Story Feature: Carrie

Quote: “Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow” - Joanna Gaines

Highlights from Carrie’s Story:

“People say ‘I don’t want to be a plumber because I don’t want to fix toilets’.” Carrie smiles when she says it, because she knows firsthand how misunderstood her trade can be.

Carrie is a Red Seal–certified plumber working at Stellantis Canada’s Windsor Assembly Plant, where Chrysler minivans are built. Most people think plumbers just fix toilets, but Carrie laughs at that: “It’s a very cool scope of work for a plumber, when it comes to the maintenance and repair and ongoing use of that factory, it’s a whole new skill set.” Her day-to-day includes maintaining piping, adhesives, solvents, clear coat, and even the robotic paint booths. Maintaining everything from air systems and adhesives to the paint and solvent delivery lines that keep vehicles rolling off the line.

Her path here wasn’t straight. Carrie studied French and planned to teach, but when she missed the cutoff for Teachers College, life rerouted her. She shares how that path looked for her, “You start out thinking, okay, I'm going to be a teacher or a child psychologist. Oh, I didn't get into teacher's college. ‘Hey, would you like to be a manager? You're really good at this. Your customer service skills are amazing...’ Yeah, sure. Let's do that.” When she moved into grocery management, she started out by learning to cut meat as a butcher and eventually being promoted to running the store. “That was my first chance to step into a male-dominated career,” she says. The pay gap was glaring knowing that her male counterpart made more, she knew she needed something better.

She joined the automotive industry as a line worker. It wasn’t until several years later, at the age of 45, that she took her shot at a plumbing apprenticeship. “I’ve always loved doing things with my hands. I’ve always loved learning new things and tackling new opportunities.” Just before COVID shutdowns, she had her Red Seal.

Carrie remembers the pressure of those early years: “I remember I had to solder copper pipes while five journeymen sat there and watched me, no pressure at all.” she laughs. She admires the pride in her work, when the troubleshooting, the creativity, and making old systems work in a 100-year-old factory it’s something that is exciting for her. “When something works, and I helped get it there, it’s incredible.”

She’s also brutally honest about representation she has experienced for women in her trade. Out of 500 tradespeople in her plant, only 12 are women. Out of the 60 apprentices chosen when she started, only four were women. Carrie has a different perspective of this, instead of feeling like the minority, “I have a shop full of big brothers. They support us, they encourage us, 98% of the guys are fantastic.” Her advice to women coming up: “When you find a male ally in the workplace, let them know how critical their support is. Their behavior will change the behavior of other men exponentially.” Carrie also shares about the opportunities through networking, “…if you're intentional about relationships and you connect with people on the regular, opportunities will come your way.”

Goals/Achievements:

Mentorship is where Carrie wants to focus now. She teaches high school students through Ontario’s Youth Apprenticeship Program. “It’s a really cool opportunity for mentorship and seeing people start a new journey. They can’t see themselves doing it if they can’t see it.” Watching kids discover trades for the first time and even her own daughter, who’s now a mechanic apprentice, has become her greatest source of pride. “It’s so cool to see… Just because you start on the tools, it doesn’t mean you stay on the tools. Maybe you get into estimating, maybe you get into management, maybe you get into project planning. There’s a trajectory of growth if you want it.”

As she prepares to step away from the plant in the near future she aims to get into more leadership and mentorship roles, she carries this reminder with her: “Show up consistently and people see your work ethic, you'll get recognized for it. It's not the big flashy stuff that makes the difference. It's the consistency every day in your job, your quality.”

That’s Carrie., a woman who carved her space in the trades, and now someone who’s making sure the next generation can see what’s possible. Her story captures the resilience, adaptability, and heart of the trades. From a missed opportunity in teaching to a thriving career in plumbing, Carrie looks to the future, her impact will ripple far beyond the factory floor, carried on in the apprentices, students, and women who see in her what’s possible for themselves.

You can Follow or Connect with Carrie at:

https://www.instagram.com/mavenplumher