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From homelessness to plumbing: Argentine woman finds new path
🇦🇷 Argentina /Culture & Society

From homelessness to plumbing: Argentine woman finds new path

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Context piece
  • Verónica, who previously worked as an executive secretary and experienced homelessness, is now training to become a plumber.
  • She is participating in the

Verónica, a 43-year-old woman who has navigated a challenging life path including homelessness, is finding a new purpose and independence as a plumber. Her journey from executive secretary to a tradeswoman is marked by resilience and a determination to build a better future.

I used to be an executive secretary, a salesperson, a domestic worker, and I was even homeless.

— VerónicaRecalling her past life experiences before pursuing a career in plumbing.

"I used to be an executive secretary, a salesperson, a domestic worker, and I was even homeless," Verónica recalls. Now, she presents herself on Instagram as a "Home solutions creator. General plumbing. Clever with unique ideas." She notes the societal surprise she sometimes encounters, "Sometimes, when I say I'm a plumber, the moms at school laugh. Society is used to us doing other jobs. But I keep going forward," she says with infectious confidence.

Verónica is nearing the completion of a plumbing certification course offered by the Fundación Cultura de Trabajo's "Women in Trades" program. The program, certified by the National Technological University (UTN), aims to foster economic independence for women facing financial hardship or starting new lives after experiencing violence. This course in plumbing is being held at the UTN campus in Villa Lugano, with 22 women set to graduate.

Sometimes, when I say I'm a plumber, the moms at school laugh. Society is used to us doing other jobs. But I keep going forward.

— VerónicaDescribing the societal reactions she faces as a woman in a male-dominated profession.

The initiative seeks to help women enter the workforce or achieve financial autonomy by working in historically male-dominated fields like plumbing and electrical work. For Verónica, the training has been transformative, representing a significant turning point in her life.

I ended up homeless.

— VerónicaRevealing the depth of her past struggles.

Her past included a middle-class upbringing and education, but life's adversities, the loss of her grandparents, two separations, and postpartum depression, led to increasing job and housing instability. "I ended up homeless," she states, while checking the temperature of her youngest son, Franco, who is 6 years old. After a period in a government shelter, she moved to a hotel, relying on a housing subsidy and cleaning houses for hourly wages to cover the difference. "I've always been a mom who managed. I never shied away from work," she says proudly. However, she left the hotel to protect her children from negative influences, losing her subsidy and currently living in a room lent by her eldest son's father, to whom she contributes with chores.

I've always been a mom who managed. I never shied away from work.

— VerónicaHighlighting her work ethic and determination as a mother.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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