Role Model Videos: Career Options for Women -- Rubber

The “Career Options for Women: Emerging Opportunities” videos introduce your female students to high-wage careers in traditionally male-dominated occupations. Each program reveals the personal experiences and insights of successful women in technology and trades occupations, and sends the all-important message to women and girls that the sky is the limit!

Rubber

This 24 minute video features profiles of three women who have embarked on careers in the rubber industry.

• Catherine Dupont, an extruder operation manager in charge of an automotive rubber production line
• Michelle Hennessey, a tire builder who also functions as a rotating safety monitor
• Nathalie Legér, a production specialist involved in several phases of the rubber manufacturing process

Additional information from co-workers and supervisors supplements each job profile.

Developed in 2006, the Career Options for Women series is an outstanding resource for schools wanting to attract women and girls to science, technology and trades.

Note: These videos are interspersed with Canadian salary and labor statistics, which are similar to the numbers in the United States. As there is a no-return policy on these publications, please make sure to look at the preview video clip for the DVD(s) you are ordering.

Catherine -- Extruder Operation Manager

For production worker Stephanie Sebastian, working in a steel mill is a family affair. She's a third generation of steel workers. Stephanie went to college after high school, but was lured into the steel business by the great money, benefits and positive work environment.

Stephanie works in a galvanizing mill. Galvanizing steel protects it from rusting. The molten galvanizing material almost looks cold to touch, but would melt your fingers in a second. Stephanie handles the material carefully and wears heavy-duty protective equipment to ward off potential splashes.

While Stephanie really enjoys her job, she likes not having to think about it when the workday's over. “You can't find a better career in another industry. It's fast paced, the opportunity for advancement is great and financial gains cannot be compared with any other sector.”

As a production worker, Stephanie performs different tasks depending on where she's working in the mill. She can be in quality control, shipping and handling or operating a machine called a welder. This tool welds the beginning of a new coil of steel to the end of the one already on the production line in order to create one continuous strip of metal. The steel moves along the production line and goes through several furnaces and a zinc bath to become galvanized. The final product can then be used in the automotive and construction industry.

Michelle -- Tire Builder

Before tire builder Michelle Hennessey got her career rolling with Goodyear, she went to college to become a private investigator, or "gumshoe", because of the rubber soles used to sneak around. Michelle still treads a lot of rubber building tires, but also works as a rotating safety specialist at the plant, coordinating safety activities and events. Although she may eventually go back to building tires full time, the safety specialist position gives her an opportunity to learn new skills.

As a rotating safety specialist, Michelle works 5 days a week, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., except on Fridays when she gets to leave half an hour earlier. As a tire builder, Michelle works the continental shift (12 hours on, 12 hours off), which allows her to work only 15 days a month! Weekend and evening work is sometimes required.

There's always an opportunity to advance and learn new jobs. Lots of training is available and we can take courses to upgrade our skills.”

Jobs at Goodyear Napanee are in demand. The wages and benefits are good and tire manufacturing companies put a lot of effort into hiring capable employees. “There's always an opportunity to advance and learn new jobs. Lots of training is available and we can take courses to upgrade our skills.”

Nathalie -- Production Specialist

Production specialist Nathalie Léger inspects tires and cuts into the rejects. Nathalie has to be confident company tire specifications are being met, along with production quotas, of course.

The rubber industry is very competitive. Production processes are constantly being refined. Keeping a grip on the industry is a team effort that often requires standing up for what you believe is the right approach. Nathalie thrives on contributing to the cause.

Nathalie has to be very knowledgeable about different stages of the production process in order to understand where, how and why a defect has occurred. She has to have an analytical mind in order to come up with possible solutions. Excellent communication skills are needed in order to share this information with other team members.