OTI Endorses Ballot Measure 98
Every year, at least 10,000 Oregon high school students don’t graduate. Many of those who drop out simply lose interest and disengage. After years of repeated budget cuts to our high schools, many critical learning opportunities have been taken away from Oregon students. Ballot Measure 98 would change that by restoring and expanding vocational and career technical education (CTE), college preparation courses, and Advanced Placement classes in all high schools.
This is an important step for Oregon businesses, too, as many employers in construction, manufacturing, engineering, and computer coding are currently having difficulty local skilled workers, and the situation is only going to intensify as the skilled workforce in these industries approach retirement.
Learn more at VoteYesFor98.org
Narrowing the Wage Gap
New Website and Report Explores How Improving Women’s Access to Middle-Skill Jobs Can Narrow the Wage Gap while Filling a Skills Gap in Growing Sectors
Studies show that half of the gender wage gap is due to women working in different occupations and sectors than men. Improving women’s access to good middle-skill jobs can help close the wage gap and improve women’s economic security.
The new Pathways to Equity Initiative from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) shows careers that can improve women’s economic standing and meet employers’ demands for skilled workers. IWPR launched a new interactive website, womenandgoodjobs.org, which helps users identify pools of skilled women workers who could be tapped to fill shortages, ensuring that the economy benefits from the talent of its whole workforce. Read the Initiative’s research findings and explore the site at womenandgoodjobs.org.
Harassment in the Workplace
In June, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released the 2016 EEOC Harassment in the Workplace Report. OTI was pleasantly surprised to see that the report took a much broader and more comprehensive view of this issue rather than sticking to a strict legal definition.
The report acknowledges that the vast majority of workers who experience harassment in the workplace are unlikely to report the behaviors. Given this information, the EEOC is recommending prevention efforts to address workplace harassment as a remedy instead of simply focusing on the report process.
There is a section in the report that recommends the use of Bystander Intervention Training as an effective prevention model, with the caveat that more research needs to be conducted to determine the effectiveness of such models. Interestingly, OTI has been working on exactly that approach! For the last two years, OTI has been working with Green Dot (mentioned on page 57 of the report) to get funding for a pilot project here in Oregon. We are really excited that the first training for the Respectful Workplaces project will take place at the end of August!
If you are interested in this topic, but only have a few minutes, please read the summary (pages 66 – 71)! If you have more time, we recommend reading the entire report.
Narrowing the Gender Wage Gap – New Report
New Website and Report Explores How Improving Women’s Access to Middle-Skill Jobs Can Narrow the Wage Gap while Filling a Skills Gap in Growing Sectors
Studies show that half of the gender wage gap is due to women working in different occupations and sectors than men. As such, improving women’s access to good middle-skill jobs can help close the wage gap and improve women’s economic security.
The new Pathways to Equity Initiative from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) shows careers that can improve women’s economic standing and meet employers’ demands for skilled workers. IWPR launched a new interactive website, womenandgoodjobs.org, which helps users identify pools of skilled women workers who could be tapped to fill shortages, ensuring that the economy benefits from the talent of its whole workforce.
Read the Initiative’s research findings and explore the site at womenandgoodjobs.org.
OTI Awarded U.S. Department of Labor Grant for Women in Apprenticeship
Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc. Staff Members
Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc. (OTI) is proud to announce that on June 14, 2016, we were awarded a Women in Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Occupations (WANTO) grant to continue our work connecting women with high wage, high skill trades careers through registered apprenticeship.
“Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc. is honored to work with our partners, Seattle-based Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Employment for Women and Oakland, California-based Tradeswomen Inc. through the Women in Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Occupations program,’’ said Connie Ashbrook, OTI’s Executive Director. “Many women in our communities are passionately interested in working in the construction, manufacturing and utility trades, but don’t know where to get started. Our joint efforts to provide women with the education, skills, and connections they need support their access to and success in family-supporting trades careers, while at the same time helping apprenticeship programs and employers diversify their workforces.”
The $650,000 will be awarded over the course of two years. It will fund direct technical assistance work in the Portland, Seattle, and Oakland metropolitan regions, as well as outreach throughout the Western United States.
Under our prior WANTO grant, OTI was able to launch the Western Resources Center for Women in Apprenticeship website which supplements our technical assistance efforts and outreach to western apprenticeship programs.
With the support of the U.S. Department of Labor, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue this work and build on our partnerships with ANEW, Tradeswomen, Inc., and registered apprenticeship stakeholders in the western region.
