Empowering Women in the Trades with Anita Bruno

Career Intelligence Podcast...: What an eye-opening conversation with Anita. She shared how the trades offer not just careers, but pathways to financial independence, confidence, and long-term growth. Anita reminded us that exposure matters from young girls in the classrooms to women rebuilding their lives, and that retention, safety, and support are just as critical as access. And we also discussed the wide range of opportunities within the trades and the importance of education, Welcome to the Career Intelligence Podcast, where we explore bold career paths and the people redefining them. I'm your host Kathleen DeHoney, and today's conversation is about looking at the unconventional career path into the trades. Joining me is Anita Bruno, who is a union carpenter, entrepreneur, and founder of Rhode Island Women in the Trades, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding pathways for women and girls into construction careers. Welcome, I'm Kathleen DeHoney, the host of Career Intelligence, and my guest today is Anita Bruno, who you will need to keep up with. Anita is a Union Carpenter, entrepreneur, and founder of the nonprofit Rhode Island Women in the Trades, all while pursuing your MBA. And the topic is focusing on women and young women in the trades. Anita, I am really happy to have you on today to share your message. She serves on the board of Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England, the Providence CTE Advisory Committee, and the Rhode Island Tradeswomen Task Force. It is a life member of the NAACP. Her work includes leading the Rebuild Her Pathways program in partnership with the Rhode Island Department of Corrections, which equips incarcerated women with the construction skills and workforce readiness training.

Anita Bruno: Thank you very much. I'm excited to be here and honored to be here. Thank you for asking.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: advocacy and community. This education matters to help those pursue multiple paths in the trades. If this conversation inspired you, be sure to check the show notes to learn more and support this important work. Thanks for listening to Career Intelligence and remember your next career move might be somewhere you never thought to look. So maybe we could start by sharing what exactly are you doing to bring this kind of light to the trades, especially for women.

Anita Bruno: So there's multiple things actually. We, endeavor ⁓ just to advocate and create a safe space for ⁓ that are already in the trades. There's not many spaces for us to of sit and empower each other. ⁓ And we launched a eight week pre-apprentice program for women, ⁓ faceted ⁓ a program that I graduated in New York City called Non-Traditional Employment for Women or NEW for short. And that weeks just gives them an introduction to the industry. It gives them a hands-on, ⁓

Career Intelligence Podcast...: prior to reentry. Anita is currently pursuing her MBA while leading workforce initiatives that connect women to the union careers in the skilled trades and is recently a published author.

Anita Bruno: of about four or five different trades depending on the project that we're building. And I go through the whole gambit of all of the union building trades, union apprenticeships, and all of the careers under the umbrella of construction. And then launched our Girls Can Tool program where we're in the schools ⁓ we're able to connect with the sixth, seventh, and eighth graders to let them know that this is a career path. And now we just launched ⁓ our program, Rebuild Her Pathway. ways the ACI. ⁓ incarcerated women have an understanding that this is something that they could get into.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: So your population of women run a wide range of young girls learning about what's out there and to women who maybe never thought about even doing something like this.

Anita Bruno: If we're talking about the national workforce shortage, that's not going to close overnight. So getting those younger girls educated on number one, this is a career path, getting their parents educated that yes, they can still make probably more than a doctor or a lawyer as a plumber or an electrician or a carpenter. So re-educating families and then letting little girls like build that skills and confidence that this is something they could do. So yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Yeah, that's great because that I think has been the message of... And it's not that women weren't invited to the table. It was just never really thought about.

