PPE & Workwear for Women - A Growing & Welcome Discussion Online
By Sarah Rafols
Where do you get your work boots in women’s sizes?
Where do you buy work pants that fit women?
The small is still too big for my hands. Do you have a women’s size?
These are some of the common questions I get from participants and colleagues who identify as a woman, new or veteran alike. As someone who has been working in the landscape trades for 10 years, I have asked these questions myself — more than once — at every company I have worked at. I have been used to the disappointment that comes with hearing “No”, “It’s one-size-fits-all”, or “That’s all we have”, so it’s an absolute THRILL when I hear a different answer. It’s even better when someone goes into more detail and you hear the excitement in their voice talking about the brand, how much it costs, what sizes are available, where you can purchase it, the durability of the material, and of course, if it’s all worth it.
I have always believed that if the skilled trades — especially trades that have been traditionally male-dominated and -centric, such as construction, manufacturing, landscaping/horticulture, automotive, and more — want more women to participate and find life-long careers in them, they have to provide women what they need to safely and successfully do their work. And, this starts with well-fitting PPE (personal protective equipment) and workwear. Workwear is what we wear every day to do our jobs effectively and safely, and PPE is the most basic method of protection we have against hazards and risks.
In the GROW New Entrant Training Program, we learn the importance of PPE on the very FIRST day of the program, whether it’s wearing PPE to perform work or operate equipment, or who’s responsible for ensuring PPE is provided and worn correctly. It’s threaded through all our training modules to create safe working habits and promote a safety-minded culture at work.
In the last 3 months, I have seen an increasing number of online articles and prominent tradeswomen who are speaking about the need for PPE that is designed for women:
Last December, the Canadian Occupational Safety Magazine wrote that the CSA Group found that about 3,000 women they surveyed who work in several sectors of the Canadian economy, including the skilled trades, revealed that “the PPE they are provided with doesn’t fit, is uncomfortable to wear, and doesn’t provide the protection it is supposed to.” Additionally, 40% of this group reported that they experienced an injury or incident they perceived to be related to their PPE. (Read the article: “PPE isn’t being made for women and they’re getting hurt”)
On LinkedIn, a trending post on my feed by Slice, Inc. showed Amy Roosa, the founder of The Safety Rack, explaining how ill-fitting PPE can damage women’s career opportunities:
“I think having the PPE that doesn’t fit you does actually hinder some job advancement, along with already being a female in the trades, you already got that against you a swell as you’re trying to break the glass ceiling. So if I don’t have the right PPE at work and I’m constantly wearing something that’s oversized, I don’t really feel confident in my job in the way I’m doing things and that’s going to be displayed to everybody else around me, including the people that I need to influence to be able to be like, ‘She’s really good at her job’. They may know that I’m really good at my job, but because I don’t display it, it’s going to have an effect when it comes to apply for those promotions and be considered.”
(Listen to the full interview with Amy: Spotify / YouTube / Apple Podcasts)
Four days ago, the Canadian Occupational Safety Magazine had a follow-up article about an initiative by EllisDon (one of the biggest construction firms in Ontario) to design and create safety vests for women. Jennifer Khan, the company’s Vice President of Inclusive Diversity, said:
“If we want to loudly and proudly say that construction is for everyone, we have to prove that, …and we have to prove that to folks starting with safety and letting them know that regardless of how you identify, or how you live, that you're welcome here and we have the tools to keep you safe.”
(Read the article: “Safety vests for women recognizes persistent PPE gap")
Two days ago, again on LinkedIn, Jennifer Green, who is the Direct of Competitions at Skills Ontario and a big advocate for skilled trades and women in trades, recommend her favourite women’s workwear and PPE, and she had this to say from her experience:
“Being comfortable with clothing that fits and properly, makes each day ‘normal’ and safe. When working as an Industrial Millwright with my first pregnancy, there were no workwear maternity pants and regular maternity pants in a factory in Maintenance was simply not an option. Women’s workwear and maternity workwear is an essential piece of Retention for Skilled Trades in bridging the gap of underrepresented groups.”
(See Jennifer’s LinkedIn post for her list of workwear and PPE companies here)
This discussion is very much welcome and very much needed. I hope it continues and we see the change on the horizon.
In the meantime, here are my favourite workwear and PPE brands:
Want to share your thoughts?
Send me an email at srafols@landscapeontario.com and let’s start talking!