From Connexis
Thursday July 2, 2026: The next generation of New Zealand women are stepping up to take their place on the country’s major infrastructure projects and work sites.
Throughout June, Connexis Girls with Hi-Vis® saw female secondary students from around the country visit their local infrastructure employers to find out more about the career opportunities in industries such as civil construction, electricity supply, telecommunications and water treatment.
While onsite in the country’s power stations, highway construction sites and water treatment plants, the students were able to try for themselves some of the skills required to work in infrastructure trades, and connect with other women already working in them, as well as local employers.
Girls with Hi-Vis® (GWHV), now in its 11th year, was developed by infrastructure industries training provider Connexis, to make more young women aware of the traditionally male-dominated career pathways open to them that they may not have previously considered.
In 2015 the event began with three Electricity Supply Industry (ESI) companies hosting events and 50 female students in attendance. This year saw more than 30 events scheduled around the country with more than 80 schools and 800 students attending.
Connexis now has its highest-ever number of enrolled female learners; with the proportion of female learners doubling from 8% in 2015 when GWHV was first launched to 16% in 2025.
Connexis Executive Director Kaarin Gaukrodger says the growth of GWHV since it began in 2015 is testament to the value it offers both students and employers.
“In 2015 Connexis had 8% of trainees in trade and technical roles were female, today that figure is 16%. We are now attending Girls with Hi-Vis® events hosted by female apprentices who were introduced to their employer at a Girls with Hi-Vis® event,” Gaukrodger says.
“Women still represent a largely untapped employment market for a lot of our infrastructure industries, many of which are facing skills shortages. One of the most effective ways of changing that is simply awareness.
“So many of the students attending a Connexis Girls with Hi-Vis® event come out of it with their eyes open to new opportunities that have never been presented to them before. On top of that they are making key connections with employers in their local area.”
Connexis GWHV also offers a great hands-on opportunity for young women to see industry-led trades apprenticeships as a practical, valuable path to training and qualifications, if they are looking for alternatives to university that let them earn while they learn, Gaukrodger says.
“Trades training is no longer an after-thought for two-thirds of school students who are not looking at an academic career pathway through university. It’s recognised as an important, affordable option for gaining a tertiary qualification while working that will provide the foundation and step up into long and varied careers, using high-demand skills that are unlikely to be overtaken by AI.”
Read more about Connexis Girls with Hi-Vis® from our inspirational ambassador and recent Outward Bound scholarship recipient Annabelle Thorpe-Hall here
For more information on Girls with Hi-Vis®, including inspirational work stories, visit the Connexis Girls with Hi-Vis® page.
For more information please contact
Kerri Jackson
Accento Communications
0220885860
About Connexis
Connexis is a training provider for New Zealand’s Civil, Energy, Telecommunications, and Water infrastructure industries. Connexis works with infrastructure employers to develop and deliver nationally recognised programmes for apprenticeships and professional qualifications that sit on the New Zealand Qualification and Competency Framework. Connexis is committed to increasing the capability and capacity of New Zealand’s infrastructure workforce through high quality, work-based training across these industries which are vital to keeping New Zealand connected.