Anita Bruno: Not just not thought about, historically women haven't been invited to the table. Historically women were supposed to do ⁓ pink collar jobs, ⁓ caregiving or ⁓ health aid, CNA. secretarial work, right? They weren't really looked at. then, you you had the big push during World War II for the Rosie the Riveter stance when the men were all at war. So the women had to join the factories to create and build the ships and the planes and all of the artillery that we used during that war. ⁓ But once that men shortage shrunk the men came home, ⁓ then were back into the house being the caregivers again, taking care care of the family. women weren't really kind of encouraged for this. Even women that I meet today that I talk about what I do, they're like, ⁓ wow. even though that was an option. If I knew that, I would have been in the field instead. love working with my hands, things like that. And most the girls that we get in touch with, when I them, whoever heard about construction, maybe one of them raised their hand ⁓ out of 20 girls that we have in that class that day, ⁓ if even of them. And that might be because maybe her dad's an electrician or ⁓ her dad's contractor. So ⁓ that's the only exposure that they've gotten even to this day.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Yeah, that's a great segue into thinking about you. Take us back to your first week on the job site as a union carpenter. And what was the moment you realized either A, I belong here or B, what have I gotten myself into?

Anita Bruno: I think it was a little of both. Lord, my first day on the job as a union carpenter, I was in New York City because as I said, I got in through a pre-apprentice program called Non-Traditional Employment for Women. New York has direct entry goals where the unions have to take 10 % of the graduates from registered apprenticeships. So Non-Traditional Employment for Women was one. So I was one of the 10 % that was able to get into the Carpenters Union that year, 2007. So my first job was Prince Construction. Which is funny in New York. There's like a couple of companies. They tell you that keep you running like run and jump a whole different ballgame in New York the strictness I've seen a Rhode Island apprentices on their cell phone that would never fly in New York City, so I learned really that break time was the company's time lunchtime was my time. ⁓ I learned really that early is late ⁓ I'm sorry, early is on time and on time is late. So my work ethics, I learned all of that. The big difference about New York though is because New York has that direct entry, there were more women on the job site. There were about five women. My first job was a 30 story building. And as the low man on the totem pole, I insulated, I learned every aspect of insulation on that job. They even insulated the kitchen cabinets, which people didn't even hear of. They wanted that sound quality. I learned so much on that job and I proved myself because they kept me from the to the very end. went from ⁓ to a little bit of framing, doing the drywall. ⁓ I went with the finish crew, doing cabinets, installing that. So I that very to the very end of the job. So they respected my work ethic. ⁓ But there about five other girls on that job out of about 400 workers that were building 30 stories, you know, so. ⁓ It was pretty amazing and I fell in love with it. I fell in love with all of the work and then from then on it's like I'm never at a desk. I'm never doing the same thing twice. I've been over the ocean doing bridge work. I've been over highways, 30 story buildings, ⁓ garage for Gary Heigh Court House, all kind of things. So ⁓ I ⁓ bragging we call it.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Yeah, it's really eye-opening to hear you say that there was so few of you but yet what you take going forward from ⁓ say swinging a hammer to today running these pre-apprenticeship programs and workforce development programs. Was there a specific kind of light bulb moment when you realized I need to do more for women and young girls in the trade from rather just being you ⁓ in the office and the job site, but what can I do?

Anita Bruno: That's interesting. So in the female carpenters until Trump administration were organized, ⁓ had women's committees called Sisters in the Brotherhood for 20 years. ⁓ were established. So they had built ⁓ template of how to run meetings, create agendas, how to get involved in the community. ⁓ in 2018, ⁓ ⁓ International is in ⁓ Vegas. ⁓ they sent me to Las Vegas for our Sisters in the Brotherhood conference. I met sisters, female carpenters from all across the world, even women were there. ⁓ So having starting build that network, I got really empowered, came back Rhode Island, started my own chapter, ⁓ Local 330 in the Brotherhood. ⁓ And it met with ⁓ different feelings, ⁓ I guess. leadership at the time did support us. ⁓ were a little lax. They, to put it in perspective, the time, 2019 there was 1,826 members for Local 330. Now Rhode Island carpenters merged with Fall River, so we cover Rhode Island and Southeastern Mass. 1,826 members, only 26 women. So out of that 26, four were retired and a couple of them hadn't worked in years so they weren't even living in Rhode Island anymore although they still paid their dues every month so they were still considered members. we started having the meetings, maybe about 10 women showed regularly every month. We held our meetings at ⁓ the Community Rec Center in the city of Providence in Oneyville. They've been a strong supporter of us since day one. ⁓ The women ⁓ more confident and courageous come into the rec center versus having to go to the the carpenter's hall ⁓ felt that they could be candid they felt that they could speak ⁓ on mind and a lot of them vented in the beginning the very beginning they vented about things that had happened in the past ⁓ if they were if they weren't working how long they haven't been to work ⁓ and then at time i had built a really good rapport with local president so historically that was the first time that any woman that wanted to work was working in our union. So as months went by, I built confidence in the women. ⁓ I built with the women. I learned really if you want a friend, you have to be a friend. ⁓ a couple of confided in me that they were being harassed ⁓ by a male which is leadership for the union on the job site. They're supposed to uplift like the union contract on the job site, especially ⁓ safety. And this the person that was harassing these two females. ⁓ So I spoke

