Diana Limon on Women in Construction at IBEW Local 11

Continuing our Women in Construction Week programming, the America’s Work Force Union Podcast welcomed Diana Limon, Director of Women Recruitment and Support at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 11 in Los Angeles. Limon began her path into the electrical apprenticeship in 1995 after realizing a traditional college track was not delivering the career stability and earnings she wanted. She explained why the building trades remain “education’s best kept secret” for many young people and why visibility and outreach are now improving access.

Limon also focused on the two issues that determine whether recruitment efforts succeed: retention and advancement. She outlined how pre-apprenticeship readiness programs, such as NABTU’s MC3 model, help candidates prepare for the physical, technical and cultural realities of construction. She also highlighted California’s Equal Representation in Construction Apprenticeships (ERiCA) grant as a meaningful step toward childcare support, while warning that short-term funding will not solve a long-term barrier. For Local 11, success means more women entering the trade, staying in the trade and moving into leadership roles on the jobsite and in the union.

• Recruitment improves when the trades are visible: social media, outreach and apprenticeship-readiness programs are reducing the “best kept secret” barrier.
• Retention hinges on childcare and scheduling realities: Early start times and the cost of childcare remain major obstacles even when benefits are available.
• Union construction delivers measurable equity: Contract standards drive equal pay, strong healthcare and pensions that support long-term family stability.

Women in Construction Week Puts a Spotlight on Union Electrical Careers

Women in Construction Week has become a national checkpoint for the building trades: a moment to measure progress and to name the obstacles that still keep many women out of high-wage, high-skill careers. On America’s Work Force, that conversation moved to Los Angeles, where IBEW Local 11 has built a dedicated role focused on women’s recruitment and support.

Diana Limon, who entered the electrical apprenticeship in 1995, now serves as Local 11’s Director of Women Recruitment and Support. Her message was consistent with what labor leaders across North America have been saying for years: recruitment matters, but retention and advancement determine whether the industry truly changes.

Diana Limon’s Apprenticeship Story Reflects a National Pattern

Limon’s entry into the trades began with a familiar detour. After high school, she followed the default advice given to many young people—go to college first, figure it out later. A few years in, she returned home to the Los Angeles area, took a union job in a school setting and gained stability, but not the earnings or long-term career trajectory she wanted.

Her pivot came through a newspaper advertisement for the local IBEW apprenticeship program. She did not have a roadmap or family pipeline into the electrical industry. She asked questions, listened to what people around her knew, and then applied.

That “chance discovery” remains a central labor relations issue. When the pathway into apprenticeship depends on who you know, the workforce narrows. Limon’s view is that the trades have historically been difficult to access, not because the work is unavailable, but because information and entry points were not widely shared.

Women in the Trades Statistics Show Progress and the Work Ahead

Limon pointed to low national participation rates for females in the trades. Tradeswomen still account for a small share of the overall construction workforce, approximately 4 percent to 5 percent nationally. For labor and management alike, that figure is not just a representation problem. It is a workforce capacity problem.

Construction demand continues to rise across many regions and sectors, including transportation, public works and energy-related projects. If women make up more than half of the overall workforce, the building trades cannot meet long-term labor needs while drawing from a narrow slice of that talent pool.

Limon’s assessment: the industry is doing better than it did decades ago, but progress is not automatic. It requires intentional recruitment, strong support systems and visible leadership.

IBEW Local 11 Membership and Women’s Participation in the Trades

Local 11 is one of the largest IBEW Locals in the country, representing nearly 12,000 members across construction, civil service and manufacturing. In general construction, the Local is roughly 7,500 strong.

Within the apprenticeship pipeline, Limon said women’s participation has fluctuated over time, ranging from approximately 3.5 percent to a peak near 6 percent in the program. Those numbers underscore a key point: even in a Local with strong institutional support, women’s representation can remain stubbornly low without sustained, targeted effort.

Local 11’s strategy is to build support across the entire system—union staff, apprenticeship training, jobsite leadership and contractor accountability—so women can enter, stay and advance.

