Hey yall. Electrician here. Since I joined my union years ago I have gotten over my crippling fears re high ladders and scissor lifts. Not that I enjoy being on 12 ft ladders or 40ft up on lifts, but I've calmed and can do my work just fine.

I'm proud of how far I've come. My first day ever on a job a fellow apprentice had pointed to a hoist and said we had to go up in that to the 10th floor. I said no, lol. He said I had to. I said I might just quit. But I didn't, I got in there and got used to it as well. Even enjoyed watching the beautiful sunrises.

But now...here we go with another hurdle. I'm on a site with 70 floors, and I'm working in the 40s. There's inside elevators but not for deliveries, which sometimes are not limited to apprentices (we don't have many) so might also fall to me. Tomorrow I'm going to get on that damn hoist to try and start to get used to it. My stomach drops at the thought of going that high.

Anybody relate? Or have any tips to keep calm? Wish me luck.

Hello everyone, this is my first post so please let me know if I am not posting this the correct way ( I have no idea what I'm doing) I just don't see anyone covering this.

I got offered this job (entry level) and one of the requirements was "comprehend measurements to report fuel storage can consumption levels". I always did well in math but I haven't been in school for the past 10 years, so prior to my first day I want to just touch up on some math skills and make sure I still have it lol.

Anyone in the field have any advice on what to look over and what to expect?Thank you!!

Hey all, I recently got accepted as a western states boilermaker apprentice in union 627. I have orientation Feb 13th but know nothing about the job. Does anyone on here know what hours I will be working in this union? I have a toddler and will need to find him a daycare in time to begin working. Also, will my schedule most likely have a strict time to clock out or will I have to work overtime frequently without notice? Are the hours negotiable? Say they want me to start working at 5am, can I negotiate with them for me to come later? These probably all sound like dumb questions, but once again I have the toddler in need of daycare so I am trying to plan this all ahead of time.

Hey, UK based chippy here, looking for any recommendations for a harness for women, that is comfortable and fits well. I'm currently thinking I might need to invest in one as I'm doing more event Carpentry work and I'm wanting to update my skills and get my iPaf cert to make me more employable. The site harnesses that get provided are cheap and terrible, and not looked after or necessary maintained for safety so wanting other women's experiences and opinions on what has worked for you. I'm also usually wearing a toolbelt with all tools and suspenders so anything that accommodates wearing a tool belt or has clip on pouches a plus.

Thanks!

I’m in school for it and wondering how you guys like it and what your day to day is like. I’m a few weeks in and it’s awesome so far.

So I made it through the first round of interviews for heo apprenticeship and I am getting more nervous but also excited that I’ve made it this far!! This is the last step before I get the call if I’m accepted into the program or not. The first interview we had to have a written response to “why do you want to join the operating engineers?” So I had plenty of time to prep that and felt pretty good going into it. This time we have no prompts just that it’ll be about 30 minutes long. Any tips or ideas of how to prepare? Any practicals you’ve had to preform in a similar interview ? Any advice is appreciated!

I’m a farmer. I live in a great rural community with a lot of great farmers and mentors, mostly older men. I love them all, but sometimes the casual misogyny just gets me down, even when it’s meant in a ‘friendly’ way. I have a rule - never comment on anyone’s clothing. It’s just not my business. And to be honest, I don’t even usually notice. But older male farmers for some reason just love to comment on my clothing. “Oh you’ve got your FARMER overalls on today!” “You’re wearing your carhart hat, you’re REALLY dressed up today!” “Oh look out boys, she’s wearing her business boots today, she means business!”. It’s always jokey and friendly but . . . They don’t say this shit to each other. It makes me aware that no matter what, they’re aware of my body and they’ll find a way to comment on it. Can’t I just exist in my clothing?? Just a little vent . . .

I have a female friend who wants to go and wants to be a welder and i wonder how hard is it to find a welding job there are a few companys

In north texas

They keep pairing me with this guy who works unsafe and it's about to make me ask for a layoff. He's one of those fast-walking lone ranger he-man types and just will not listen when I'm spotting for him and it's going to escalate to the point where he'll get someone (me) hurt.

Yesterday he was on the big lull, attempting to roll a few sticks of pipe onto the roof rack of the work truck (already you're supposed to be using chokers but this company doesn't...). This is a task where you need two pairs of eyes, period, but he's literally ignoring me the whole time. Won't let me widen the forks out for fucking 20' sticks of pipe. Then come time to roll them on the truck, ignoring my signals, stops short and drops the shit next to the truck, potentially hitting me. Knocked the side view mirror off.

He got lectured about working too fast but not about ignoring his spotter, slap on the wrist (his dad is a journeyman). I'm seething, because that shit was so unnecessarily dangerous. I reported to the foreman and safety guy and they just say "he's an idiot" but there's no actual consequences. I'm not expecting him to get fired but damn, do something.

