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| Diahanna Christie, Ironworker Local 377, Apprentice
NASCAR enthusiast Diahanna Christie learned to weld from a friend and decided she would get a job where she could refine her skills.
“I have only been in the trades for three months, but it's been pretty good. I'm learning how to weld. I have two certificates and need a third to be a certified welder. Some of the other positions are a little harder, like doing rebar, and that's really hard. It's a killer.
“The conference has been a help. Hearing the journeyman ladies who have been here 10 plus years talking about the obstacles and barriers they got through is very encouraging for me. Ironwork is one of the hardest and most dangerous in the trades. It’s very hard and very physical; a lot of wear and tear on your body for women. I was starting to wonder, ‘Am I in the right place?’ But listening to the ladies who have made it, I realized I can make it.
“My husband is an ironworker, and he says I don’t do as much work as he does because I'm a woman, but it's a lie. Just like around the house, he thinks he does all the work, but I do more than him.”
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