Introducing the Western Resources Center for Women in Apprenticeship
Along with our partners Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Employment for Women (ANEW, based in Washington), and Oakland, California-based Tradeswomen, Inc., we are delighted to announce the launch of the new Western Resources Center for Women in Apprenticeship. The unveiling of our jointly developed technical assistance website marks the conclusion of two years’ efforts to create online resources for industry stakeholders and tradeswomen under the federal Women in Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Occupations (WANTO) program.
The Western Resources Center (WRC) was created to serve three primary audiences in the Western US: 1) apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship program training providers, 2) women and girls interested in trades careers, and 3) current tradeswomen and female apprentices.
Resources for Training Providers:
- Guides and templates for improving and expanding outreach to and recruitment of women to trades careers
- Retention resources to help training providers support women’s long term success in apprenticeship
- Free downloadable pre-apprenticeship curriculum based on Oregon Tradeswomen’s successful Trades and Apprenticeship Career Class
- Creative Commons library of high quality, free images of real tradeswomen for use in recruitment materials
- Data collection guides and tracking plans
Information for Women & Girls Interested in Trades Careers:
- Guide to types of skilled trade careers
- A video gallery for women and girls to learn directly from tradeswomen what various trades careers entail
- An interactive map demonstrating where women can learn more about apprenticeship in each of the 13 Western states
- Links to tradeswomen’s organizations and social media communities
- A Know-Your-Rights guide to tradeswomen’s legal rights on the job and in apprenticeship
- Links to tradeswomen’s communities and advocacy organizations
- Information about the annual Women Build Nations Conference and other opportunities for tradeswomen
We’re proud to officially debut this work and hope it will be as useful to our community as it was rewarding to create. We welcome your feedback, constructive criticism, contributions, and most of all we welcome your help sharing this work with your friends and colleagues. Please help us get the word out about these resources. Bring some printouts to a meeting, share the page on Facebook, or send an email to your colleagues.
Thanks for supporting women in apprenticeship and we hope to hear from you about the new resources!
OTI at the United State of Women Summit
We are so proud to represent tradeswomen at the United State of Women Summit happening in Washington, DC starting June 14, 2016. The summit is a collaboration of the White House Council on Women and Girls, the Department of Labor, the Aspen Institute, and Civic Nation. The Summit is a convening of women leaders who will together work to address gender equity in the areas of health and wellness, educational opportunity, violence against women, entrepreneurship and innovation, leadership and civic engagement, and economic opportunity.
OTI’s Executive Director, Connie Ashbrook, will join a delegation of 35 tradeswomen from around the country, along with First Lady Michelle Obama, Tina Fey, Oprah, and thousands of other women all working toward lifting up women and our nation. Watch the live stream Tuesday, June 14th, 2016 if you’d like to take it in!
While at the Summit, Connie will be supporting the National Taskforce on Tradeswomen’s Issues policy platform by speaking with other attendees about our priorities, which include advocating for:
- Releasing the new apprenticeship EEO regulations, and ensuring that they contain strong language supporting increasing the number of women in apprenticeship
- Dedicated, specific federal funding through WANTO that directly supports tradeswomen
- Increased support for existing workforce hiring goals through compliance efforts and sustainable technical assistance
- A strengthened pipeline between schools and apprenticeship that has specific goals for female participation
You can follow the conference online and through social media. Take the pledge to work for gender equity in whatever you do best, and make sure to support your sisters at the #StateOfWomen conference by using the #tradeswomen hashtag when you post!
Green Your Garden with Greywater
Have you ever thought about diverting used sink and shower water to your yard, to feed your garden? As water rates escalate and summer droughts become more commonplace, Northwesterners need to use water more efficiently.
If you want a beautiful and productive landscape that uses very little water, attend one or two August 2016 workshops in Portland to learn about low-cost DIY greywater systems that you can implement to conserve water and enhance your home landscape.
Greywater Action, in partnership with Depave, Recode, Oregon Tradeswomen,and East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District are hosting two workshops for Portland area residents interested in implementing greywater systems at home. The workshops will be taught by greywater-expert Laura Allen who is a founding member of Greywater Action and author of The Water-Wise Home. Laura will share her tips on conserving water and saving money with effective and inexpensive greywater solutions.
