Dealing With Prejudice
The atmosphere for women in the field in remodeling is better than in new construction or in commercial construction. The people drawn to remodeling tend to be more sensitive because they are working in people’s homes. However, prejudice still exists. Nancy Madynski, production manager at Winans Construction in Oakland, Calif., describes some instances where fellow carpenters would ask if she was delivering lunch and would make catcalls or sexual innuendos. When she was a carpenter, Ruth Ewing says that some crew members were wary about working with her, but accepted her once she proved she could do the work. “It’s the ones who are insecure about their own skills who have a problem,” says the production manager at Byggmeister Associates.
In her early work as a carpenter, Lakshmi Jackman, owner of Transformations Remodeling in Austin, Texas, worked on crews where the guys were patient and shared their skills, and on others where they did not have the time or the desire to teach her. In the early days of Harrell Remodeling, Iris Harrell hired independent subcontractors to work side-by-side with her and teach her skills. “As long as I wrote them a check, they were fine,” she says. “The ones I found were not prejudiced or they would not have worked for me.”
Women use a variety of tactics to deal with any sexism they encounter. Madynski says that once she developed more confidence, she could say: “You work for me. If you can’t follow my rules, find another job.” Jackman says that she either ignored the sexism, yelled back, made smart remarks, or threatened people with legal action before concluding that “the most powerful thing is to be unattached.” Once you are not concerned about the person liking you, she points out, you can let go.
Vice president and sales manager Debby Allmon of Schloegel Design Remodel says she is careful not to use her construction knowledge to prove herself because people may think she is challenging them. Debra Moore, president of Custom Design/Build in Ann Arbor, Mich., feels that much of the on-site prejudice is related to class rather than gender. Coming from an academic background, it took her awhile to learn to relate to construction crews. “There is a totally different language spoken in the trades,” she says. “Where some women go wrong is screaming sexual discrimination — not that there is not — but when you are an apprentice you get harassed and hazed. You have to learn to speak their language.”
When presenting seminars, Harrell asks remodelers one question to evaluate how open their company culture is for women. “I ask if they would be comfortable having their daughter working in the field. If the answer is no, something needs to change.”