When the pants don't fit, it's frustrating for women in skilled trades
CBC
Excited to buy gear she needed for her new job as an apprentice electrician, Claire Nicol went to a large retail store that specializes in workwear.
However, what she found on the racks wasn't designed with bodies like hers in mind.
"I walked in there and they said they don't stock women's work clothing in the store, and that they only sell it online."
She tried on the men's work pants, but couldn't find a pair that fit right.
"The first pair I put on, I looked like I was wearing parachute pants," Nicol said.
Other pairs she tried either rode too high on the hips or were too long in the legs. In other cases, the inseams were too short for a job that requires workers to frequently bend, crawl into tight spaces and climb ladders.
She said a simple pair of jeans, while permitted on some job sites, don't have the right high-durability fabric for heavy work and tend to wear out quickly. Electrical work, Nicol's chosen trade, often requires flame-resistant fabric.
"Jeans are more for fashion than work," Nicol said.
Women in search of work pants are often directed online, as Nicol was, but that eliminates the chance to try the fit in store. Nicol has ordered some work gear online only to have to ship it back when the fit wasn't right.
Also galling, Nicol has found a lot of work clothes for is lower quality than men's gear, and often costs more.
"I'm wearing out pants in a few months and they're not cheap," she said.
Nicol said it's a common problem among her female co-workers, who sometimes resort to customizing men's work pants and other gear to make it fit right.
The struggle to find work clothes that fit isn't new to former mine worker Alicia Woods, in fact it prompted her to start her own line of work garments, designed to fit the female form.
Woods was issued a pair of work coveralls for a mining job in 2000. The problem? The front fly wasn't much help when it came time for a bathroom break.
The province and district social services administration boards say plans are in place to ensure people on social assistance do not miss out on benefits as a result of the strike by Canada Post employees.
Near the exit to Truro, N.S., a cluster of colorful tents and a lone RV can be seen alongside Highway 102, some tucked under the overpass for shelter from the elements.
Police and Public Trust, a project of the CBC News Atlantic investigative unit, scrutinizes the largely off-limits police complaint and discipline systems across the region. Journalists are using access to information laws and, in some cases, court challenges to obtain discipline records and data.
Toronto police have arrested a GTA woman who they allege scammed dozens of Taylor Swift fans out of more than $70,000 by promising them tickets that never materialized.
Montreal was, in years past, considered a haven for renters. But those days are long gone.
WARNING: This story details violent events surrounding a fatal police shooting.
It took Gordon Frentz over 14 hours to drive through the snow from Grande Prairie, Alta., this past weekend to compete at this year's Canadian Western Agribition in Regina.
The coroner's inquest into the drug-related deaths of six men in custody at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre will revisit 2018 recommendations relating to eight other inmate deaths to determine what's been done to implement them, the inquest's lawyer said Monday on the first day of hearings.
Emily Walstrom was expecting to lay her father to rest this month, but instead, she says his cremated remains are stuck in a Canada Post facility in B.C., delayed by the ongoing national postal strike.
A Friday night fire hasn't caused any impact to operations at the Dryden mill, the company said.
With around 55,000 Canada Post workers on strike since Nov.15 and no deal in sight, Toronto businesses say they're gearing up for a tough holiday season.