Recruitment vs. Retention: Childcare and Early Start Times Remain Barriers

Limon drew a clear line between recruitment and retention. Recruiting women into the trades is challenging, she said, but keeping them in the trades can be even harder.

Childcare is a defining issue. Even when assistance is available, the construction work schedule often does not align with the childcare providers' schedule. A worker who must report at 5 or 5:30 a.m. may have no option for care, especially single parents and families without extended support.

Limon described this as a structural barrier, not an individual failing. The industry can advertise opportunities all day, but if the support systems do not match the realities of the job, retention will lag.

California’s ERiCA Grant Signals a Shift Toward Practical Support

One of the most significant developments Limon highlighted is California’s Equal Representation in Construction Apprenticeships (ERiCA) grant, administered through the state’s Department of Industrial Relations. In her view, it represents a meaningful shift: funding designed to help address childcare costs.

For the first time in her career, she said, she is seeing real resources directed toward an issue that has long been cited as a barrier to women’s participation.

But Limon also raised the question labor leaders are increasingly asking: Is it enough, and is it sustained? Electrical apprenticeships can last five years. Short-term assistance may help a worker get started, but if funding ends mid-program, the industry risks losing apprentices just as they are building skills and nearing journey-level work.

Apprenticeship Readiness Programs Build Confidence and Jobsite Preparedness

Local 11’s recruitment strategy is not limited to career fairs and school outreach. Limon emphasized the value of apprenticeship readiness programs, including NABTU’s Multi-Craft Core Curriculum (MC3).

In the Los Angeles area, Local 11 works closely with a program called WINTER (Women in Non-Traditional Employment Roles), described as an all-female pre-apprenticeship pathway. These programs typically run eight to 10 weeks and focus on practical preparation:

• Exposure to multiple building trades so candidates can identify the right craft
• Safety training, such as OSHA, CPR and first aid
• Tool familiarity and basic hands-on practice
• Physical conditioning aligned with job-site demands
• Eligibility readiness, including ensuring candidates meet entry requirements

From a labor relations perspective, readiness programs reduce friction at the point of entry. When candidates arrive on the job with baseline safety knowledge and tool familiarity, contractors see improved performance and apprentices gain confidence.

Addressing Harassment and Discrimination: Accountability on Union Jobsites

Limon acknowledged that discrimination and harassment can occur in male-dominated workplaces, including construction. Her emphasis, however, was on how incidents are handled.

She described a system in which serious issues are addressed and where union contractors have clear incentives to enforce standards. In her experience, accountability can include termination for egregious behavior, even for long-tenured workers.

The broader implication is cultural: job-site norms change when expectations are enforced. For women considering the trades, the question is not whether challenges exist; it is whether they can overcome them. The question is whether the workplace and the union have the will and process to respond.

Why Union Construction Is a Pathway to the Middle Class for Women

During her conversation, Limon repeatedly returned to the economic fundamentals. Union construction offers what many workers are seeking:

• Equal pay through contract standards
• High-earning career progression through an apprenticeship
• Strong healthcare benefits
• Pensions that remain increasingly rare in the broader economy

The ability to buy a home, take a vacation, support children and plan for retirement is tied to wage standards and benefits that are negotiated and enforced, she said.

Construction is also one of the few industries where women can earn the same as men on the same job classification, because the contract sets the rate.

The Next Measure of Success: Women in Jobsite and Union Leadership

For Local 11, Limon said, success is not only measured by how many women enter the apprenticeship program. It is measured by whether women stay, complete the program and move into leadership roles—foreman, general foreman, superintendent or union leadership positions.

That leadership visibility matters. When candidates see people who look like them in decision-making roles, it signals that advancement is real, not theoretical.

Women in Construction Week, in Limon’s view, is a reminder that the work is ongoing. The industry has improved access and visibility, but the next phase requires sustained childcare solutions, strong readiness pathways and intentional leadership development.

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