BUILDING DEPARTMENTS -
A MALE-DOMINATED PROFESSION?
by Linda Haines, Building Official, City of Downey
When I started in this profession many years ago as a customer
service clerk, or, now, better known as a permit technician, it
was commonplace that this position was held by a female. Today,
you see both males and females attending to customers at the
public counter. The role of a permit technician has evolved into
a position that has at least a basic knowledge of the building
codes plus the knowledge of state laws pertaining to the
issuance of permits.
This person must be able to work with the
public in a friendly, knowledgeable manner, being patient and
courteous. The key word here is "person." As long as
that person has the above-mentioned traits, the job can be done
by a male or a female. The same holds true in building
inspection.
As a combination building inspector, people were
constantly surprised to see a woman walk up to their job site
and announce that she was the building inspector. I had an older
contractor once justify it to himself by telling me that,
"Well, I guess it's not like you have to lift or move
anything heavy or get too dirty. I guess a woman can do this
job!"
I found this amusing, but also it showed me that he
was open to the concept of women in the construction field. I
have found then and now that I have to constantly prove myself,
just as most people do, to be accepted as an equal. Not only
should this be expected, but it can be used to one's advantage.
In having to prove yourself, your natural competitiveness will
drive you to learn more so that you can shine among your peers.
No matter if you are male or female, all a contractor wants when
you inspect the job is fairness and consistency.
Education plays
a big part in being able to do a good job as a building
department representative. I would advise anyone to attend as
many classes as you can in every aspect of building
construction. CALBO's education arm, CTI, offers many excellent
classes throughout the state, including a certification in
California-related issues. ICBO has been in the education
business for many years and teaches classes designed to keep
building personnel current in the codes. Their certification
program is well-known and well-respected by the building
industry.
It should be a goal to attain certifications in many
areas, certifying a wide area of knowledge from which to draw.
With the code cycle of three years, the codes are constantly
being updated. Building department employees must stay current
on changes to the codes, so they can be effective when working
with the customer. AB 717 was passed, effective January 1996,
requiring inspectors, plan checkers and building officials to be
certified at least in their particular hired area of expertise.
Many could not understand why we supported this bill, because we
were "making it harder on ourselves" by having to be
certified. There was much discussion at the time about how
architects and engineers had to have a certain amount of
schooling and testing to achieve their registration or
licensure. This was met with the fact that building department
personnel had no coordinated program in place to attain the
building department knowledge necessary to provide the peer
review as required by the building codes for plan checking and
inspections.
It was a matter of pride and professionalism that
AB 717 was passed. This law now requires that building
department personnel be trained appropriately to provide the
peer review required by the codes. It states that an employee
must have a minimum of 45 hours of continuing education for
every three-year period, relative to their position. If an
employee has been employed by a jurisdiction for two years prior
to the effective date of the bill, they are exempt. However, if
they obtain new employment in another jurisdiction, they must be
certified within two years or less of their hire date. In my
role as building official, I have found a job that is
ever-changing. It is never boring.
The building official is a
manager, is adept at conflict-resolution, is a mediator, is a
code professional who has the authority to interpret the code
when the strict black and white issues of the code don't apply.
In the past, it is well known that most building inspectors and
building officials came from construction backgrounds. This does
make for a more well-rounded background, along with education.
There are apprenticeships available as well as classes where
houses, additions and remodels are built by students. There is
an endless variety of means available to continue your classroom
education, hands-on knowledge of construction and the codes that
apply to that construction.
If you want to succeed in this
profession, you must be willing to learn as much as you can
about the codes and the various types of situations in which you
will eventually find yourself involved. It is a profession that
can be handled proudly by either gender.
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