Heather Fleming tells trade association how apprenticeship set her on the path to a successful career 37 years ago…
Campaigning trade association SELECT has tracked down Scotland’s first-ever female electrical apprentice to discuss her career journey in an inspiring new video for Scottish Apprenticeship Week.
Former textile machinist Heather Fleming tells viewers how she got her big break 37 years ago, how she insisted on being treated as an equal to her male counterparts – and why she still believes an apprenticeship is an invaluable way to help climb the career ladder.
Produced in partnership with the Scottish Electrical Charitable Training Trust (SECTT), the video has also been released ahead of International Women’s Day on Saturday 8 March.
In the film, entitled Blazing a Trail, Heather reveals how she switched careers when she joined SELECT Member firm HF Electrical in Glasgow in 1988.
She says: “I was working as a sewing machinist in a factory and had the afternoon off, so went to the local careers office and found a leaflet called Would You Like to be an Electrician?
“Electricity had always been like black magic – it was just there – so it piqued my interest and I thought, ‘I’ll go for it and if I don’t get it, I don’t get it.’
“I was sent for an aptitude test and then told, ‘You’ve passed everything. Where would you like to work?’ I had no idea so they set me up with an interview at HF, I got the job and started work.”
Heather duly became Scotland’s first female electrical apprentice, attending Clydebank College – now West College Scotland – but insists she was never given any special treatment.
She tells the film: “HF looked after me but there was never any, ‘Wow, you’re the first’. I still had a job to do and there was an attitude of, ‘This person is part of our team and we will make sure we give her opportunities.’
“Although I’d gone from a very female-oriented job to a very male oriented one, for my own part it was just a job and I didn’t think it was any big deal.”
Heather also said she also insisted on equality as she continued her studies at Stow College, night school and university, revealing: “I was the only female in most classes and sometimes the lecturers would say, ‘We’d like to put you forward for something because you’re female.’
“But I always said, ‘I’m not the best person for that, not if there’s a guy that’s better than me – put them forward’. Just because you’re a female you don’t need to be promoted more.”
After rising through the ranks and working at a consultancy, Heather gained a degree in Building Services and is now an engineer with the Estates Department at the University of Edinburgh, who are also members of SELECT.
She said: “Life is about earning money and having a good lifestyle and an apprenticeship will get you to the stage of having a good job and being able to go up the tree.”
The video also comes more than three decades after Heather discussed her apprenticeship in SELECT’s cabletalk magazine, in which she said: “Sometimes there’s some taunting on-site, but I try to ignore it and if that doesn’t work I just give it back to them.”
And she said: “I think the attitude to women in the workplace in general has changed since then. I just think it’s a natural progression and I’ve been accepted in every job that I’ve been to.”
SELECT Director of Employment Affairs Catherine Gillon said: “As we celebrate achievements of electricians everywhere as part of our 125th anniversary, we are grateful to Heather and the University of Edinburgh for giving up their time and allowing us to discuss her journey in the industry.
“Some 37 years after we first interviewed her, it is heartening to see that Heather is still working in our sector. It shows that with a solid apprenticeship and the ongoing support of industry bodies like SELECT and SECTT, anything is achievable.”
SECTT CEO Fiona Harper added: “Heather’s story is an inspiring one and is the perfect example for Scottish Apprenticeship Week as it shows the rewards and opportunities that are available to young learners starting out on their own career path.
“As we look ahead to International Women’s Day, it also shows that there are no barriers in the electrotechnical industry and we should rightfully celebrate the achievements of the many women who currently enjoy successful careers at all levels of the sector.”
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