FEATURE
Your Community Design Partner
vernereimer.com
to be able to manage a lot of things at any given time. Those skills
are second nature to me.
Soon after working with my uncle, an older gentleman who I’d
been working with took me under his wing. He had faith in me
and said, “You can do this.”
I worked with him for 10 years as the project manager for his interior
design business in Northern Ireland, before moving to Canada.
I realized early on this was kind of work I wanted to do and that
no one could stop me. I think I’m just one of those people who
are geared towards overcoming challenges. I am who I am, and I
believe I determine my future, not people who think women have
no room in the industry.
Q: What has your experience as a woman in
the construction industry been like? What
changes have you seen over the years?
A: When I started working in construction, it was quite a different
industry. It was a very male-dominated industry – and probably
still is – but back then, being a different gender meant every day
was a challenge. If you were a young woman walking onto a job
site, there’d be wolf whistles and comments and this and that,
but within the last 10 years, I think there’s been a big change. You
don’t see that kind of thing anymore.
Female construction workers are being recognized as very
capable and intelligent, and there are also more opportunities in
project management and engineering, which is amazing. In my
Verne Reimer Architecture
day, I would have loved to be able to pursue engineering, but I
was told at school this just wasn’t done by a young lady.
I’ve found that maybe some women are deterred from doing
construction work because they think they may not have the
physical capability to do the job, but the industry is ever-changing.
The equipment has changed a lot over the past 20 years and now
there are so many things that help workers, male or female, work
smarter, not harder.
As we see more women on construction sites and going into
the trades and becoming successful, I think this will inspire more
young ladies to join the industry. The baby boomers are leaving
and there are so many avenues right now for young women to be
able to get into the trades. I know so many female welders and
plumbers, and you see it more and more every day. I just love that,
and it inspires me to do better because I always hope I can be a
role model for younger females who want to get into this industry
and do well and succeed.
Q: What do you think the industry needs to do to
encourage more women to pursue careers in construction?
A: I think it’s just awareness, making more females aware of what
kind of programs are out there to help them and encourage them
and educate them from a young age. In recent years, CARM and
Winnipeg Construction Association have hosted career symposiums
which have provided amazing exposure for high school
students, and I think that’s something that we should definitely
continue to do.
BUILDING RURAL MANITOBA | 21
/vernereimer.com