Career Intelligence Podcast...: you

Anita Bruno: about it the impression that ⁓ leadership supported us and the work that we were doing. ⁓ I realized really quick that it wasn't that way. ⁓ became ⁓ troublemaker. My leadership skills were brought into question. The was disbanded. So thus Island Women in the Trades was born. And it ⁓ wasn't just actually. It was in at that time ⁓ with Councilman Rachel who had to us had took it over the reins at Buildin' Futures as it was trying to figure out ⁓ to organize the Buildin' Futures graduate women, but had any luck. ⁓ So kind of came to meeting with me, tried to pick my brain. How are you getting at least these 10 women meeting on a monthly basis when I can't even get one of them to come in? So we kind had that conversation. I did a tour Buildin' Futures, which was a phenomenal space. I had never been there. I didn't even hear of them because ⁓ again, I came from York from that. pre-apprentice program for women so I had no idea what they were. was a phenomenal space. ⁓ was one ⁓ female there that Rachel brought with her, Kristen from the Painters Union ⁓ and of our female carpenters were there. We had about 10 female carpenters ⁓ and said, hey Anita can you do what you're doing for them for all of us? ⁓ She I try to organize the painter women and ⁓ I ever get anybody. I'm the only one that's engaged and involved so ⁓ that's of when we started to talk about Rhode Island women in the trades and how we can advocate for all of the trades women in Rhode Island not just the female carpenters.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: I like the idea and the angle that these professional trades, I think what happens is they just think it's plumbing HVAC and carpentry and there's just so much more.

Anita Bruno: Yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Are you seeing this type of practice or advocacy being done across the country?

