Montana IBEW 233 & 768 Members along with IUPAT 82 representing at TWBN in Chicago this past September.

What is Tradeswomen Build Nations (TWBN)? Click here for Conference Highlight Video

• TWBN is the largest annual gathering of union tradeswomen (and allies) in North America, focused on advancing women in the skilled trades.
• The 2025 edition was hosted by TradesFutures, in partnership with North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU).
• It’s more than just a convention — it’s a movement. The conference combines celebration, networking, training, advocacy, and visibility to help open more pathways for women in trades.

Theme & Focus for 2025

• The theme for 2025 is “She’s not waiting. She’s leading.”
• This speaks to empowerment, asserting leadership, pushing boundaries, and making visible the contributions of women in construction trades.
• The conference also highlighted how recent federal investments in infrastructure, clean energy, and manufacturing (the “Infrastructure Generation”) are creating opportunities — and why it’s critical to ensure women are included.

Who Attends

• 17 Unions, 47 States, and 5,486 Workers were in attendance in Chicago for the 2025 TWBN Conference which took place September 19-21, 2025.
• Union leaders, labor advocates, industry stakeholders, and government officials were in attendance and IBEW had the largest presence with over 800 members.
• Various trades (electricians, plumbers, boilermakers, sheet metal workers, laborers, operators, etc.) were represented, across different locals and districts including Montana union members from SMART 103, IBEW 233, IBEW 768, IUPAT 82, and IBB L-11.

Why It Matters

TWBN plays a strategic role in:

1. Visibility & Voice
   It makes women in trades visible, asserting they belong, and elevating their voices in the larger labor movement and construction industry.
2. Leadership Development
   It gives tools, training, inspiration, and exposure to leadership paths so women can ascend in their trades and unions.
3. Recruitment & Retention
   By showcasing what’s possible, it helps attract more women to trades and helps those in the field stay, by connecting them to support systems.
4. Advocacy & Policy Influence
   Because union and labor leadership, as well as policymakers attend, it’s a space to push policies that support equity, workplace safety, inclusion, funding, etc.
5. Solidarity & Mentorship
   The relationships and alliances built at TWBN have lasting impact — mentorship, shared strategies, mutual support across trades and regions.
6. Strengthening the Labor Movement
   Ensuring women are included strengthens unions, broadens perspectives, and helps build a more inclusive, representative workforce.