Every Monday morning for eight weeks, Jasiret Serra Hernández, 42, set aside her tattoo gun to hammer, saw, drill and screw alongside other women as part of a fully paid program that would help her reach her goal of being self-sufficient.
"I've been taking basic courses because, after what happened with (hurricanes) Irma and María, since the nature of my work has nothing to do with construction, I wanted to help the community, anyone in need. I felt stuck because I didn't have the knowledge. That's where the interest in hands-on work, in learning about construction and reconstruction, was born," said the owner of Inked Bubbles Tattoo Studio, in Comerío.
Serra Hernández was part of an initial group of 75 applicants who received scholarships through the ConPRmetidos Construimos project, an initiative launched by the nonprofit ConPRmetidos with the goal of accelerating reconstruction efforts on the Island following a decade of environmental and economic instability.
Serra Hernández's group, trained by the educational workshop for women and girls Albanistería en La Brega, was accepted into the program after submitting an application form, and participated in hands-on skills training sessions covering cabinetry, plumbing and electrical repairs over a period of several weeks at no cost to them.
"The group was really diverse. There were young women who were maybe 21 or 22. There were older people, mothers and people like me who don't have children," the artist said.
"There were people who already worked with their partner or their father, or something related, and were joining to do something at a slightly more professional company. There was another who was there with her daughter, to have that basic knowledge of tasks that are usually attributed to men in the home. Through it all, we all agreed that we want to be self-sufficient and not depend so much on finding someone to do this when I can have the knowledge, the tools and the ability to do it myself," she added.
Construction classes? Why and for whom?
Albanistería en La Brega, with the support of the women's aid organization Casa Juana Colón, was one of four service-provider centers around the Island that served as intermediaries so that the scholarship funds, mostly federal or raised through fundraising, could be translated into classes for students.
Other centers included:
Instituto de Carpintería, in Toa Baja: A short-course institute, it offered two carpentry courses and one cabinetry course
PRoTechos, in San Juan: A nonprofit organization, it offered carpentry courses
Atrévete Hazlo, in Arecibo: A construction-focused institute, it offered carpentry courses
"A lot of federal funds have been coming down since María, since (hurricane) Fiona, since the earthquakes. There are many projects that haven't been able to move forward. Among many other things, one of the main reasons is that construction companies can't bid because they don't have the talent," said Aurora Hernández Galliano, the project's manager.
According to figures from the Asociación de Contratistas Generales de Puerto Rico (ACGPR), approximately 35,000 employees are currently part of the formal construction industry. Estimates provided by Hernández Galliano indicate that more than 50,000 workers need to be added to the labor force to address the shortage.
"When Hurricane Fiona hit Puerto Rico in 2022, we ran a fundraising campaign and more than $60,000 was invested in immediate emergency relief. We set aside the remaining funds to, later in 2023, figure out what project would create a lasting, long-term impact. We wanted the project to be something comprehensive, something that offered training and skills development," the director specified.
By the numbers
The campaign has distributed 75 scholarships so far.
The age range of program participants, to date, runs from 17 to 62 years old.
Classes are taught at a basic level and are offered exclusively for beginners.
Participants who have completed the program represent a 93% student retention rate.
The workshops were offered in five towns: San Juan, Toa Baja, San Germán, Arecibo and Comerío.
What are the next steps?
The ConPRmetidos Construimos model is scalable, so the program's challenges can be overcome and it can be implemented on a larger scale across the Island with a robust injection of capital.
One of the main challenges lies in relationships with employers, whether over wage negotiations or transportation issues (for example, the distance between construction sites and potential employees).
"We keep looking for funding. This first pilot project, so to speak, was funded by individuals and also by banks, so we are very grateful to them for that. We need to find more funding to be able to run that second cohort, so to speak, and try to support 75 more participants," Hernández Galliano said.
Want to submit your application?
Despite the challenges, ConPRmetidos Construimos continues to accept applications for the next round of scholarships for education in the trades. Want to learn more about the program and find out if it's a good fit for you? Visit their information portal.
This content was translated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
