Just one in 10 women work in construction, and those who can, play significant roles in the field.

Among those women is Jessica Martinez, a supervisor at Vaughn Construction. Her job is to go over construction blueprints and give direction to the workers.

“Sometimes I go to a local hardware store, and I’m still wearing my hardhat and my vest, and they're like ‘wow. Congratulations, you work in a male dominated workplace,’" Martinez said. “It was kind of hard because a lot of Mexican men, they're like, ‘We don't take orders from women.’ But they come around, and we're there to get the work done."

For nearly 20 years, Martinez worked as a medical assistant but has always had an interest in construction. She decided to make the career switch five years ago.

At the time, there were only three other women at her site.

“This is a field that not many women get looked at because it always has been like a man's type of work, RO Engineering Project Administrator Norma Catalina Olivarez said. “I'm very passionate about this field. I think if anything it highlights women that are not seen that need to be looked at in different aspects, because they are working hard.”

Like Martinez, Olivarez followed another career path. She was in education for 24 years and graduated from STC with a degree in construction last year.

Olivarez is also a committee member for the group "Women in Construction in the Rio Grande Valley." 

The group got together a year ago as a way to meet other women in construction and support one another. At the time there were less than 10 members. They currently have over 76 members.

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