Lethbridge camp encouraging women to choose a career in the trades

It used to be uncommon to hear of women working in the trades, but the goal of a two-day camp is to get younger women involved in the industries.

LETHBRIDGE, ALTA. — A two-day camp is hoping to encourage more women to get into trades like welding, carpentry, mechanics and engineering – industries that have historically been dominated by men.

The Young Women in Trades and Technologies Spring Camp is hoping to change that trend.

“I’m interested in the electrical trade, but I want to know other ones that I would be interested in,” said Grade 10 student Berlin Shaw.

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She and nine other high school students from southern Alberta spent the afternoon on Wednesday learning about sheet metal at KB Heating in Lethbridge as part of the camp.

“We really love to see the people get involved like this and getting the opportunity to meet the young people and getting them interested in anything,” said Courtney Stinson, a journeyman refrigeration mechanic at KB Heating.

In 2023, out of 57,000 registered apprentices, only 7,300 were women.

The camp is aiming to boost those numbers, promoting workplace equality and addressing looming workforce shortages.

“There’s lots of girls getting involved in the trades now,” said Stinson. “There’s safety, human resources, there’s all sorts of things and it’s not like it used to be.”

Young Women in Trades and Technologies Spring Camp Attendees learning about different industries at the Young Women in Trades and Technologies Spring Camp in Lethbridge, Alta. (CTV News)

The students toured different businesses in Lethbridge, including KB Heating and PGS Equipment in Taber, to learn about the opportunities each industry has.

“I can see what is going on and what I actually want to do because I love building with my hands and getting messy,” said Grade 11 student Torrie VandenBrink.

This is the fifth year Career: The Next Generation has hosted the camp, with many of the participating businesses offering the students summer internships, which potentially lead to future careers.

While Stinson says not everyone will leave the camp interested in trades, it’s the chance to show them what’s possible that counts.

“I didn’t know about this world and to come from there to here now and being able to talk about it,” said Stinton.

“If I can reach out to one person and get one girl to get to go through what I got to go through and have the confidence that I’ve gotten from this, it means the world to me.”