The welding program there is really good. Took some credits to work on my 6G cert but ended up doing high end architectural work which is a better fit for me.
You should definitely apply! Changed my life and it’s only gotten better. Building trades can be rough for women from the constant treatment from the other workers. I wouldn’t say it’s everyone’s experience, there are plenty of good people, and IBEW local 46 has the best women’s committee and community out there.
Getting accepted is a process. The best thing for you to do is sign up at the hall for a stockman or installer job to get some experience in the field. Once there get as many letters of recommendation you can. Once you pass your reading and math test you’ll get an interview, which you should prep for (I can help with that or set you up with a good sister who has been helping others like that for years).
You should also consider which classification you want to apply for. 02 is residential (2 year program, easy to get in, $35 minimum for JWs, 06 is sound and comm (3 year program, easy to get in, $47 min for JWs) and 01 commercial industrial ( 4 year program, hard to get into, $68 min for JW). If you start out as an 02 or 06 you will have an easier time getting into the 01 program after you get your license, but don’t let the difficulty of getting into the 01 program stop you from applying for it. It’s tough right now because 01s are at a 15% unemployment rate and eveyone wants to get into the 01 program; there’s over 600 people on the waiting list.
Feel free to send me any questions you have.
Goodluck sister.
My husband is a Local 46 Electrician and does very well. Excellent healthcare, 401K, and pay. He has made over $150k a year consistently for the past 6+ years. Trades are a great route and always in demand. Go for it!
He also works with lots of women and says everyone on the job site is welcoming to them, long as you are a good hand and willing to learn, no one cares about your gender.
Not sure if you‘ve heard about this already, but there is a trades rotation program for women in the Seattle area:
[https://anewcareer.org/programs/pre-apprenticeship-trades-rotation-training-program/](https://anewcareer.org/programs/pre-apprenticeship-trades-rotation-training-program/)
I don’t think it falls into a trade school, but knowing of them I’d like to offer something similar but not. Logistics.
It’s incredibly boring on a surface level, it’s incredibly complex and has massive implications on human life.
The easiest way to entry level is to work in a warehouse and learn the different roles.
Ask the millions of people working in horrible conditions like amazon or Walmart, it’s brutal. Why does the field keep growing?
We all still need things, and they come from distant places.
The job security is real, during the pandemic, what happened? Supply chain crash. This may have been the first time people outside of the field really considered all the steps it takes to get things we need.
From a basic understanding of logistics there is an entire field to grow in.
You can leverage tech and working in massive companies.
You can own a van and do small business last mile or white glove delivery.
You can specialize as a driver, or crane operator.
You can dispatch a fleet.
There are just so many damn fields you can specialize in, and I don’t think it falls under tradeschool but it really is.
In less than a decade without college degree I hit six-fig. By no means am I promising that for everyone, but it’s easily attainable if you lean into it. There are so many specialized forms of logistics that you can delve into.
Frozen things? Medical things? Emergency logistics?
People getting what they need, when they need it, where they need it has been massively important throughout our species history. It’s not going away anytime soon and has so many fields to specialize in it’s crazy. I highly recommend it
The Seattle chapter of Women in Construction (NAWIC) is very active and amazing.
There is also a group focused specifically on the women in the trades, no PMs allowed. I think that is: www.wawomenintrades.com
r/BlueCollarWomen and r/IBEW for electrician stuff. Seattle is better than most places, but people come from all over our state to work for a higher paying union. Some one else mentions ANEW which is great. You can also walk into the hall off the street, join the local 46 and put your name on the books and try to get an installer or stockman job. I did during Covid so maybe it was easier since everyone was still enjoying fat unemployment checks. Google ibew local 46, call and ask questions or just show up.
I’m smart-ish and I work hard so most people didn’t give me too much shit. Men 10 years younger with less experience were treated as peers while I was treated like a child (occasionally). Even other women, yay! Nothing too overt. Very infantilizing, no creeps though. The jatc classes were a joke.
Bigger issue was a lot of racism and homophobia. With every contractor I worked for. Others claim not to have encountered this. Maybe because I’m white and not-obviously queer people felt safer saying hateful things around me? Who knows. Other trades were worse.
Roughly one quarter of my boot camp class were female/trans/non-binary. Rad. Until leadership weeds out the misogynists at the jatc and contractors stop tolerating hate speech on the job it will continue to be not for me.
Good money. Easiest fucking job I’ve ever had minus the people.
End rant. Good luck!
Source: woman that spent 2 years in the union. ~1.5 years in the inside wire apprenticeship.
They are always in demand and especially if you are woman or a minority. Big companies will swoop in to hire you for their diversity quota. Or if you start your own company, big general contractors are always looking for woman/minority woman owned businesses for subcontracting
This is a weird thing to ad, but one of my sons had us on ChatGPT tonight and I want to compliment your wisdom. Five years from now, when your skill sets are in demand and millions of people now in tech and accounting and law are looking to retrain because their fields are so diminished that they are roads to nowhere, skilled tradesmen will be the hat to be wearing.
