to set yourself up for success for the future,” she says.
“I love the construction industry. The amount of innovation and inspiration from these big projects we build and the people that work within it is absolutely incredible.”
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