Anita Bruno: Yes, so. Some states are heavier than others. For example, talked about New York City. ⁓ New York has the direct entry goals on the of Labor on the DLT's website. So the of Labor and Trainings website, their goals ⁓ are 10 % for any registered apprenticeship to get into the unions or any union not just building trade unions. So that was a good number to get women and minorities into the apprenticeships. They have to give them, ⁓ don't have to take them into an apprenticeship. ⁓ direct entry says you have to give them an interview. But gives you a good starting base because ⁓ now they're going through the interview and they're not getting in, then you can have the conversation, well, what's going on? Why aren't they getting in? ⁓ What we do to help them ⁓ become or eligible? ⁓ Oregon, Oregon Tradeswomen, Oregon is like my favorite state when it comes to tradeswomen. ⁓ have been doing ⁓ much work. ⁓ ⁓ Highway Administration passed this ⁓ designated allocation of up to 2.1 % Federal Highway dollars to go towards diversifying the industry like 20 years ago, give or take. numbers might be off on the year it was established, but being that happened, the catch though that the states ⁓ that the highway dollars was going into had to delegate or designate ⁓ that 2.1 to ⁓ that work. ⁓ A lot states didn't do that because it could be millions, right? ⁓ Oregon created They created a whole plan on how to diversify that federal highway. so like heavy road and highways bridges all of that work ⁓ be designated under Federal Authority so ⁓ Oregon legislation that that 2.1 % went to that work ⁓ Specifically created a whole plan ⁓ and then ⁓ it been a proven ⁓ data Way to more women and minorities in the trades. They've done it. They've done the work. They have the proof to show that they did it Couple of years ago, they just created this Safe for Hate pledge. then this whole kind of campaign behind that, which ⁓ fell in love with again. There's been some safety campaigns like ⁓ Women in the Trade. Chicago has done a really good job with women into the industry for 40 years. Vicki O'Leary an iron worker. She's one of my role models. She's trailblazer for ⁓ women in the safety specifically. she created this Be That One Guy to talk about, if there's harassment or anything going on or. someone making someone feel intimidated, be that one guy, step in, help that person, whoever's getting harassed, because men get harassed too, right? So it's not just women that get harassed. Harassment is a big problem still today in the industry, no matter what gender is facing it. But created Be That One Guy. ⁓ But Oregon's Safe From Pledge took it a step further. It wasn't just about ⁓ the harassment the job site. It was about how are we being intentional at recruiting more women in minorities? And then once we recruit them, how will we be intentional at keeping them? How will we retain them? And then they're talking about harassment and a zero tolerance. So no more, I've been harassed on the job ⁓ I learned what a microaggression was. So just simple things like, I'm big-breasted. So as I'm in the field, I would wear to kind of squish me down, tighten me so I'm not moving, and then so I'm able to work with my tools. ⁓ And would still ask me, how are you working with those? And I'm like... ⁓ At first I would laugh it off. would feel uncomfortable. And then that's another thing that people don't understand. They would think when women laugh it off, ⁓ she must be okay with it. No, she's uncomfortable. She doesn't know what to say. She doesn't know how to react. It's something that's not like she came to work thinking that that was going to happen today, you know? So it's not like you have this whole list of comebacks. Some women can joke it off or they'll get back to them. Lately I've learned to say, you know, do you talk to your mother like that? Or would you like someone asking your daughter that question? You know? But I didn't know at the time, I was young and I was still naive. that ⁓ tolerance instead of saying, ⁓ you know how he is or he doesn't mean any harm by it or because sometimes that's what men would do. They would kind of pacify the situation or ⁓ the complaint. And ⁓ tolerance means we are not accepting that zero tolerance. So Safe From It 8 has ⁓ four pillars ⁓ uplift that whole ⁓

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Wait.

Anita Bruno: I ⁓ love what Oregon's doing. So Boston created the Boston Jobs Ordinance. ⁓ Now, Boston Jobs has ⁓ goals. They've actually, year they've increased, think women are up to 12%, minorities are 51%, and then 50 % city residents ⁓ on those job sites. that's really important ⁓ for any anybody, especially in Rhode Island, we passed the tax stabilization agreements, giving companies tax breaks for so many years to do work here, to do construction. That's perfect opportunities to instill those goals, to make sure that where we want to see more women on the job site, we want to see more city residents, people that live in that town working on those construction sites. And then we want to see more minorities. So Boston jobs ordinance did a really good job. But I do have to highlight that it's still not a law. So every mayor since has uplifted it, thankfully, so it's still in place and it's grown stronger, but the governor still hasn't put it into a law. It's still just an ordinance. Boston Jobs Ordinance, the Encore Casino, ⁓ I think was built four to five years ago, had the most women ⁓ and minorities a job site ever in history. Yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: That's amazing. And what I what I really appreciate you bringing all of this to light is, hey, we want people in the trades. ⁓ by the way, we want women in the trades. what are they doing to keep this longevity, keeping them safe and keeping them there for retention so that there's not this constant, I quit, forget it, I can't deal with this because this is,

Anita Bruno: Yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Everyone is shouting to the rooftops, AI is replacing everything. And I think it's going to be some time before we're going to see AI replace someone who's going to actually go in and fix a heating or cooling system or whatever it may be. that's really, the retention piece is really huge. So what do you think is the biggest myth?

