Over the next two weeks, the Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters (NRCC) plans to host six information sessions to educate Buffalo/Rochester area women on how they can start a career as a well-paid Union Carpenter through the Sisters in the Brotherhood (SIB) Pre-Apprenticeship Program.

Information sessions will take place on the following dates and times:

Buffalo, NY

• February 22, 5 p.m. – Buffalo Urban League, 15 Genesee Street
• February 23, 10 a.m. – Buffalo Employment and Training Center, 77 Goodell Street
• February 27, 9 a.m. – True Bethel Baptist Church, 907 E. Ferry Street

Rochester, NY

• February 26, 10 a.m. – Urban League of Rochester, 265 North Clinton Ave.
• February 28, 9 a.m. – Rochester Works, 255 N. Goodman Street
• March 1, 4 p.m. – Rochester Training Center, 21 Jetview Drive

The SIB Pre-Apprenticeship program is a six-week training course that prepares women to become carpenter apprentices. The 40-hour per week course trains women carpenters in a variety of in-class curriculum and hands-on training in mathematics, occupational safety and hazards, hand/power tool training and job-site culture. After successful completion of the program, women carpenters graduate to the NRCC Apprentice program. To find out more about the information session or the SIB Pre-Apprenticeship Program, please visit http://www.northeastcarpenters.org/sisters.

NRCC Sisters in the Brotherhood Chair Susan Schultz, actively works to recruit women in the Buffalo and Rochester areas and encourages all women in the region to attend the information sessions to learn more about beginning a rewarding career in carpentry.

“The information session is an essential first step in becoming a Union Carpenter,” said Schultz. “It prepares women who are interested in carpentry to understand the expectations and requirements of the Pre-Apprenticeship Program. Women who have graduated from our Sisters in the Brotherhood program are already on the job site and earning a good salary and health and retirement benefits.”