Eradicating stereotypes

A SOLAS report published in November revealed that 85% of individuals in apprenticeship programmes in Ireland were young males under 25 years of age. The same report outlined that just 2% were women.

However, this figure is actively increasing. The number of female apprentices in Ireland has more than doubled since 2017 and according to figures obtained from SOLAS, over 350 females were participating in apprenticeships in Ireland as of January 2019, up from 145 in 2017.

There are currently 41 apprenticeship programmes in Ireland. Numerous new programmes have come on stream since 2016, with 12 new apprenticeship courses in development and 26 more approved

From this report, specific actions have been set out aiming to support the target of 600 female apprentices in the overall apprentice population by the final quarter of 2019. It is an ambitious target.

In a general sense, apprenticeships are becoming more popular in Ireland. From the end of January 2019, there were 15,670 people in apprenticeship programmes in Ireland, up from just under 13,000 in 2017 (numbers also jumped 25% in 2017 from 2016 figures).

There are currently 41 apprenticeship programmes in Ireland. Numerous new programmes have come on stream since 2016, with 12 new apprenticeship courses in development and 26 more approved. Over €120m was committed to developing apprenticeships by the then-Minister for Education Richard Bruton, highlighting the educational pathway as a priority.

The highest female cohort

Apprenticeships with the largest cohort of female apprentices are in the areas of accounting technician, insurance practice, commis chef, electrical as well as auctioneering and property services, according to SOLAS. Areas such as electrical, aircraft maintenance and motor mechanics are also seeing big increases.

Irish Country Living spoke with two apprentices who are bucking the trend and working in traditionally male-dominated apprenticeship roles.

Fiona Manning is one such apprentice. The 19-year-old is currently one of 72 apprentices who began the ESB Networks Apprenticeship Programme back in September 2018. In total, 12 women were selected by ESB for the apprenticeships, the highest number recorded by the organisation.

For Fiona, the traditionally male-dominated environment did not bother her, and it is easy to see why.

“I suppose I grew up on a dairy farm. I was used to working in a male-dominated environment that is a farm or a mart. So this didn’t bother me.”

“From a young age, I would have milked cows, cleaned sheds, fed calves – whatever was going on you would do. I suppose when you grow up in that environment you are constantly working with your hands. For me, I understand the job better if I can do it. I am not someone who can sit down and read about it in a book, I want to do it, that is how I work. Growing up on a farm would have thought me this.”

Approaching her Leaving Cert, Fiona had the pressure of filling in her CAO application. She was not interested in obeying stereotypes.

“By fourth year I knew I was more practical. For our work placement, I went to a sheep farm for a week and then I worked in Boots for a week in Kilkenny city. I think that is when it hit me; that outdoor work was for me, rather than working indoors.

In our school, we had a careers class every week. My careers teacher understood I was more practical-minded and she told me to apply for the ESB Networks Apprenticeship Programme

“When the time came to fill out the CAO, I put down agriculture in Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) as my first choice. I also put down quantity surveying and construction management in Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT). I thought to myself, ‘If I at least get through these four years, I will have an outdoor job by the end of it’.”

However, a timely intervention soon came from those who often know best, the career guidance teacher.

“In our school, we had a careers class every week. My careers teacher understood I was more practical-minded and she told me to apply for the ESB Networks Apprenticeship Programme. I said to myself, ‘If I get it I get it. If I don’t, I don’t’. Everything happens for a reason. Only for her, I don’t know where I would be today.”

Fiona applied for the apprenticeship during the spring of 2018. She was one of 6,000. In August of that year, she was offered one of 72 positions. She began her post in September of last year.

It has been well-documented of late that the misconceptions around female apprenticeships are being dispelled, but there are still reservations among some woman about entering the trades, Fiona explains.

“The biggest factor stopping women applying for apprenticeships is the fear of being out of place or the fear of being uncomfortable in a male-dominated environment. That was never an issue for me, but for others it is. Some people would ask themselves ‘What if I cannot do something, will it look bad?’. Look, there are things that I cannot do, but I ask others for help. That is how you learn.

“In general, I suppose strength can also be an issue. I am 19 and I am relatively short and a lot of the lads are stronger than I would be. Some of the equipment is heavy enough and it can be difficult but you get stronger and you get used of it. Heights for some people may also be an issue.”

Inspiring

Fiona’s participation in an apprenticeship has led to many enquiries from other young women wanting to follow suit.

She was one of four first-year apprentices who provided information on apprenticeships at the ESB Networks stand at the Ireland Skills Live event in the RDS in late March. She highlighted the high female interest in the programme, though noted that it is still a male-dominated sector.

For her future, Fiona makes one thing very clear.

“I don’t see myself in an office anyway, I can guarantee you that.”

Twelve women were selected by ESB for the apprenticeships in 2018, the highest number recorded, compared with four in 2017 and none in 2016.

The once-rarity is now becoming more frequent as women are seeing these occupations as a viable career path. While there are challenges to overcome, Fiona and her peers believe that these misconceptions about woman participating and applying for apprenticeships are disappearing.

‘Being a woman hindered my chances’

While Fiona Manning found her transition into the ESB to be seamless, there can be obstructions into certain apprenticeships for women. This is according to Siobhan Boland. The 21-year-old is currently serving her apprenticeship as a car mechanic in James Tomkins Garage in Gorey, Co Wexford. Speaking with Irish Country Living, her path to her passion was not simple.

“I must have emailed about 50 garages in May 2015 before I sat my Leaving Cert in June,” she explains.

“Of the 50 emails I sent, it was only James who wanted to give me a chance. I was losing hope by July that anybody would get back to me. I am very grateful to him for that.”

Siobhan sat her Leaving Cert in June of 2015 before beginning her Level 6 apprenticeship in motor mechanics in August. Similarly to others pursuing an apprenticeship, she had an idea that she wanted to pursue this from an early age.

“From a young age, I loved tractors. I loved driving them on the farm and I was interested in them. I suppose growing up on a farm, you were exposed to the practical side of working. I wouldn’t be sitting inside playing the PlayStation, I was outside working. We were made work.”

“Just before I sat my Junior Cert I decided I wanted to do an apprenticeship. I had considered dropping out of school but my father convinced me to stick with it.”

Her applications to numerous garages in May last year and the lack of replies thereafter, prompted Siobhan to take matters into her own hands.

I love it so far. The nine-to-five is so varied each day and I do a whole host of different jobs

“I started having doubts in July so I called into James in the garage in Gorey on a Monday. I spoke with him and asked him for an opportunity for an apprenticeship and he asked me to come in on Wednesday. On Wednesday, he asked me to come back on Thursday. The same thing happened on Friday. It sort of just went on like that and the rest is history,” she describes.

“I love it so far. The nine-to-five is so varied each day and I do a whole host of different jobs.”

While there was initial difficulty faced by Siobhan in finding the right suitor, the current apprenticeship role suits her perfectly.