Anita Bruno: Yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: that you believed about the trade work before you started and now you love really debunking for women.

Anita Bruno: So, not something I thought of, but something I've gotten. So, everybody assumes because I'm a carpenter that I'm gay. Now, if you're gay, that's your preference, but just because I'm in the trades doesn't mean I have to automatically be gay. I have a husband, I have kids, I have a little dog, I'm happy with my relationship, I like to get my nails done, I like to get my hair done. So, being in the trades affords me the lifestyle that I like to live. that's one of the myths I like to debunk. ⁓ she's in a train, she's an electrician, she's a plumber, if she is that's her prerogative, but doesn't mean she has to be just because she's in the trains, right? So that's, I guess that's one of the biggest ones.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Yeah, thank you for bringing that to light because that's again another stereotype.

Anita Bruno: Yes, yep, that she's manly or she's this or she's that, like no. That's not true. culturally I'm Hispanic come Latina Puerto Rican Portuguese so the Puerto side latinas a lot of that culture is Like women are supposed to ride bikes or ⁓ they're still real old-fashioned when it comes to femininity I ⁓ some cousins that never wore sneakers there in heels all the so ⁓ trying to break through that barrier that it's okay that she's working, right? And then the other thing is, okay, she's working around all these men. So that's that old myth that women, if they're married, aren't supposed to be around other men, or if she's around all them men, she must be a flirt or this and that. And that's not true either. Those are just my colleagues, right? And some of the best guys that I've ever met have been in the trades. They still have my back today. They stand up for all of the women that are on the job site. They are our big brothers. So the allies are there. ⁓ I'm going to the job to get my work done ⁓ in honest eight for honest eight hours pay. I like what I do. like building. I like the bragging rights. ⁓ I to drive by and know that that's going to be there way after gone. It's not about just that I'm working around a lot of men. So ⁓ that's, guess, thing that I'd like to debunk.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: So for our listeners, when they hear the word trades, they often think of, ⁓ what is that? Hammer and nails and electrical. Can you paint a picture for us of other roles that young women could think about in getting involved in the trades, everything from the green energy to ⁓ CNC but I know you've been exposed to quite a bit.

Anita Bruno: Yes, so and that's what I love to teach especially in the in the schools and the pre-apprentice program That there's a whole plethora of careers under that umbrella of construction Not ⁓ I want to be a construction worker. It's more like I want to be what what trade do you want to be break it down? So you could be the I think there's 16 building trades Forgive me if I'm off one but so carpenters and the other thing about the trades is it's a team So that old saying teamwork makes the dream work is really highlighted in the trades because nothing is built by one person. It's all built by a team. So the team consists of, the beginning it would probably be operating engineers excavating the land, working with the architect and the engineer on ⁓ that land, the level has to be, how high, how low, before anybody can start building. And they're probably working in partnership with the laborers who are there, ⁓ the work, working with the ⁓ contractor, making sure that everything's cleaned up, making sure that all the materials there that we need. And then will come the carpenters to do the layout and the framing. Then will come the electricians to run their wires and their electrical. Then will come the plumbers. If it's a big building that has structural steel frames, then it will be the iron workers building that structural steel. that has concrete has iron in it. So there's the iron workers again. So the operating engineers will also be there when they're ⁓ lifting material. So not just excavate. but they'll have the cranes lifting the materials or like the forms. If I'm doing form work on a bridge, the form is too big for me to lift, so the cradle will lift it up and move it to where it's got to be and I'll kind of put it in place and do what I have to do to secure it there. So then there's the ⁓ after everything's built, you got the tapers, the painters union and allied trades, which is ⁓ tapers, ⁓ the painters and the glazers, which is the glass work. So the people that are putting in the glass. I like to talk about how plumbing, especially in Rhode Island, is not just ⁓ pipes, it's also gas pipes. So like the gas in the hospitals, the lines that bring in the oxygen, that's the plumber's union. ⁓ And the electricians is not just the lights, it's solar panels and ⁓ electric and fiber optics, cable, internet, all of that stuff is ⁓ electricians Then you the roofers, the bricklayers. there's so many different ⁓ of different trades that people could get into. And then I would always suggest going through the trades first before you go into a leadership position, but there's safety ⁓ the trades. ⁓ then we talk about women on the job, ⁓ Equal Employment Opportunity. Compliance is very important to make sure that there are women ⁓ minorities and people that live in that city on those jobs. And then there's the foreman who leads the project for that trade. And then there's the superintendent who's leading the projects and the project manager for the whole site. And then there's the general contractor. So maybe you want to run the work and you want to sub out the electrical and the plumbing. And then you have the developer, the person that's putting the money in to develop the property. And then ⁓ work, underwater welders, and then painters again, and iron workers. So ⁓ a whole gambit of ⁓ that need to be in skilled trades to keep America growing.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Right, and what's really come to light is the skill sets you have. You can use it in a variety of ways in these trades. And one of the things I know when we had spoken before, know, unfortunately there's a lot of natural disasters as well that needs rebuilding, whether it's tornadoes and floods, uh earthquakes, whatever it is. So there's always that need for the constant rebuilding. Something that you had said to me before too in Europe,

