How one woman found her groove in the trades

Tash needed a career change and was inspired by women in construction on social media to try carpentry.

Natasha (Tash) Eastman-Nagle started out as a singer/songwriter with a Bachelor of Music Performance behind her. But it turned out that instead of being the next Taylor Swift, she was destined to become Tash the Tradie.

‘I played in bands and worked at a theatre restaurant for a while. The music industry is difficult to make a living in,’ she said.

She supported herself through different roles throughout her 20s, and when the pandemic hit she was working in an office job.

‘We had to work from home and that just really didn't work for me – I couldn't sit still too long! So, I ended up taking a job doing some gardening work and that was a gateway into the trades.’

Tash had been exposed to the trades from an early age because her parents renovated homes for a living. But as a young woman in high school, she wasn’t directed towards construction or other trades. Without that guidance, it didn’t occur to her that she could have a career that involved building.

‘I've always loved doing physical work and after the gardening job during the pandemic I started thinking more and more about it,’ she said.

‘I started to see women on social media posting about their work doing carpentry and that made me think “that is something I can do!” I decided to just give it a try.’

Taking up a carpentry apprenticeship, Tash studied her trade at Melbourne Polytechnic in Heidelberg.

‘I appreciated learning a greater level of detail at TAFE, and getting to spend time learning all the technical intricacies was interesting,’ she said.

‘It was different from any other kind of tertiary education I'd done before.’

‘I wish I had studied for a trade first! That would have given me security, and I would have had a skill that would allow for the flexibility you need when you're creative.’

Tash loves her new career. She works for a building company that specialises in residential restoration work, and she finds the work fulfilling.

‘There is such satisfaction when you’re building. When you do something creative, it's like “is this good? Am I good at writing or am I good at singing or will people like this?”

‘But when you’re building something, it's like, right, that's the plan. You build it and then you get a kind of instant gratification.’

She recently became one of 20,000 carpenters, plumbers and electricians since 2019 to qualify and receive their trade papers. She has joined the skilled workforce Victoria needs to meet its housing targets.

‘I'm trying to diversify my skill set as much as I can and I have done some work on passive houses [buildings that are designed to use less energy for heating and cooling],’ she said.

‘It's such an interesting space to be in, building homes that are providing better health outcomes for people, better energy outcomes for people and the environment.’

‘I have an idea to create affordable versions of passive homes for lower to middle income families. That could be by building tiny homes or granny flats, to provide more accommodation for people who need homes.’

Tash remembers how women tradies on social media gave her the confidence to try carpentry and she wants to pass that on. She has her own social media account as Tash the Tradie and posts videos of her work on sites to inspire other women to consider construction.

As a woman in a male-dominated trade, she constantly feels pressure to prove herself as a capable carpenter, so she understands first-hand the need for more support for women in trades. Looking ahead, she dreams of running her own company and having the opportunity to take on women apprentices.

‘I would love to have my own small carpentry company where I can give younger women an opportunity to come and give being an apprentice a go.’

Her advice for someone who is considering a trade is to go for it as early as you can.

‘Just starting a trade and getting one under your belt means that even if you go off and do something else, you always have your trade to fall back on and you'll always be able to earn a decent living.’

‘And you might find you really enjoy it!’

Find out more about studying a trade through TAFE at www.vic.gov.au/tafe or to learn more about apprenticeships visit www.apprenticeships.vic.gov.au.