Gwen Marshall, who has worked in the construction industry for 25 years, owned a business with her husband from 1987 to 2008. When he passed away in July 2010, Marshall was in mourning and at a loss as to how to proceed, but in the spring of 2011, she found a job in green building construction. She was soon laid off, however, and turned to Goodwill of North Georgia (Atlanta) for its Women in Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Occupations (WANTO) program. When she was behind on her dues for an apprenticeship program, the Atlanta Goodwill was able to help her with her dues and transportation.
“In a long time haven’t found a group of people who cared more about people and are truly here to help, and that’s the truth,” Marshall said. “It’s a wonderful and extremely beneficial program.”
The Atlanta Goodwill’s WANTO program started in July 2012 as a two-year grant from the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration’s Office of Apprenticeship and the Women’s Bureau. In this program, women not only learn the skills needed for construction positions, but they participate in mock interviews, improve their physical fitness and learn money management skills.
Now Marshall—with a full-time construction job—also serves as a mentor for WANTO candidates.
“You need to learn how to have some thick skin,” Marshall said. “I’m the only woman who works for my company that actually works out in the field, not in an office position,” Marshall said. “It’s still a man’s world but I’ve made a bit of headway as far as being able to work with these men and be respected for my work.”
Niccole Mahone, the WANTO job coach, says that to date, she and her team have placed 15 women in pre-apprenticeships, including anything from electrical line worker and welding to forklift training and highway construction. For women who were already in a union but weren’t able to find work because they were unable to pay dues, WANTO helps them pay dues and buy their tools and equipment.
“A lot of women have a lot of barriers that I help them overcome, which may include childcare, driver’s license fees, Class A certifications and more,” Mahone said.
WANTO is one of two programs at the Atlanta Goodwill that trains women in non-traditional jobs. Mandy Trowell is the construction training program manager who oversees not only the WANTO program but Georgia Women in Highway Construction. The highway construction training program for women, now in its 17th year, is funded by a grant from the Federal Highway Administration through the Georgia DOT.
Graduates from the seven-week highway construction program are qualified to work with federal highway contractors that build and pave roads. About 400 women each year attend one of the weekly information sessions, of whom 50 w omen are chosen to participate in the program. Between 2009 and 2012, 138 women participated in the program. While some of these participants have worked in the construction industry in the past, many are looking to change careers from industries such as health care, fast food, staffing agencies, security, retail and custodial jobs, to name a few.
“They really feel like [the program is] a brand-new start,” said Trowell. “They knew they could do this, and they are just as tough as the men.”
She adds, “Once they’ve gotten the job and maintained it, they’re able to really support their families for the first time in a lot of cases.”
