‘Concrete Queen’ launches fundraiser to get more girls into trades

When Natasha Bach started her carpentry apprenticeship she didn’t know any other women working in the male-dominated workforce, so she set out to change that for future generations.

Bach has started a Givealittle page – Raising funds for trade related children’s books – and will use the money to buy books and resources for pre-schools and daycares so girls can see that taking up a trade is not just for the boys.

“My goal is to fundraise to have the ability to purchase children trade and construction-related books and other learning resources to allow the young ones to develop interest in the trades.

“I am currently in discussions with a few after-school care programmes and an early child care centre who are interested in receiving these resources.

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“I’d like to encourage the wider community into joining the trades, to stop the stigma and allow our future leaders to be conscious of unique pathways and opportunities,” she said.

Eighteen-year-old Bach is in the second year of her apprenticeship and said when she first started two years ago she was a little daunted by being surrounded by so many blokes.

She said many young women would not get the opportunity she had to get into a trade, as her father is a builder and she would help him out during the school holidays or on weekends.

“It’s awesome, you don’t get sick of it. Nothing is ever the same.

“But when I started I didn’t know any women in trades at all, it was quite scary – so I want to break the mould.

“Mentally, it can be challenging being a woman, and it can be scary coming into a job that has a lot of older men in it.

“There’s a stigma around that because some people think that because you are a girl you can’t do it, but if I can, there’s no reason they can’t do it either.”

Bach is working on large-scale commercial building sites for Foster Construction and is doing her apprenticeship through trade-training organisation BCITO.

“[Fosters] thought it was pretty cool putting myself out there, and they are very supportive, and probably a bit surprised that one of their apprentices wanted to get out there and try to change the world.”

It was while working for Fosters that she picked up her nickname – the Concrete Queen – for her concreting skills, “shaping a liquid into a solid is not light work”.

Bach has also made contact with author and illustrator Keely O’Keeffe who has written the Tickety-Boo!! series of books featuring women working in trades.

The books feature Brooke the builder, Poppy the plumber and Elly the electrician, and according to O’Keeffe, “women are hugely under-represented in the trades … especially in the construction industry”.

“Tickety-Boo!! is a children’s picture book series that portrays the powerful message that ladies can be tradies”.

“By promoting the trades to a younger audience through storytelling, children in their formative years will be introduced to the concept of women working in the trades alongside men,” O’Keeffe said.