Local contractors build little free libraries to donate for Women in Construction Week

Not all construction jobs involve a saw or a hammer. Some are project managers, engineers or architects who do much of their work in an office.

“Even though we are in construction, we don’t really use our hands all the time,” Sarah Cottam, president of Inland Pacific Associated Builders and Contractors and a member of Spokane’s chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction, said of a group of administrative construction employees gathered Thursday in Spokane Valley.

Women from the association who typically work behind the scenes convened at Inland Northwest Associated General Contractors’ apprenticeship center there for a hands-on experience building little libraries as part of Women in Construction Week.

“It’s a good time,” said Brea La Rue, president of the Women in Construction chapter. “These women are excited to get out here and get their hands dirty and feel what it’s like to be out on a construction site.”

Matthew Cottam, the Associated General Contractors’ lead carpenter instructor and Sarah Cottom’s husband, gave the women a quick safety briefing and pointers as they worked in small groups to build several of the covered bookshelves. The little libraries, which could also function as neighborhood pantries, will be mounted inside planter boxes and donated to local nonprofits.

The “build day” is part of a week of events that involved education, networking and jobsite tours.

“We get to be nosy and check out other people’s jobsites and see all the cool stuff they are doing,” said Shannen Talbot, communications director for the Associated General Contractors.

On Wednesday, a panel of women discussed the construction industry at NEWTech Skills Center, where about 75 girls from area high schools joined to hear about potential career paths.

LaRue, who is a project engineer for Garco Construction, said she is seeing improvements for women in the industry, with more tradeswomen in the field and more women moving into leadership roles beyond stereotypical assistant positions.

“We’re still not there,” LaRue said. “If you pull up any construction company in the Spokane area, you’ll see a long list of male employees, and the ratio from male to female employees is still pretty low.”

Trade associations like hers are bringing more awareness to the issue, she said, and local general contractors are finding ways to encourage more women to apply for jobs in construction.