Anita Bruno: Yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: pursuing your MBA, you mentioned that education is so important, especially having the young girls understand. me about what that means to you. Remember you mentioned math, English, critical thinking. Tell us about the education piece.

Anita Bruno: It's funny, when I go into the Girls Can Do programs, I'm like, how many of you heard that math is irrelevant? You're not going to use it when you get older. And so many of raise their hand and say, that's false. That's a myth. That's a lie. You're going to use math. You use math every single day. I said, how many go to the corner store? And most of them raise their hand. So if I gave you $5 to go to the store and get a bag of chips, that's $1, and get a soda, that's $1.25. How much is that? Most of them will know that it's $2.25. OK. ⁓ and you gave the guy $5, but he only gave you $2 change back. Is that right? No, how much does he owe you? And they'll tell you, see, math is important, right? So that's how I started. And then when we're going through the tools, I'll have them pull out their tape measure, which every trade uses a tape measure. ⁓ So some get more in depth than others, like the mill rights under the Carpenters Union that are building wind and turbine engines have to get there exact to like a 32nd of an inch, which is like a piece hair length. They have to be that exact versus as a general carpenter I have like an eighth tolerance that I can get to fit my stuff in because if I'm putting drywall the tapers are coming behind me so it doesn't have to be as perfect as like I said like a millwright and then electricians are getting into the ohms and things that I have no idea about but their math is even more strict than carpentry and so plumbers ⁓ and forth ⁓ so I them ⁓ It is very important and then I tell them how to read a tape measure I break down the fractions and they don't realize that that is a tape measure when you're reading measurements It's fractions. So I get into who's doing fractions who learned them yet They all raised their hand and then they look at me like ⁓ we got to learn this but I make it fun for them I talk about how who eats pizza. Okay a slice of pizza So if there's eight slices in a pie and you eat one slice How many is that one one out of what one eighth? That's right. So if you're breaking down that fractions I talk about each inch and then the inches like the tape measures I give them the first seven inches will be broken down into 30 seconds so I make them count all the little lines and I say that's 32 slices and then the rest of the inches is broken down into 16 so I'm like that's 16 slices so then I have them get up I have the measure the length and the width of the table that we're working on and then I get into fun like measure each other measure each other's wingspan measure your hand from the of your finger to your wrist and then wingspan is the same as your height so we get into some fun facts ⁓ I tell them I don't want to hear ⁓ I'm ⁓ foot four in three lines I want to hear five foot four and three sixteenths so I make them ⁓ the lines and I make them actually tell me and then by the time they're done they've actually got the fractions in their head and now ⁓ just on a piece of paper they could see it in action so math is is very important education is very important. You see, a lot of people are on this kick now with the trades and workforce development and the other four-year college. I don't like to say the other, and I don't like it to be an either or. don't need college to get into the trades, but you can absolutely use the trades and pay for college. And you ⁓ pay for college and graduate debt-free, ⁓ having to take a loan, not having ⁓ to work through it because you're working in the trades, and that provides you money enough ⁓ be able to do that. That's what I did. I got my bachelor's degree in the Carpenters' Union and now as you highlighted, I'm in an MBA program and all paid for by the Carpenters' Union, but yes, the work of ⁓ a carpenter in the union.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Yeah, fantastic. I think one of the things too that you had said before, even along with this education is you could eventually put down the tools but run the project as a project manager, superintendent, an estimator. I mean, the list goes on.

