(Tulsa World (OK) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Dec. 9--Things have changed for Terry Ryals over the last three decades.

After she graduated from high school in 1978 and started driving a forklift for Corning Glassworks, she had a "horrendous" time getting her career in construction off the ground, or even getting respect, period.

"I didn't get the same appreciation and validation a man would," Ryals said.

That's not an issue today. About 200 people, most of them men, call Ryals "boss" now. She's a project manager for Flintco Cos. Inc. at the $200 million, 450,000 square-foot Creek Nation Casino expansion under way on Riverside Drive just south of 81st Street.

Ryals is no longer underestimated, thanks to her years of quality work. And she believes that women in general are now much more welcome in what traditionally has been a male-dominated field.

"There's a lot more women now than when I started," Ryals said. "It's getting out there that these jobs are available to them."

More women, but still not many. There aren't any official estimations on the number of women in construction, though

Sally Singer, executive vice president of Associated Builders and Contractors, said they're still a rare sight.

"It's a very small percentage," she said.

But, apparently, a growing one.

Julie Lovelace entered the field late in life a few years ago. She said she has always had a passion for the field but didn't realize there were opportunities.

"Construction has always interested me," Lovelace said. "My dad would remodel homes, and I would go with him."

After working a series of odd jobs, she went to Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee at the age of 40. It was there that she connected with Tulsa-based Flintco and, last year, formally joined the company. Today she's responsible for safety and quality control on the Creek Nation Casino project.

She estimates that women now make up 5 percent of all construction workers.

There weren't always as many opportunities for women in the field. Rebecca Armstrong, head of safety at M.J. Lee Construction and Cantera Concrete, said stereotypes were hard to escape in a physical, strenuous profession long thought of as "man's work."

For example, she said some construction workers would hassle her simply for traveling out to distant job sites by herself, while her husband stayed closer to home.

"A lot of men don't see women the same way," she said. "A lot of other women on the road travel with their spouses."

And some people voice doubts about a woman's ability to do the job at all.

"There's a lot of physical demands, and a lot of men say they wouldn't be able to do it," Arm strong said.

Lovelace said construction can be a challenging field -- for men and women alike -- but the determined can succeed.

"It's a viable career path, but it's not an easy one," she said.

Ryals said she has endured many challenges over the years. In the early days of her career, she would sometimes go home after work thoroughly disgusted with all the snide, disrespectful comments she had heard.

That only made her more determined to earn the respect of her peers. And the easiest way to earn respect in construction is to get the job done, and get it done right.

"If I was to get anywhere, I was going to have to toot my own horn, since no one was going to toot it for me," Ryals said.

Ryals earned a bachelor's degree in construction science from the University of Oklahoma and contributed to many projects in Alabama, including a power plant, a de-inking plant and a rocket facility.

After becoming part of Flintco 10 years ago, she became project engineer for contracts that involved the Oklahoma School for the Blind, the Donald W. Reynolds Center at the University of Tulsa, guest lodges for Williams Cos. Inc. and Town Village.

She eventually worked her way up to co-project manager on the Cherokee Nation Casino and Hotel, Phillips Theological Seminary and the Koweta Indian Health Clinic in Coweta.

The latter project earned her an armful of awards, including the national Eagle Award and the Building Excellence Award from Associated Builders and Contractors.

Ryals doesn't get hassled anymore.

"It only takes one job to prove you're willing to learn, or that you have good knowl edge," she said. "Word travels."

One local contractor who knows Ryals by reputation and experience is Chris Reiss of Reiss Painting. He said he doesn't think twice about her gender.

"To me, it's no different dealing with Terry than dealing with a guy," he said. "She does what she has to do and takes care of things."

Though more opportunities are opening up, old habits die hard. While at OSU-Okmulgee, Lovelace kept seeking out an internship. As the rejections piled up, she noticed a pattern.

"The majority of companies overlooked me and went for a man," she said.

When Lovelace did get a job at a construction company, she and another woman got continually passed over, while their male peers advanced. She declined to name the company.

Lovelace said she suspects that the discrimination is greater at companies headed by older executives who aren't used to working with women.

"A lot of men are open to women now, but some of the older ones have a hard time," she said.

Armstrong said she's starting to notice more women among her peers, though the process is a slow one.

"There's more women coming into it; it's just taking time," she said. "There's still some hesitation as to how they'll be seen out in the field."

Singer said attitudes toward women in construction are changing by necessity. Simply put, construction companies need workers.

"There's unlimited opportunity," she said. "There's limited manpower, and it's getting harder and harder to find good employees, so construction companies are looking to women to fill those roles."

While many construction companies have adjusted their attitudes toward women, Ryals said she has had to adjust her own attitude when overseeing groups of men. If she's too kind and accommodating at first, she doesn't get their respect.

"I come in all business so they realize where I'm at, and we become friends later," she said.

Reiss said her balanced approach encourages him to get the job done.

"She'll get on you when she needs to get on you," he said, "but when it's time to praise you she's the first one out there telling you that."

------

Robert Evatt 581-8447

robert.evatt@tulsaworld.com

To see more of the Tulsa World, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.tulsaworld.com.
Copyright (c) 2007, Tulsa World, Okla.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]

Discussions: