Council News Release

Councilmember Sally J. Clark
Councilmember Jean Godden

COUNCILMEMBERS JOIN CELEBRATION OF WOMEN IN TRADES
Twenty-eighth job fair educates, recruits, and acclaims tradeswomen

Seattle — On Friday, April 27, Councilmembers Sally Clark and Jean Godden will attend the twenty-eighth annual Women in Trades Fair. While at the fair, councilmembers will participate in the Trade Olympics, showing their expertise (or lack thereof) at basic trade craft skills such as painting straight lines, reading maps and measuring boards.

The Fair is a great opportunity for women of all ages to meet recruiters and tradeswomen such as carpenters, electricians, painters and bricklayers, and learn about wages, training opportunities, and needed skills. Scores of high-school and middle-school students attend and learn about career opportunities as a welder, a line worker, a sprinkler fitter or many other trades. Councilmember Sally Clark said, “Young women need to learn about opportunities to find careers paying living wages.”

The Fair also serves as an opportunity for tradeswomen who are ready to work to find jobs. Over seventy exhibitors, including public and private sector employers, attend because of their strong commitment to placing women in the workplace. Councilmember Jean Godden said, “The city has supported training and apprenticeship opportunities for women since the mid-1970s, when 10 women entered the electrical trade at Seattle City Light. Women have made an invaluable contribution to City Light and the City of Seattle. This fair is an opportunity to encourage and recruit young women to consider exciting opportunities in the trades.”

Who: Councilmembers Sally Clark and Jean Godden
What: 28th Annual Women in Trades Fair and Councilmembers participating in Trade Olympics
When: April 27, 2007, 11:30am
Where: Seattle Center’s Fisher Pavilion
Visuals: Shots of councilmembers painting lines and measuring boards.

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City Council