Barfoote building apprentice Georgina Whaley, Asset Corrosion Engineered Solutions director Debbie Pou, Civic Centre gate manager Maree Hemingway and former Civic Centre project manager Aidan Bryers are encouraging other women to consider careers in the booming construction industry. Photo / Tania Whyte
Barfoote building apprentice Georgina Whaley, Asset Corrosion Engineered Solutions director Debbie Pou, Civic Centre gate manager Maree Hemingway and former Civic Centre project manager Aidan Bryers are encouraging other women to consider careers in the booming construction industry. Photo / Tania Whyte
A hairdresser turned construction worker at Whangarei's new Civic Centre is urging other women to consider careers in the building industry.
Maree Hemingway, from the Tutukaka Coast, is one of many women who've worked on the landmark $55 million project — including, until recently, the overall project manager.
The mother of three says pay, conditions and job prospects are much better than other industries she's worked in.
''A lot more women and girls should consider moving into construction. It's a growing industry and there's a lot of work on at the moment, so why shouldn't girls get into it?''
Hemingway said she only got into construction by accident.
Originally she trained as a hairdresser but landed a job in security and traffic control when she returned to the workforce after raising children. That included a stint on the Akerama Curves realignment on State Highway 1 north of Whangārei.
The traffic role took her to building sites from time to time, and when the first lockdown hit construction companies needed extra staff to manage site access.
''That's how I ended up here and I'm really enjoying it. It's nice having the change, being outside and working in different places.''
Whangarei's new Civic Centre under construction in December. Photo / Tania Whyte
Hemingway, who's employed by Canam Construction, has a number of roles at the Rust Ave site.
She's in charge of crane bookings, making sure each of the dozen-plus contractors on site has access to the crane when needed; she's the gate manager, ensuring incoming deliveries go to the right place; she runs inductions for new staff, and she takes care of health and safety.
''I think that's definitely a good role for women. You approach things differently, you're not so in-your-face when you ask people to do something. Things run a lot more smoothly — plus it's just nice to have women on-site, I reckon.''
Hemingway said she'd never had trouble with sexual harassment or, once she'd shown she was willing to get stuck in, with male colleagues not taking her seriously.
She was training to be a site manager but her studies were on hold while work was so busy.
She had been at the Civic Centre site for the past year and a half and was looking forward to being part of the project from start to finish.
''Women don't need to limit themselves,'' she said.
''I probably would've gone into building years ago if it had been more encouraged. My dad was a builder and I used to love hanging out with him at worksites.
''It's the kind of career girls haven't necessarily thought about, or they've been put off because they thought it's man's job. But there's a lot more jobs in building than hairdressing, and you get better pay and conditions.''
Last year many of the top jobs at the Civic Centre site were held by women, including overall project manager Aidan Bryers.
Hemingway said Bryers was one of the reasons she wanted to stay in construction. ''She's really inspiring. It's great to see how far she's advanced in the industry.''
Artist's impression of the Civic Centre entrance. Image / supplied
Bryers, who's still based in Whangārei but now manages projects for Beca, said she originally studied architecture.
''But I didn't really like it so I went on the tools as a hammer hand with King Brothers in Dargaville for a few years. I worked on a couple of large jobs with them and that piqued my interest in site management.''
Bryers then landed a job with Fletcher Construction, working on high-profile projects such as Paremoremo maximum security prison and Auckland's international convention centre.
''It's such a rewarding career, to be able to have an influence in shaping the built environment and leave a lasting legacy.''
Women were just as capable as men but brought extra skills to the table, Bryers said.
''We're more empathetic to our colleagues and work a lot harder at maintaining good working relationships.''
Barfoote building apprentice Georgina Whaley, Asset Corrosion Engineered Solutions director Debbie Pou, Civic Centre gate manager Maree Hemingway and former Civic Centre project manager Aidan Bryers are encouraging other women to consider careers in the booming construction industry. Photo / Tania Whyte
Other women who've worked on the Civic Centre project include Debbie Pou, director of Whangārei-based Asset Corrosion Engineered Solutions, and Georgina Whaley, a second-year building apprentice with Barfoote Construction.
Whaley's first job was with Circus Kumarani so, like Hemingway, building was a major change of direction.
''I had no idea I wanted to do it until I started a carpentry course at NorthTec. I didn't want to be stuck at a desk, I wanted to do something physical. I realised it was fun and people understood I was interested and helped me along,'' Whaley said.
She urged other young women thinking about their futures to consider building.
''Everyone can learn it. If you're keen to learn, it's easy.''
The four-storey Civic Centre is being built for the Whangārei District Council on the former RSA site on Rust Ave.
It will include a customer service centre, council chambers and offices for council and Northland Transport Alliance staff currently scattered across a number of buildings in Whangārei.
■ The Northland Women's Infrastructure Network runs regular Girls with Hi-Vis days at schools encouraging young women to consider jobs in the industry. Covid has put the initiative on hold but you can check out infrastructure.org.nz/win and www.connexis.org.nz/girls-with-hi-vis for more information.