Workshop 1, August 13 from 9:30a-12:30p Greywater 101: The basics of greywater reuse in this FREE workshop. Learn more and register here: http://greywateraction.org/event/green-garden-greywater-free-portland/
Workshop 2, August 20 from 11a-4:30p Hands-On Greywater Installation: Learn how to install a simple laundry-to-landscape system and see a branched drain system from a shower up close in a Portland backyard. Learn more and register for workshop 2 here: http://greywateraction.org/event/hands-greywater-installation-workshop-portland/
Registration is open now to residents of Multnomah County, with a wait list for residents of surrounding communities to fill remaining spaces after June 15.
TPP will Damage US Construction Industry
OTI is very grateful that the incredibly smart, Madelyn Elder is part of our team. Most recently, she was President of Communication Workers of America Local 7901 (CWA) and kept close tabs on the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). Madelyn gave us a quick rundown of the potential consequences of this trade deal.
Most of the points below are because a. there are no labor protections or environmental protections written into the language; and b. the ability for “foreign” partner corporations to sue the federal or state or local governments for “unfair” trade laws or advantages.
- “Foreign” firms in more countries would be given equal access to government contracts. Firms operating in any TPP signatory country would be given equal access to the vast majority of US federal procurement contracts. IE “Buy American” would be a thing of the distant past, as governments are required to accept the lowest bid.
- Prevailing Wage—this will be a thing of the past, as it is a peculiarly US law, and as such is subject to construction corporations in partner countries to sue the US Government. Without Prevailing Wage laws, the unionized contractors would be at a disadvantage in bidding for government building jobs, many of which require the lowest bid to be adopted.
- Union wages and benefits in general—with equal competition for construction corporations from other countries and the allowing of them to pay lower wages, the downward pressure on US labor contracts would be no mistake.
- Safety—Safety laws are different state to state in the US, although they must adhere to the minimum safety laws under the federal OSHA. Either state laws that are more strict and/or the federal OSHA laws are not protected under the TPP, therefore putting the states or Feds at risk of being sued for too stringent safety laws (just like environmental laws.) Construction is a very hazardous industry by its very nature, and required safety laws are just the minimum to prevent injury and death on the job.
- Portland’s $15/hr minimum wage, which would raise the wages of laborers on city contract jobs, would be at risk, as would paid medical leave at all levels of government.
- Project Labor Agreements: These would be off the table. PLAs are instrumental in getting a higher percentage of women and all people of color as workers and contractors hired for government-sponsored building projects. For example, Metro’s Zoo remodel has a PLA that secures a certain % of Minority owned and Women owned Business PLAs also guarantee prevailing wage and/or union-represented construction companies to bid. Enterprises that must be used. This would definitely be challenged by “foreign” corporations.
- Government-sponsored LEED (environmentally-sustainable) building, including tax incentives for private owners, etc. would be challenged. This, and environmental retrofitting, are two growth construction areas.
- Government funds for pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs would be cut. These training programs are what standardize work, guarantee that workers understand and follow safety and other building codes, and assure the highest standards of how things are built (and don’t fall down.) There are now very few middle-class-wage jobs available to high school graduates since most manufacturing jobs left the US; apprenticeship programs are a foot-up for the next generation of workers.
Bottom line: All of the above US programs would be considered “unfair” advantages to trade in some way. Most of this information comes from the Communications Workers of America.
Metro Hosts Screening of Sista in the Brotherhood
If you haven’t had a chance to look at positive news in Portland recently, Sista in the Brotherhood has become a big deal! Dawn Jones Redstone (Director), and and Roberta Hunt (Producer) have been invited to screen the film across Oregon and the US. The film won Best Short Film at the Portland International Film Festival. and was an official selection for the Portland Oregon Women’s Film Festival. It was also shown at the Women Build Nation Conference in Chicago!
Most recently, Metro held a screening of the film as a part of their new Equity Initiative and Plan. The film was screened at the Whitsell Auditorium at the Portland Art Museum, Tuesday April 19 at 12:00 pm. The film was followed by a panel discussion about government policy initiatives that could support women of color in the trades.
The panel was made up of industry professionals including:
- Dawn Jones Redstone, Director
- Dr. Roberta Hunt, Producer
- Gabi Schuster, Metro Procurement Manager
- Michael Burch, Community Relations with the Pacific NW Regional Council of Carpenters
- Lauren Holmes, Project Manager for Lease Crutcher Lewis
- and our very own Amy James Neel, Construction Manager at OTI!
The video below is Amy’s response to one question about the impact of policies:
We are encouraged by the fact that Metro is engaging in this important work. It is critical as they develop their policies moving forward, that they consider the real life impact on tradeswomen of color.