My goal is to end the myth being a brickie is a man’s job .. it is a great career for girls
Glamorous worker smashes wall of sexism
A SELF-confessed “girly girl” bricklayer is determined to show sexist men that she can do the job and still glam up at the weekends.
Female construction worker Nicole Carlin claims she has had to fight back against comments and assumptions she is a tomboy ever since starting her apprenticeship in 2017. The 22-year-old says the closedminded comments range from strangers branding her the “downfall of the industry” to asking Nicole why she isn’t “fetching the tea”. But Nicole reckons they are “scared” of being bested by a woman. At the same time, the young builder loves proving wrong anyone who thinks she can’t be “girly” because of her job, swapping work’s high-vis and hard hat for hair and nail appointments in her downtime. Nicole, of Glasgow, said: “I tend to find it’s the older generation who take more issue with me being a female bricklayer.
“They have older traditional ways as they’re used to things being a certain way – females were never seen on sites before.
“They can get a bit sexist. You’ll get comments, sometimes you’ll hear stuff like, ‘Why aren’t you getting the tea?’
“One time somebody commented that what I was doing was a ‘man’s role’ and construction was ‘falling to the ground’ if I was the new type of bricklayer coming in.
“I surprised myself at that moment. I’m not as sensitive as I thought, as I replied, ‘Well if you’re uncomfortable or threatened because females are entering the roles maybe that problem lies with you – maybe you’re scared a girl could do it better.’
“People definitely assume that I’m a tomboy because I work in construction. I’m still girly but you can’t really show that at work. Outside work, I like doing my hair, my make-up, my eyelashes and stuff.”
While she has had to deal with her share of naysayers, Nicole has also encountered a great deal of support, particularly from other women in her line of work.
And she is more determined than ever to inspire other girls to go into the industry.
Nicole said: “At my company, there are four other girls – one joiner and three painters. There are a lot more girls who are applying to get into construction jobs.
“Every female I’ve come across that’s either at work, college, meetings, anywhere, we are all very supportive of each other and it is really nice to meet other women across construction.”