Today they put me with him again. It was fine until I had to spot for him in the boom lift in an area full of machines and equipment. I tell him to cut hard to get around a conveyor, he ignores. He turns so wide he's about to hit the gangboxes, an in-use welding rig, some other shit on the floor. I yell stop multiple times, he keeps moving and says "wait." Like fuck you mean "wait" motherfucker I just told you to stop because you're about to hit some shit.

This time everyone sees what is happening, including his father (dad's over there like his name is bennett and he ain't in it).

I walked away. This us the type of dude that'll get you killed on a fucking job. People are like "yeah he's just dumb/hardheaded" and it's driving me crazy how not serious they take this type of bullshit.

Tempted to tell them to cut me my check.

Hello! I'm a 22, and I am interested in possibly pursuing in the trades. Not sure which area yet. But since, I'm still researching, I was wondering do you guys still have time for your hobbies outside of work ? For some context, I am a hobbyist artist, and writer. Eventually I would like to make web comic. I'm Obviously aware I'll have less time to do and make art if I were to get a job in the trades. That's just the reality of having a job. But what I'm really wondering is will I have no time for it all or just very little time for it.

Like the title says. I am a male. I joined this sub because it came across my feed one day. I replied to the post. Then I come to realize that woman in the field always get shit on. I for one don't like it. I've been a proud member of the IBEW for almost 30 years now and in construction for just over 40, and some of the best people I've worked beside have been sisters. Sisters that worked hard to gain respect among their peers, meanwhile Joe Shmo is only razzed because he was an apprentice. I try to give advice when I can. I am a practitioner of all trades but master of none. You will learn a bit of each trade each day you are working

Hi! I’m new here! My name is Caitlin, 28 year old, who is entering the commercial HVAC/Plumbing space with a mechanical company - I’ll be in a sales role, partnering with GC’s in my territory.

I’ve previously been in sales, but never this deep into the blue collar world. Growing up my dad was in HVAC, so I am familiar with the ‘feel’ but not the real mechanics (I will be trained).

Please give me allll of your advice and things to prepare for. Any books or podcasts I can listen to to help prepare? My goal is to lean into being a woman in this space and absolutely dominate - but I know it’s going to be easier said than done.

Thank you!

I am 28F, I finish the electrical program at LATTC june of last year and I haven’t had any luck finding a job in the field. Most ask for years of experience I don’t have, and the ones I do apply for I never hear back. I feel stuck and like I don’t know where to begin. I have checked others post suggesting to join the union, like local 11, or doing an apprenticeship program with WECA or JATC. I know the union is hard to get into and it can take a long time to even be accepted. As for the apprenticeship, it feels like I’m going back to school and that I wasted 2 years going to Trade Tech. I’m not sure if the apprentiship is worth it or how long it takes to hear back, I am comparing it to Trade tech but in reality I don’t know if its even the same thing. I wanted to see if anyone has any ideas of where or how to start, or if someone can enlighten me about the apprenticeship programs.

I work close to a US military base. Last year I volunteered on base at a women in aviation career event for the local middle schools.

It was such a great experience showcasing women in aviation and all the different career paths. It’s an annual event and I was looking forward to volunteering this year as well.

I just got word that the event is canceled indefinitely due to the government DEI rollback.

I’m absolutely heartbroken and angry. I just wanted to come here and vent.

I install flooring and we're on a new-build house. The property is a mud pit.

We're installing rug in the entirety of the basement and I'm sore af today from moving all the rolls of carpet yesterday. It's also over concrete, so instead of just nailing our tackstrip down, we have to drill into the concrete first.

New builds are always crawling with tradies so there's lots of "When will you be done working here? We need to work here, too," going on.

I thought it'd be fun to hear what everyone else is working on this week. Lemme live vicariously through you. 😄

For context I'm (22F) a general laborer for a residential construction crew of 3 people in rural Middle Tennessee. So myself, one other guy, and our GC. It took me roughly 2 years of applying to various construction jobs to get hired with this group, so I can't emphasize enough how much I need to keep this job. I know I want to be in residential construction.

Last week, our GC mentioned that we would be starting a roof extension for one of our regulars and he made it explicit that this bid in particular will decide whether or not I'll get promoted to crew ($12/hr -> $16/hr). We just wrapped up the rafters and purlins halfway through today which was fine because I remained on the ground for most of it making the cuts. Then the metal sheets were delivered, and the guys decided they wanted to screw 1 sheet in before we called it a day, and I was told to hop up there so they could see how I do with heights.

I don't think I need to go into all the details but basically, that was terrifying, and I'm not looking forward to tomorrow. But I digress. I spent a little while scrolling through this sub for advice before writing this and saw that a vast majority of commenters push for fall protection like it shouldn't even be a question. And yet.. there I was earlier today, about 15' up in the air with no fall protection.

