Former President of Plumbers Local 55 and current chair of the Tradeswomen Committee with the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council (CBCTC), Doreen Cannon, joined America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss the group’s most successful Career Fair to date. She also discussed her work to provide safety standards in the plumbing industry.
Over 390 people attended the CBCTC’s Career Fair in March. This was the most successful turnout for one of the CBCTC’s career fairs that have been held since 2017, according to Cannon. She talked about the large number of high school students that attended the career fair, and the importance of providing an early introduction to the trades.
Cannon then talked about the agreements between Cuyahoga Community College and the trades. The agreement provides college credits to apprentices who are going through the program. This sets the apprentices up for the potential for a secondary education as they usually top out only a few credits shy of a degree. She discussed how the career fair gives all the trades an opportunity to reach new members that may have never considered a union career.
Cannon is currently in Madison, Wisc. for the American Society for Sanitary Engineering (ASSE) mid-year meeting. She is a sitting member on the board of directors for the organization that supplies product and professional qualification for the health and safety of the plumbing industry. As a former president of Plumbers Local 55 in Cleveland, Cannon talked about the work being done by ASSE to protect her union Brothers and Sisters.
Listen to the show above to hear more about the CBCTC career fair from Cannon.