The Board of Directors of the Canadian Association of Women in Construction (CAWIC) are pleased to announce the association’s official launch. CAWIC was founded 23 years ago by a group of Toronto-area professional women working in the construction industry. Originally the Toronto Chapter 295 of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), CAWIC recently separated from its US-based parent organization. CAWIC will continue to maintain its ties with NAWIC and will also establish unilateral and multilateral relationships with similar associations in the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand through the signing of International Affiliations.
CAWIC will commemorate its official launch with a cocktail reception that will take place on Tuesday, April 25, 2006, starting at 5:30pm. The reception will be held in downtown Toronto at the TD Waterhouse Tower, 79 Wellington Street West, 16th Floor.
The construction industry in Canada represents significant career and business opportunities for women in a variety of trade, technical and professional fields. According to the Canadian Construction Association, the construction industry employs close to one million Canadian men and women and is responsible for about $123 billion in economic activity annually. The construction industry accounts for approximately 12 percent of Canada’s total gross domestic product.
“Our mandate is to facilitate the long-term success of women in the Canadian construction industry by identifying career and business opportunities, organizing networking events, developing mentoring programs and reaching out to elementary and high-school students,” comments Angela Wilson, CAWIC’s inaugural President. “CAWIC will work closely with industry, government and other associations to represent the concerns of our members and eliminate existing and potential barriers. We want women to not only consider the construction industry, but to make it a career choice and stay in it.”
Governed by a volunteer Board of Directors, CAWIC’s activities will also include industry research and information sharing, organizing educational seminars and career days, fundraising for bursaries and community outreach programs.
CAWIC’s membership base consists of individuals and companies engaged in construction and related fields. These include general and specialty contractors, architectural and engineering firms, building product manufacturers and distributors, real estate professionals, interior designers, trade associations, law firms and other professional service providers. CAWIC’s membership also represents a diverse spectrum of skilled and professional occupations within the industry. Individual members include tradeswomen, architects, business owners and senior executives, estimators, lawyers, professional engineers and technologists, project managers, real estate agents, sales and marketing professionals, students as well as HR, accounting and other support functions. CAWIC has introduced an Associate Member category to accommodate the growing interest of individuals and companies that provide the construction industry with goods and professional services.
For more information about CAWIC, please visit www.cawic.ca.