How do I approach this? Who do I talk to about it? I can't stand the thought of pissing off my boss well enough to get fired, but I also would like to go home alive and uninjured at the end of the day.

i’m based in massachusetts, in the lowell area and am a recent drop out of college (no A.S or anything besides a HS diploma). i’ve held down a retail job for the past 3 years at the same place so that’s pretty much all i have to show off.

i dont really understand how to get my foot in the door here.

i am interested in electrical, automation/robotics. things like that, if there’s anything with PCB’s or soldering, etc, i’d like to get into that. do i have to go to a vocational first before being able to land a job? (there is one near me so if that’s the case then no problem there). people online say go straight into an apprenticeship but how do i even get one? nothings posted online from what i can see so it feels like no one’s hiring

i’ve looked around online for certs and found this, https://www.smeclabs.com/automation-courses/ can anyone vouch or say of it’s quality?

i’ve also found IBEW that sent me some locals but it was just contact info no website, am i to call them?

and this other site for pre-apprentice https://www.buildingmasscareers.org/job-profiles/

what do i do with all this info? am i meant to call these places/people? what do i tell them? how long should i expect this process to take?

i also found a pre-apprentice thing that’s 10 weeks but unpaid 😀 is that normal? should i take it? or should i also shoot for a full on apprenticeship?

Anyone else just haveing a shitty month. I get me machines done and I do my job but I had 2 wright ups in a month for no spotter. 1st 1 on me I made that mistake 2nd one I had a spotter and my boss pulled him away and I got the blame. Now my machine took out a camera on our building where I'm told to park close to to avoid blocking the Ile, in. An area where we don't have, use, or need a spotter. I give up

I’m constantly working outside with limited bathroom opportunities or I have to use a pee bag in the back of my work truck! I don’t want to call out everytime I have my period but gosh it’s sooo uncomfortable! What do you ladies do while working and have your period??

hi everyone! i’m a student getting my associates in automotive technology and am starting my practicum in the next two weeks. pretty much just working at a garage and then showing my school i’m working.

i need pants recommendations! i’m 5’3 and 230lbs :/ i always have a hard time buying pants so im hoping people have maybe in person store recommendations? i don’t want to have to buy pants online and wait for them to arrive just for them to not fit and have to return. i don’t really have the time or funds for it. wear a size 18 or xl in most my pants tho some are a 16. everyone in my class was telling me dickies but they only go up to size 14. i tried some canvas cargo pants from costco men’s section but they made my crotch look so weird i couldn’t imagine wearing them outside of my house. length isn’t a big issue for me, all my pants are too long so i either cut the bottoms and then sew them or just sew them up depending how long they are. im in the DMV and willing to drive to PA or WV even to find a good store! all the bass pro shops around me didn’t have any of the pants online in stock in person. tractor supply doesn’t go bigger than 14 as well. sorry for the long messy post im just not sure what to do.

I’m 33 and currently a dental assistant , I’m not a girly girl at all and have always wanted to try a trade school , I have been looking into plumbing. My girl and I are looking to buy a house in the next 3-4 years and I want to be able to provide more. I’m scared but I want to be and do more for my family. Any words or advice ? Also math is not a strong suit of mine , never has been. I’m terrified of leaving my job and failing.

Just had my first day of class and woo I had a major meltdown. Flashbacks to sitting in math class and being totally lost or sitting at the kitchen table while my dad yelled at me. I'm the only non-man in my class (as far as I can tell) and the instructor told me I have to remove my facial piercings. I was sobbing at the piercer because I didn't want to take them out. I feel like I lost part of myself no lie. Hopefully I can eventually save up for removable jewelry but money is very tight right now. Now I have like 3 hours of homework that are due tomorrow. I'm feeling like I can't do this.

As the title states, I will be starting the PA at Mid-America in March. I understand the ebb and flow of the industry but with the change in administration how does everyone see federal funding affecting projects?

Little context I’m 19, was extremely lucky to get into a truck and coach program in highschool so I have my level 1, but couldn’t find an apprenticeship anywhere. Things happened now it’s two years later and have no clue what I want to do. I don’t think truck and coach is for me anymore and want to try another trade

At the college there’s pre apprenticeship programs and construction techniques which is testing out four different trades I may be interested in, but my brother is admit it’s a waste of money. It’s been two years since I’ve done any trade work so I don’t know what I want to do or where to start. It’s really discouraging

I’m really leaning towards welding and there’s so many programs listed I’m not sure what one to apply for. But I also want to try out plumbing before I make any big life choices.

Ps. Really hoping fellow women are a lot nicer, the general trade group were very cruel

The above question

This is going to be a long story , I am horticultural landscaper and have been for about 6 years full time. I live in Canada and moved provinces in September 2023 with a milder climate in order to have a longer working season. I am having a hard time with my job, as it is not as engaging as my old job and my boss is not a great fit for me. I recently realized that my skills are not once what they used to be and i've lost some confidence in my work that i once loved.

