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.
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.
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.
In her introductory remarks, Ma said British Columbia’s rapidly growing population required more schools, hospitals, roads and other infrastructure and that “it doesn’t serve companies, communities or families well to have the construction sector closed off from hiring half of the population.”
Ma also praised both the VRCA and CCW and “women like you (attendees) who refuse to stand down on your right for nothing less than equal standing in the workplace.”
Lal asked what obstacles the panellists have had to face in the industry, with all three noting similar experiences.
“I’m 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,” Marklund said.
“Individuals sometimes don’t know they have that impact, but it’s the persistence of just showing up, doing the work and not letting it bother me too much. It’s not about me and it’s probably their problem.”
“The world I’d seen previously as a COO was a lot of fist pounding on tables,” Gray said.
While it took time for her to build relationships, she saw being female as an advantage.
“Women make those connections and foster relationships, even when nothing changes, you’re still building relationships and can go from there,” she said.
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 “just not dedicated.”
“In 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,” Ma said.
When asked to give advice on seeking and delivering mentorship, Gray said to not restrict oneself to the workplace.
“Find your inner circle, (which) could be a person you work with or a parent on the playground. If there’s someone you want to learn from, send them a note, nobody will not give you 20 minutes for coffee,” she said.
Marklund advised to find people who “will bring you up and out of someone else’s umbrella.”
“If you’re a high performer your manager might want to keep you and you have to be able to fly above that,” she said.
Ma advised working women to find an inner circle when they need to express themselves.
“It also applies to politics and lets you let out frustration with a safe group of people, so it doesn’t eat away at you,” Ma said.
Martin remarked that work-life balance doesn’t resemble what it looked like pre-COVID and asked the panellists how they were able to carve out time during demanding careers.
“I like the phrase ‘work-life integration.’ There’s time’s work needs you and times you have to be at home,” Marklund said.
“I don’t know if we’ve done a disservice to women by appearing to be perfect but that’s not the reality. It’s messy and in my own organization I try to be authentic about it,” Gray added.
“Block time out on your calendar. It’s 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,” Ma said.
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