Karyn Newmark, a High Voltage Substation Electrician and Lead Journeyman at SMUD, serves on IBEW 1245’s newly formed Women’s Committee. One of six women in SMUD’s Substation and Construction division with sixteen years in the trade, Newmark declared, “Women in the trades are important. We never knew this kind of job existed. By having more women out here and getting our faces out there, it helps promote these jobs for women.”
High Voltage Substation Electrician Karyn Newmark works at the Hurley Substation in Sacramento.
IBEW 1245 Business Manager Bob Dean established the committee in September 2024.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2023, women made up 46.8% of the total workforce in the United States. But in the utility and transportation sector, women represent only 11%-24%. Though the trend line is inching upwards, there is much more work to be done.
Newmark was excited to profile these other exceptional women in her department at SMUD.
Heather Andersen is a Foreman Cable Splicer Electrician at SMUD with 13 years under her belt. She credits her parents for cultivating her belief that she could be anything she wanted to be as well as her strong work ethic. Andersen’s father, a retired SMUD lineman, played a significant role in inspiring her career choice with SMUD. “I have the best memories of time spent with him and his closest Lineman friends around the campfire joking, laughing, and going through all of the crazy stories of their time spent climbing poles and splicing cable. He was always happy to teach me how to use tools safely and how to use our imagination to build and fix anything.”
Foreman Cable Splicer Heather Andersen splices a cable in an electrical vault at the Sacramento Convention Center. IBEW members from SMUD work in Sacramento, Calif. on December 3, 2024.
When Andersen applied for the apprenticeship at SMUD, “I was told I was the only woman that had passed the cable splicer/electrician portion of the physical test, and I was offered an {apprenticeship}. It was one of the biggest decisions of my life.”
Andersen’s favorite part of the job is lead cable splicing. “No other job at SMUD rises to this level of specialty craftsmanship, and there is nothing like building something that will last 60-plus years. I love job planning and running a crew. My goal is to create an environment where everyone can learn safely, and have fun each and every day they come to work because it doesn’t get better than that,” she added.
Jackie Lawler is a High Voltage Substation Electrical Apprentice at SMUD. After working eight years as a welder, she joined SMUD’s apprenticeship in search of something new and different.
“I enjoyed working a physical job with my hands in the tools, but I wanted a greater challenge.” As an aspiring High Voltage Substation Electrical Apprentice, “I pull wires, strip cables, troubleshoot equipment, fabricate fixes for breakers, boxes, and switches,” she said. “I get to make things! There’s a lot of variety in what I do.”
Lawler’s last job as a welder was nonunion.
“It was like a sword hanging over your head; you could lose your job at any time. Here, I have stability, security and peace of mind. I have someone at the Table fighting for me.”
Protection and equity are part of the union equation.
“At my last job I learned that I made $5 less than my male-co-workers. Here, {because of the union} there’s equity,” she said.
Megan Kilgore is also a high voltage Substation Electrical Apprentice. She joined SMUD’s program after a twelve-year military career – six years in the Navy and six years in the Airforce working in the electrical department. That’s when she discovered her love of working in electricity. Following a stint at tech school, Kilgore started her apprenticeship at SMUD two and a half years ago.
“What do I love about my job? I like doing different stuff all the time, the technology, and the people. Everyone here is very supportive,” Kilgore added. The greatest challenge was “starting from scratch and being super green. But I’ve grown a lot, made a lot of friends, and overcome challenges.”
Though this is Kilgore’s first union job, she was clear that being union means being safer and having better working conditions and protections. “If I had a concern, the Union would back us up.”
Apprentice High Voltage Electrician Yesenia Vega, High Voltage Substation Electrician Karyn Newmark and Apprentice High Voltage Electrician Megan Kilgore work at the Hurley Substation in Sacramento.
Lashena Sierra is a Substation Maintenance Worker. She came to SMUD from the City of Sacramento where she worked as a garbage truck driver in the Solid Waste Division. “I always wanted to get into the electric field. I hired on [at SMUD} during the pandemic and pursued a two-year training course,” she added.
Learning the equipment, situational awareness, and how to enter and depart a substation to safeguard the crew’s well being were key elements of her training. A favorite part of her work: inspecting equipment and identifying potential problems before they occur. “I like the hands-on part of the work, finding issues before they become problems,” she shared.
Why pay union dues? “It’s the least we can do,” Sierra offered, “It’s paying for help, security, fairness and protection.”
The sense of camaraderie was palpable.
Jody Cather, a sixteen-year Substation High Voltage Electrician put it this way: “We are like brothers and sisters no matter what race, gender, or how you identify. My work family! We talk openly with one another if there is improvement needed, {when a} good job is done, sharing experience to make each other stronger, and making sure we all go home safe at the end of the day.”
Left to right; front row; Apprentice High Voltage Electrician Yesenia Vega, High Voltage Substation Electrician Karyn Newmark, Foreman Cable Splicer/Electrician Heather Andersen. Top Row; Apprentice High Voltage Electrician Jackie Lawler, Apprentice High Voltage Electrician Megan Kilgore and Substation Maintenance Worker Lashena Sierra.
The site visit was facilitated by IBEW 1245 Business Representative Kim Camatti, a former Materials Specialist at SMUD for twenty years before joining IBEW 1245’s staff, and Christy Dray, SMUD Manager of Substation, Construction & Maintenance, Energy Delivery & Operations.
Both Camatti and Newmark credited Dray. “Today was thanks to Christy Dray,” said Newmark. “Even though she doesn’t come from the field, she realizes how important it is to have women represented and to create opportunities. She’s always reaching out to us and making sure the face of the field workers is out there.”
Dray, Newmark and Camatti extolled the team of women at SMUD as among the best in the industry. “They’re amazing. They’re hard workers. They show up with a positive attitude. All the apprentices we have appreciate the opportunity they have. They realize what a good opportunity it is and the kind of career it makes possible,” said Newmark.
As far as advice for girls or women considering entering the trade, the message was consistent.
“You’ve got to be hungry! And you have to prepare. Prepare yourself. Learn hand tools. Build mechanical aptitude. Pursue hobbies at home. Take classes at Community Colleges. Develop hobbies,” stated Dray.
Andersen shared, “This is hard, dirty work that requires long hours and there are sacrifices that come with that. I chose to wait to have kids until I completed my apprenticeship, but I constantly battle the balance of being a successful woman in my trade and being the best Mom I can be to my two amazing children. If you are a woman wanting to work in a male dominated field, come in ready to work hard, become highly skilled, and don’t look for anyone to carry you. Carry yourself, and you will earn everyone’s respect.”
“Go for it!” said Sierra. “You have to choose your path and go for your passion.”
Camatti summed it up saying, “I’m proud to see IBEW women at SMUD in these trades serving as role models, inspiring other women and girls to pursue careers in fields they might have previously thought were inaccessible.”
- Eileen Purcell, IBEW 1245 Sr. Advisor; Photos by John Storey