By Tanya Faulkner
Steamrollers, diggers and high-viz were the theme of International Women’s Day for local Dandenong secondary students.
More than 30 students from Maranatha Christian School and Dandenong High School took part in the third annual Women in Construction ‘Behind the Barriers’ event where they learned about life as a female tradie and the potential opportunities available to them across the field.
They were also treated to a site tour of the upcoming Pound Road West Upgrade.
Among the students were Dandenong High School’s Muheyra Noor and Ruba Tivendale, who are enrolled in the schools’ design and engineering specialist program through STEM.
“I have an interest in environmental engineering and helping the environment, and today will help me to know what subjects to take in school or university, and what jobs I can go into,” Ruba said.
For Muheyra, it was good to hear from the different panelists to gain extra insight into the career pathways, and what she can do to get there too.
The event was hosted by Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) and civil engineering firm Seymour Whyte who have partnered with and the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC).
NAWIC is an Australian not-for-profit organisation formed in 1995 to champion and empower women in construction and related industries to reach their full potential.
The students heard from speakers including NAWIC Equality Committee member Melanie Anderson, a panel selected from the Pound Road West Upgrade project team and surrounding projects featuring MRPV’s senior project engineer Eva Sun and civil engineering intern Artemis Capa, and select women from Seymour Whiteto provide a wide range of insight to the students.
MRPV program director Marc Peterson said they were delighted to partner with NAWIC on their third annual International Women’s Day event.
“The event is a great opportunity to highlight the many and varied career paths that are available for women in construction, and will hopefully get some of the students who attended today seriously considering a career in the industry,” he said.
The panel members outlined their career experiences, including highlights, career-shaping decisions, travel opportunities and career progression pathways.
During their visit, the students also enjoyed a tour of the Pound Road West Upgrade project site, as a way to understand just what life of a tradesperson can look like in Dandenong.
The Pound Road West Upgrade is building a new bridge over the Cranbourne railway line to remove the dead ends at Remington Drive and Pound Road West with aims to reduce growing traffic pressure on the South Gippsland Highway and Abbotts Road, improve access in and around the Dandenong South employment hub and lower the risk and severity of crashes by adding safety barriers.
Superintendent Steve Ryan explained to the students the progress of the Pound Road upgrades, the process that goes behind building new roads, and shared some of the travel
and career opportunities in roading and construction, as the students observed the crews at work.
For Dandenong High School’s head of art, design and digital technology Ffion Bowles, it is a great way for the students to learn about the different opportunities available in a predominantly male-dominated industry, and see that women can do anything they want to.
“I love supporting the underprivileged groups and allowing them to see the opportunities they can have in our community. Dandenong is a very manufacturing-based region with plenty of jobs available, it’s about showing them what they can do,” she said.
She said the Women’s Day event allows the students to see the real world connection between what they do in school and their potential careers.
MRPV senior project engineer Eva Sun shared her story of resilience and confidence as a female working in the trades, highlighting the importance of female representation in the construction industry.
“I wanted to demonstrate to the students today that girls can do anything and have hopefully inspired some of them to follow their dreams in construction,” she said.
Overall the day was a success, with the students walking away with a new curiosity and excitement about their journeys ahead of them, and seeing the potential that the Dandenong trades industry has to offer.
