Rose of Tralee winner Katelyn Cummins is inspiring a new generation of women into the building trade but the apprentice electrician has revealed she was repeatedly turned down by prospective male employers who told her she 'wouldn't be able' for the 'dirty' work in the construction industry.
Just two years ago, she spent four months trying to find work but was turned down again and again by employers because she is female.
The 20-year-old Laois Rose began her apprenticeship in October 2023, turning down the option to study business at the University of Limerick.
She told the Irish Mail on Sunday: 'It took me about four months to get a job because so many places that I did inquire about told me or my dad that the work was too dirty or too labour-intensive. [They said things like] "We work in a lot of tight spaces, she wouldn't like that", "we're down in sewage plants and she wouldn't like that", or "she wouldn't be able for it".
'"She wouldn't be able for it" was a comment that was said an awful lot. It really, really put a downer on the search for the job,' she said.
The year before Katelyn began her apprenticeship, the MoS highlighted a Government drive to increase female participation in construction, which then stood at just 6%.
Statistics provide by the State training agency Solas and the Department of Higher Education this week show this has now increased to 9%, meaning women still account for fewer than one in 10 tradespeople.
Speaking from her own experience, the 2025 Rose of Tralee said she believes the continuing gender imbalance in the industry is down to social attitudes.
And she said that - despite Government campaigns to encourage more female participation in construction - school-leavers need to be better informed of career pathways in the sector.
Katelyn told the MoS: 'There needs to be more talk about options in secondary school. Students need to be made aware that there are so many other options than college because an apprenticeship is amazing. Why is there so much of a stigma around going to college when it is incredibly difficult to get a job afterwards? In an apprenticeship, you're being paid to learn, and you have so much experience by the end of it that you walk straight into a job.'
Katelyn said her Rose of Tralee victory 'sent a positive message to women around the country, encouraging them to do apprenticeships'. While women account for just 9% of tradespeople, this is an almost fivefold increase since 2018, when females made up just 2% of the sector.
A spokesman for Solas confirmed: 'There are 2,580 women currently registered as apprentices, compared to just 2% [less than 50] in 2018.
'Participation of women in craft apprenticeship [including electrical] has risen from just 11 registrations in 2016 to 191 in 2024.'
The Department of Further and Higher Education claimed its campaigns to encourage more women into building has resulted in a 154% increase in female participation over the past five years.
Since winning the Rose of Tralee on Tuesday, Katelyn has received 'so many responses' from girls saying she has 'inspired them to get into a trade'. She said: 'The amount of girls, even my own age or maybe even younger or slightly older, just texting me and being like, "you've inspired me", "I'm going to leave college now" or "I realised that I don't like what I'm doing in my job - I'm going to go and do this instead".'
The winner read out a handwritten card she received from one girl telling her she had inspired her to be an electrician after her Leaving Cert. 'It's just so heartwarming and so nice to hear from so many strangers who have been inspired,' she said.
Katelyn said she is 'excited to get back to work on Monday' after her win, but she's also very much looking forward to the 'events to come with the Rose of Tralee over the next 12 months'.
Construction Industry Federation (CIF) director of safety, education and training Seán Downey told the MoS: 'It's great to see a young woman so excited about her career and future in construction.
'Katelyn is a great example of a young person who has made a decision to join the construction sector and gone for it. No doubt she will have a fantastic future.'
