Focus on Raven Maris

The Sydney Trains electrician and Leader of the ETU National Women’s Committee shares her experiences and insights with ECD.

How did you get into the electrical industry?

I began my career in Canada as a chef, then got married, had children and became a stay-at-home mum. I emigrated to Australia 16 years ago and decided to retrain as an electrician, becoming a ‘mature-age apprentice’ with Sydney Trains and Transport for NSW. I had to juggle my apprenticeship with being a mum of a four-year-old and a seven-year-old.

What attracted you to working as an electrician?

Having a background in working in kitchens, a male-dominated sector, I wasn’t intimidated by working in another one. I was inspired by my father, who was an industrial electrician working in the oil and gas industry. At the time of my applying for apprenticeships, I faced significant discouragement from my family; they were of the opinion that I should work in a more feminised industry like retail or go back to hospitality.

In hospitality you’re overworked, underpaid, underappreciated. You deal with cranky customers on a constant basis. It’s not conducive to a good work–life balance. I know myself well enough to know that being told that I can’t do something makes me want to do it more. It was just logical, the amount of security in having a trade is unparalleled; that is even more evident now with the transition to renewables. Once you’re licensed, you have the ability to take it anywhere and you can stop, raise a family, and then come back to it. The qualification never disappears once you’ve got it.

What does a typical workday look like for you — or are no two days the same?

I’m blessed to work in one of the industries where variety is part of the job. No two days for me in the substation construction division of Sydney Trains are the same. I spend a great deal of my work life travelling and living in some of the more remote locations of the network. Some weeks we’re putting high-voltage cable routes in the ground in the bush outside Lithgow, or [there are] weeks when a project requires wiring protection circuits for the new high-voltage switchgear we’re installing. I truly enjoy the variety — it gives me the opportunity to grow in my trade and I’m never bored.

Can you tell us a bit about your advocacy work as Leader of the ETU National Women’s Committee? Why was it important for you to take on this role?

I was elected to the role with the ETU last year, and in all honesty it’s been a very steep learning curve. The aim of the National Women’s Committee is to get more women into the trades. Part of our role is to create greater visibility around women working in the trades [and] we have been given opportunities to consult with government on model clauses that help lift the standard of parental leave or similar that makes our industry a more inviting place for primary caregivers.

With the skills shortage that is felt all over the world, not just here in Australia, the push to have a greater number of electrically qualified people coming through to meet the need couldn’t be more evident; a significant number need to be women and more gender diverse people. The ETU is not the only body with that aim; the initiatives from state and federal governments underpin that sense of urgency. I would always encourage someone to never, ever be afraid to step outside their comfort zone and try something. It’s in those places where we feel most discomfort or fear or trepidation that we have our greatest growth.

When a woman steps into this industry she becomes a trailblazer, and chooses a hard path that is worthy of recognition. Over the four years of my apprenticeship I have come away with a qualification, and confidence and new skills that I didn’t know were even possible for me. It is my hope that along with the other women leaders in my union we can make the industry a significantly more enticing place to find a career. Come on in, the water is just fine!

What advice do you have for aspiring female sparkies?

One of the saddest things I have come across talking to other women working in male-dominated industries is the need to erase their femininity to fit in. I want to help break that; I never want to see young people making themselves ‘smaller’ to fit into a box. I want to empower young women and those that are gender diverse to be true to themselves. I still wear perfume and mascara to work; I might be an electrician, but I very much am a woman, and if others onsite find that uncomfortable it’s their problem.

I also want to send the message that you don’t have to be a big bloke to succeed here; I’m on the smaller side and work in one of the most physically demanding sections. Physical abilities are no longer a barrier to women, with WHS rules preventing anyone — male or female — lifting over a 20 kg bag of concrete. We have mechanical aids for everything these days. No one should have to overexert themselves or put themselves in any physical risk. So no, you don’t have to be big. I am only 5′ 4″ and I weigh the same as two and a half bags of concrete.

Are there any trends, changes or innovations in the industry that you’re excited about?

Just being an electrician is being part of the future; helping construct the infrastructure for the transitions to renewables is exciting. The amount of work that needs to be done to get us to net zero is immense, but all the new technology that will make it safer, cleaner and more sustainable is inspiring. The 10,000 km of new transmission lines, the upgrading of every household to all-electric, and the new tech coming with battery or storage of electricity makes the future bright.