Anita Bruno: Yes, yes estimator surveyor, yes.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: So as we wrap up, Anita, ⁓ what is the final thought on a message you really want to get out there for our listeners? And think about this, the listeners may be parents of someone young that wants to get into the trades or thinking themselves, it's time for me to make a change.

Anita Bruno: So first and foremost, I would be remiss if I didn't say Rhode Island Women in the Trades runs. We're a nonprofit. So we run on your donations and your sponsorships. So if you want to sponsor a woman or sponsor a girl, please do so. Please give to Rhode Island Women in the Trades. If we're not in your area, look for a women's trade program in your area. Again, Chicago Women in the Trades, non-traditional employment for women in New York, Oregon Tradeswoman, Tradeswoman Inc, Task Force for Tradeswomen. ⁓ There is a plethora of them across the country. So look for them. They need donations. They need your sponsorship to keep this work going. It's not glorified work to people that don't understand it. It is to us because we're passionate and we believe in this industry and these skills. These non-traditional skills are ⁓ trades a way to build generational wealth. ⁓ A can buy a house. She can take care of her family. ⁓ is a way build your and sustain your career. learned. from the Coalition of Domestic Violence that 90 % of women that are in domestic violence situations is because they're not financially sustainable. So this is a career that can be financially sustaining. But I would say that it's a very fulfilling career. parents, please, please rethink. A doctor and a lawyer are excellent. They are excellent careers. I'm not saying they're not good careers. ⁓ ⁓ master electrician, ⁓ have to pay. I'm a carpenter. I can build everything in my house from the foundation to the roof, but I still have to hire an electrician and a plumber to come in and do that electrical and plumbing. ⁓ my electrical is gone, ⁓ I know a lot of people in the train, ⁓

Career Intelligence Podcast...: you

Anita Bruno: get a little bit of a discount but most people don't you have to pay about $200 just for an electrician or a plumber to show up and tell you what's wrong they're not even doing the work so think about that they can make more than a better doctor or a lawyer in their lifetime so it is a very very fulfilling and very lucrative career and it is very respected a lot of people previously would think oh blue collar it's not really respected but it is it's needed and it's

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Right.

Anita Bruno: across the world. brought up ⁓ disasters when Hurricane Katrina happened ⁓ New Orleans and they had to rebuild. ⁓ unions would send or would request members to go down and help rebuild and they do that on a voluntary basis. So are very good and it's a trade ⁓ that can take anywhere. Nobody can ever take it from you. ⁓ I go to Hawaii and start a carpenter business if I wanted to because I'm a carpenter. That's my trade. ⁓ Nobody ever take that skill from me. Bye! So I would also say, make sure that, ⁓ just your girls, that your boys know about these as well. And ⁓ am a proud Union carpenter. ⁓ even though you don't have to be Union to be in the trades, ⁓ would always, always highlight and uplift getting into the Union because ⁓ apprenticeships, ⁓ pay you to learn. So you're getting paid ⁓ learn instead of ⁓ to a school where you have to pay to become an electrician. You go to the electrician, Union, they'll pay you while you're learning to be an electrician. And then when you graduate that apprenticeship, you're a master electrician. I would always suggest and uplift the unions because ⁓ just that apprenticeship, which they spend millions of dollars on their apprenticeship to give you top notch training to make sure you're safe in the industry. Unions also have good benefits ⁓ they have collective bargaining which is like I tell the girls in the school if How many people like the food in the lunchroom and a couple of them will raise their hand? But most of them would laugh and I'm like, well if you wanted let's say Domino's pizza for lunch and You went by yourself to the principal and said I'd like Domino's pizza for lunch you think the principal would give it to you? They're like no I said, but what if all you went together collectively or what if you Organize more people in the school besides just your class and then like 50 or 60 of your classmates went to the principal and said we all want Domino's pizza for lunch Do you think that put a little more pressure on it? And they said yes, that's the power of collective bargaining. So that's the power of a union having Collective power and collective strength to use a collective voice ⁓ I I'm very very passionate about that part of the union and ⁓ part that it uplifts workers, right? So ⁓ look into the union apprenticeships for your kids Look into the career and tech high schools or vocational high schools that call different things in different states. you can get them in earlier and that'll give them a leg up if they want to get into that kind of union apprenticeship when they graduate high school.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Anita, this has been so eye opening. think this message of yours to empower women to get into the trades and of course men as well. But really focus is working with women. Now you have a lot of balls in the air. ⁓ What's next you? ⁓

Anita Bruno: I graduate with my MBA in September. It all keeps going as planned as it is. So that's a highlight. son starts driver's ed this Saturday, so I'm a little nervous, but that's a highlight. But ⁓ we're about to apply for...

Career Intelligence Podcast...: You

Anita Bruno: the federal reentry grant to expand that work. I've had a few other Department of Corrections reach out to us the success that we've had for this first inaugural program ⁓ ask us to come and do training in their prisons. I that most of the programs that's offered in prison are always offered to the men. By the it gets to the women, there's no spots left. So we want to go intentionally with the women. And then just in that, you care about reentry, I've been thinking about like most men, they, when they get released from prison, ⁓ they have a woman waiting for them, ⁓ whether mom, their girlfriend, their wife, but women don't have that luxury. So a lot of them are coming out, they're ⁓ coming to the streets. They're kind of homeless when they get out, ⁓ if not taking advantage of certain programs, but even halfway houses, ⁓ I in Rhode Island, that opened doors, opened the first female reentry. Space to live but there's not many of them. So that's one out of all of the houses that there are for men when come home so I kind of been thinking about that like what what could we do to uplift that because again the Recruitment is one thing but retention is big too, right? I don't want to do these programs ⁓ and a revolving door. I don't want to ⁓ give women these opportunities and not give them the support that they need to actually succeed in that industry. So that's kind of what I've been thinking about. ⁓ National Apprenticeship Week is coming up. ⁓ The last week of March, first week of April. So working with the high schools on how are we getting this out to their high school students. So those 11th and 12th grade girls, which are ⁓ ⁓ recruitment pipeline for the contractors. ⁓ then a lot of people have been hitting me up like, I want to see a a construction hiring career fair. Every state town has a... public works department. There's maintenance that has to be done on city and state buildings. ⁓ parks and recreation. So ⁓ the kids are already in a career in tech high school, there's no reason that there shouldn't be entry level internships for them to enter into these careers. And they all have benefits, their union careers. So that's kind of, guess, there's still a lot of work that still needs to be done. ⁓

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Well, Anita, this has been wonderful. I am so glad you joined me today and in a way to contact you, I will have your email and website in the show notes.

Anita Bruno: Thank you very much.

Career Intelligence Podcast...: Yes, and I look forward to working with you in the future. Thank you.

Anita Bruno: Thank you, we look forward to that as well. We really appreciate you uplifting the work that we're doing and creating a space to talk about tradeswoman. Thank you very much.