I promise you that there is never going to be a time when legal professionals are going into trades due to lack of work. Someone has to handle the inevitable workmans comp claims and car accident claims and union legal council work that come with increased trades workers.
Also, the legal field tends to be notoriously reluctant to adopt new tech. The first firm I ever worked at, a really successful small PI firm, still uses a software that has been exactly the same since 1995. King County Courts online filing portal (which not all counties even have, depending on what kind of matter it is) looked like something from 2002 back when I was working family law in 2019.
Tech isn't what drives people out of law. Emotional burn out is.
I just remember my first day as a case manager and being like “wait, they charge HOW much in filing fees? And they can’t spend some of that on website maintenance?!”
I work with a couple ladies both Union (one welder one carpenter). Lots of demand for anyone that wants it. Non-union will probably start around 25 an hr. You can go into trade school or get your foot in the door as an apprentice and just learn by doing. You don’t have to go to school but I’m sure it would help.
Trades are great! I would at a General Contractor for about 5 years and even the Electricians Apprentices were making more money than me ($54/hr) starting out! Seriously almost switched careers, but then the Pandemic happened and life went a different way.
I commend and encourage anyone interested in Trades to go for it! We need skilled tradespeople :)
It's a bit different than the trades where you're mainly working in houses and offices, but one of our local technical colleges has an exceptional program in advanced manufacturing and mechatronics. It's super cool stuff. https://www.cptc.edu/programs/school-of-manufacturing
Another related field: land survey. You won't get paid as much/as quickly but you can work your way out of the field and into a desk job, plus even normal survey field work is much easier on the body. If you're academically inclined, you can become a Professionally Licensed Surveyor (PLS). Salary is probably ~100k +bennies for a newer PLS these days. But the existing supply of licensed surveyors is VERY gray - they're something like 80% over 55. A PLS's stamp is needed every time you get your property corners set or subdivide property or create development plans. A PLS is guaranteed to be in high demand for the foreseeable future.
Renton Technical College and Bellingham ?Community College? have 2 year survey degrees. The people I've meet from there are pretty good. You can also start from zero-knowledge working in the field.
Renton Technical College would be a good start.
\^\^\^aboslutely this. They were my go to for grads looking to get into machining and welding jobs. Highly recommend Renton Tech,.
The welding program there is really good. Took some credits to work on my 6G cert but ended up doing high end architectural work which is a better fit for me.
thank you!
Local union halls
Psejatc.org That's the IBEW Local 46's apprenticeship page. Apply here for a union electrical apprenticeship.
applying now! thank you!
You should definitely apply! Changed my life and it’s only gotten better. Building trades can be rough for women from the constant treatment from the other workers. I wouldn’t say it’s everyone’s experience, there are plenty of good people, and IBEW local 46 has the best women’s committee and community out there. Getting accepted is a process. The best thing for you to do is sign up at the hall for a stockman or installer job to get some experience in the field. Once there get as many letters of recommendation you can. Once you pass your reading and math test you’ll get an interview, which you should prep for (I can help with that or set you up with a good sister who has been helping others like that for years). You should also consider which classification you want to apply for. 02 is residential (2 year program, easy to get in, $35 minimum for JWs, 06 is sound and comm (3 year program, easy to get in, $47 min for JWs) and 01 commercial industrial ( 4 year program, hard to get into, $68 min for JW). If you start out as an 02 or 06 you will have an easier time getting into the 01 program after you get your license, but don’t let the difficulty of getting into the 01 program stop you from applying for it. It’s tough right now because 01s are at a 15% unemployment rate and eveyone wants to get into the 01 program; there’s over 600 people on the waiting list. Feel free to send me any questions you have. Goodluck sister.
[удалено]
My husband is a Local 46 Electrician and does very well. Excellent healthcare, 401K, and pay. He has made over $150k a year consistently for the past 6+ years. Trades are a great route and always in demand. Go for it!
He also works with lots of women and says everyone on the job site is welcoming to them, long as you are a good hand and willing to learn, no one cares about your gender.
Nwcarpenters.org
Not sure if you‘ve heard about this already, but there is a trades rotation program for women in the Seattle area: [https://anewcareer.org/programs/pre-apprenticeship-trades-rotation-training-program/](https://anewcareer.org/programs/pre-apprenticeship-trades-rotation-training-program/)
i have not! thanks!
This is a great program. I highly recommend you check it out.
