BILLINGS— Asphalt Plus, a Billings construction company, hosted workshops in Billings Thursday afternoon, teaching participants how to pave sand.
The two training opportunities included women from the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) and high school students from Build Montana.
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Women from NAWIC told MTN they have seen more women joining the construction industry.
"My background is estimating, and I’ll go to job site walk-throughs and stuff, and there's a lot more women than from when I first started," said Rusti Gifford, who works for ADF International in Great Falls.
“I mean sometimes do you feel like you don't have a seat at the table? Yes, and you have to fight for that seat at the table,” said Jami Wright, who works for plumbing and HVAC company Vemco and is Vice President of NAWIC Montana Chapter 387.
The percentage of women working in the construction industry is the highest it has been in 20 years, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
The U.S.Bureau of Labor Force Statistics shows women made up 11.3% of the construction industry workforce in 2025.
“All of these women already have careers in construction in one avenue or the other,” said Melinda Oedekoven, owner of Asphalt Plus and member of NAWIC. “If you drive down the interstate at any given time, you'll see women flaggers, you'll see them on the roller, you'll see them in the trucks. The opportunity for women is right there with men.”
High school students also got the opportunity to learn with Asphalt Plus as part of a program called Build Montana.
Oliver Chicol, a senior high school student, said the program has left him feeling prepared for the workforce.
"I'd say I'd be pretty ready to start working as soon as I can," said Chicol, who graduates from Billings Senior High School this year.
"It's been great getting to go and do this and visit companies and learn what there is to do after high school," he added.
Hailee Olsen, director of workforce development at Build Montana, said expanding knowledge of opportunities in the construction industry is her mission.
"That's the goal is that more high school students at least are getting educated on the different opportunities within the construction industry," Olsen said. “We have capacity for 10 to 15 students, and we'd love to really grow the program and offer it to more students and show them what there is to offer in the Billings area.”
Oedekoven said many participants Thursday were encountering some construction equipment for the first time.
"Some people have never been in an end dump. Some people have never been in a skid steer," Oedekoven said. "I mean, this is all just really new to them. And it's just a really good learning experience."