The job I got when I moved here and still have is being part of a 10-15 person crew, for a company run by a women in her late 40’s. The work we do is pretty monotonous, and we do a lot of lawns which I am not into. I really struggle with how plain a lot of our properties are, and it’s difficult for me to stay engaged. Especially working for people who largely do not speak with us, or say anything about the work we do. My boss is also fairly controlling, and we have to run most (even small) decisions through her. However she only pops in once or twice a week if that, and either shows up on site or at our hq. She is very quick to cast negative judgment, almost immediately upon arriving on site she points out things we have done wrong, or she wants different. She has made my coworkers cry on site more than once. Rarely acknowledges any good work we do, and doesn’t offer support for helping us learn or improve unless its in a very anxiety inducing manner of speed and aggression. We spend a lot of time texting or calling her for approval, so I tend to just not go out of my way to be in situations where that is necessary. She doesn’t know her properties very well anymore, and relies on us to know what is going on. Then doesn’t believe or trust us when we give her information. She is also one of the least compassionate people Ive had to work with. Just generally cant seem to understand when someone is having a hard time, and is so hard on folks. Yet when she goes through a difficult time we all have to hear about it and she expect compassion for her shortcomings. We also have a lot of kinda crappy clients, people who are weirdly picky, or expect us to work in their dog shit covered lawn, etc. She does not stand up for us, and that can be hard. All that being considered a few of my coworkers have become close friends (we are also a primarily female run crew). The rest are fine. 

Flashback to my old job that I had for about 5 years, my boss was (still is bc we stay in touch) an amazing women. Has had her company since 1989 (she’s in her late 60’s), and her clients were lovely. People who came out and greeted you, and were happy to see you. Not all of them but enough that you felt really appreciated. We only did garden beds, and custom planters (my fave). She was such a huge mentor for me, taught me most of my foundational knowledge, and I was constantly learning from her. Also a great communicator, super honest & kind. She also gave me a lot of responsibility in making decisions through out project work and general maintainance, which I really enjoyed. Whenever i made a mistake or didnt complete a task in a way she preferred she was always very direct in letting me know, but never in a way that made me feel small or stupid. If a client treated us poorly, our conditions were gross, she always addressed the issue immediately and with the clients directly. If It had worked to stay there, I would have and probably would have offered to take over her company one day. 

Ok so the actual issue here is I have come to final realization that I am getting worse at my job. I feel like my skills have become duller, and i’ve lost a lot of the engagement & interest I once had. So much so that I have picked up some really bad habits like being on my phone too much and taking too long of breaks. 

I recently emailed my boss to ask for a meeting to ask for a raise, and I received this in return “typically, September would have been the appropriate time for a raise. However, I received a number of complaints from clients regarding your work. Some clients did not want you to return to their site, while others complained about your phone use and the length of your breaks. I should have addressed these issues with you directly at the time, but I admit I struggled with how to approach the situation.

I believe you are a valuable asset to the team. Your plant knowledge is extensive, and your skills are exceptional. However, I have noticed that you sometimes seem bored at work, and I am unsure how to address this.

I value your contributions greatly and would like to resolve these issues so that you can enjoy your position more, feel valued to your full potential, and continue to excel. I believe an in-person meeting would be the best way to achieve this.”

On a side note I was very pleasantly surprised with this email she sent, she has never taken the time to respond with such care, so that was really refreshing. She does have an admin assistant who has much better ettiquette/ compassion than her so I suspect she may not have written this. 

The comment of “did not want you to return to their site” kind of broke me. The issues with the phone & breaks is a completely doable fix, I do not want to be that kind of shitty. I of course plan on apologizing for my behaviour and letting her know I can absolutely do better. I am mostly worried she going to tell me I have complaints about poor work results and thats something thats going to be really tough on me. As in my actual gardening skills are in question. The fact that she has noticed I am bored (which is 100% correct) is super concerning mostly bc I don’t know how to fix this either. I don’t know how to just turn off feeling so bored. 

I have looked at and applied to other jobs, I am not in a huge city and most other companies I have been told are worse and the few better ones are so heavily applied to I've never even gotten interview. 

I miss my old job, I miss who I used to be in my job and I feel like i’ve lost a lot of skills and confidence. 

I am looking to start my own company, but now I am worried I am not up to the task. 

Anywho, thanks for reading! I really just needed to get this off my chest and out of my head so i appreciate this space for that <3

 EDIT: Just wanted to let y’all know I quit my job!! Got a new one, that seems like a better fit (it happened really fast and tbh felt like fate)!

I want to thank you all for your kind words, it really helped push me to make a change ❤️❤️❤️