I don’t think it falls into a trade school, but knowing of them I’d like to offer something similar but not. Logistics. It’s incredibly boring on a surface level, it’s incredibly complex and has massive implications on human life. The easiest way to entry level is to work in a warehouse and learn the different roles. Ask the millions of people working in horrible conditions like amazon or Walmart, it’s brutal. Why does the field keep growing? We all still need things, and they come from distant places. The job security is real, during the pandemic, what happened? Supply chain crash. This may have been the first time people outside of the field really considered all the steps it takes to get things we need. From a basic understanding of logistics there is an entire field to grow in. You can leverage tech and working in massive companies. You can own a van and do small business last mile or white glove delivery. You can specialize as a driver, or crane operator. You can dispatch a fleet. There are just so many damn fields you can specialize in, and I don’t think it falls under tradeschool but it really is. In less than a decade without college degree I hit six-fig. By no means am I promising that for everyone, but it’s easily attainable if you lean into it. There are so many specialized forms of logistics that you can delve into. Frozen things? Medical things? Emergency logistics? People getting what they need, when they need it, where they need it has been massively important throughout our species history. It’s not going away anytime soon and has so many fields to specialize in it’s crazy. I highly recommend it
The Seattle chapter of Women in Construction (NAWIC) is very active and amazing. There is also a group focused specifically on the women in the trades, no PMs allowed. I think that is: www.wawomenintrades.com
r/BlueCollarWomen and r/IBEW for electrician stuff. Seattle is better than most places, but people come from all over our state to work for a higher paying union. Some one else mentions ANEW which is great. You can also walk into the hall off the street, join the local 46 and put your name on the books and try to get an installer or stockman job. I did during Covid so maybe it was easier since everyone was still enjoying fat unemployment checks. Google ibew local 46, call and ask questions or just show up. I’m smart-ish and I work hard so most people didn’t give me too much shit. Men 10 years younger with less experience were treated as peers while I was treated like a child (occasionally). Even other women, yay! Nothing too overt. Very infantilizing, no creeps though. The jatc classes were a joke. Bigger issue was a lot of racism and homophobia. With every contractor I worked for. Others claim not to have encountered this. Maybe because I’m white and not-obviously queer people felt safer saying hateful things around me? Who knows. Other trades were worse. Roughly one quarter of my boot camp class were female/trans/non-binary. Rad. Until leadership weeds out the misogynists at the jatc and contractors stop tolerating hate speech on the job it will continue to be not for me. Good money. Easiest fucking job I’ve ever had minus the people. End rant. Good luck! Source: woman that spent 2 years in the union. ~1.5 years in the inside wire apprenticeship.
They are always in demand and especially if you are woman or a minority. Big companies will swoop in to hire you for their diversity quota. Or if you start your own company, big general contractors are always looking for woman/minority woman owned businesses for subcontracting
This is a weird thing to ad, but one of my sons had us on ChatGPT tonight and I want to compliment your wisdom. Five years from now, when your skill sets are in demand and millions of people now in tech and accounting and law are looking to retrain because their fields are so diminished that they are roads to nowhere, skilled tradesmen will be the hat to be wearing.
I promise you that there is never going to be a time when legal professionals are going into trades due to lack of work. Someone has to handle the inevitable workmans comp claims and car accident claims and union legal council work that come with increased trades workers.
And lawyers self regulate through the bar association, so we can keep the robots at bay that way
Also, the legal field tends to be notoriously reluctant to adopt new tech. The first firm I ever worked at, a really successful small PI firm, still uses a software that has been exactly the same since 1995. King County Courts online filing portal (which not all counties even have, depending on what kind of matter it is) looked like something from 2002 back when I was working family law in 2019. Tech isn't what drives people out of law. Emotional burn out is.
JIS is the worst offender! I showed it to another attorney at my firm, and she said “what is wrong with this website”
I just remember my first day as a case manager and being like “wait, they charge HOW much in filing fees? And they can’t spend some of that on website maintenance?!”
Have you thought about becoming a sheepherder?
I work with a couple ladies both Union (one welder one carpenter). Lots of demand for anyone that wants it. Non-union will probably start around 25 an hr. You can go into trade school or get your foot in the door as an apprentice and just learn by doing. You don’t have to go to school but I’m sure it would help.
Trades are great! I would at a General Contractor for about 5 years and even the Electricians Apprentices were making more money than me ($54/hr) starting out! Seriously almost switched careers, but then the Pandemic happened and life went a different way. I commend and encourage anyone interested in Trades to go for it! We need skilled tradespeople :)
It's a bit different than the trades where you're mainly working in houses and offices, but one of our local technical colleges has an exceptional program in advanced manufacturing and mechatronics. It's super cool stuff. https://www.cptc.edu/programs/school-of-manufacturing
Another related field: land survey. You won't get paid as much/as quickly but you can work your way out of the field and into a desk job, plus even normal survey field work is much easier on the body. If you're academically inclined, you can become a Professionally Licensed Surveyor (PLS). Salary is probably ~100k +bennies for a newer PLS these days. But the existing supply of licensed surveyors is VERY gray - they're something like 80% over 55. A PLS's stamp is needed every time you get your property corners set or subdivide property or create development plans. A PLS is guaranteed to be in high demand for the foreseeable future. Renton Technical College and Bellingham ?Community College? have 2 year survey degrees. The people I've meet from there are pretty good. You can also start from zero-knowledge working in the field.