While work as a Plasterer in the private sector is a field where women are still not quickly accepted, female members of Local 237's Housing Division overcame the "Males Only" barrier several years ago -- largely with the aid of men they formerly assisted.

The Housing Division's five "Women in White," who put in years as Caretaker Ps, -- Plasterer's Helpers -- got their opportunity to demonstrate their ability to become skilled trades personnel and to seek better salaries when the Civil Service Department offered a promotional exam for Plasterer.

In the past, applicants for the Plasterer's title had to have worked for many years in the trade in the private sector and then had to pass both written and practical tests to demonstrate their competence.

Spurred by Local 237, the city agreed to conduct practical promotional tests for Plasterer candidates and these were initiated in January, 1999. To be eligible for promotion, applicants had to be permanently employed as a Housing Caretaker or Caretaker in the Housing Authority.

All candidates were required to have five years of full-time experience performing plastering work. This opened the door for the women, who had been studying the trade while working as Plasterer's Helpers and aided in learning by the Plasterers they assisted.

Once they showed their capability as Plasterers and passed the practical exam, the women earned the title and the right to wear the traditional white clothing associated with the job. Supervisor of Plasterers Chris Maisano, now a Business Agent for Local 237, said Plasterers normally wear white so that the color of the plaster blends with their clothing.

The female pioneer Plasterers in Local 237 are Agnes Cruz, Michelle Holmes, Yvette Rivera, Lucy Perez and Virginia Colon.

NEWSLINE talked to Plasterer Agnes Cruz busily at work in Strauss Houses on 28th St., between Second and Third Aves. in Manhattan. She was mixing a "gauge" with which to repair walls in an apartment bathroom.

Helping Agnes, who will mark three years as a plasterer in October, was Caretaker P (Plasterer's Helper) Maria Morel, who had been doing her job for only six weeks when we encountered her.

Agnes has been with the HA for 8 years, beginning as a Caretaker P, a post she filled for five years. To qualify as a Plasterer, she took the civil service promotional, and successfully plastered a ceiling and a wall.

"I learned by observing and doing practical work with the Plasterers, who were all very helpful, particularly Sal Montalbano and Supervisor Frank Spallino," she said.

Agnes got into working for the HA through its Youth Training Program in which youngsters were given the opportunity to experience various crafts required of HA employees. "I got a taste of carpentry, plumbing, electrical and refrigeration," Agnes said. "But I was selected for one of 13 spots open for Plasterer's Helper because of a perfect attendance record in the Youth Program."

She got her first assignment as a Helper with a "crash crew" at Brooklyn's Cypress Houses. "A crash crew is a whole team of plasterers assigned to a site to clean up the backlog of jobs that had to be done," she explained.

Michelle Holmes
Michelle Holmes, who marked her third anniversary as a Plasterer in June, was interviewed while working at Morris Houses at 3rd Ave. and 173rd St., Bronx. She began her career with the HA in 1987 as a Caretaker J at Jefferson Houses in Manhattan, where she makes her home. She spent five years taking care of the buildings until she transferred to Caretaker P in 1994.

As a Plasterer's Helper, she was guided in her efforts to learn a new craft by Supervisor Frank LaBarbera and Plasterers John Combs, Martin Rodriguez, Mike Sabatino and Richie Gonzalez.

"I got bored with what I was doing and wanted to move on," she said. "Everyone was very helpful to me."

Yvette Rivera
Bronx resident Yvette Rivera realized her dream of becoming a Plasterer in May, 2001, when the opportunity to take the practical exam for the title again became available.

Married and the mother of two young sons, she first took the test in 1999, but failed to make the grade by three points. She admits the failure was difficult to accept, but offered a reasonable explanation as to why her mind might not have been entirely on her job or the test. "I had studied hard and tried to learn as much as I could, but I was seven months pregnant at the time the test was given," she pointed out.

Rivera began with the HA in 1994 and was a Plasterer's Helper for five years before taking the civil service exam for the first time.

When the chance came again last year, she quickly signed up for it and passed with flying colors.

She credited Dennis Casale, her Supervisor at Pelham Parkway Houses, Plasterer Chris Diaz, with whom she worked two years at Edewald Houses in the Bronx, and several other Plasterers with helping train her, for her success in obtaining the Plasterer's title.

"I learned by watching and they helped me along the way, letting me practice with the tools whenever I had the time and always answering my questions," she said.

Lucy Perez
Lucy Perez, who lives in Brooklyn's Bay Ridge section, began working for the HA in 1982 as a Caretaker J after having attended school to learn locksmithing and how to install burglar alarms. She was working as an alarm installer when a friend told her of the availability of employment at the HA.

She took the test in 1982, passed, and maintained development buildings for several years until she became a plasterer's helper She said Nick Consilio, a plasterer for nearly eight years, was very helpful. "He would show me what to do and explain what he was doing," she said. "I used to practice during lunch hours."

She said she was very grateful to Consilio and to Joe Latanzie, who also helped patiently guide her into her new trade. She took the practical test to become a plasterer almost four years ago and passed with flying colors.

Virginia Colon
The newest female plasterer, Virginia Colon, took the test two years ago after spending 15 years as a Helper. She started with the HA as Caretaker J in Bridge Houses in Queens and then moved into Caretaker P when the opportunity arose.

She also credited the male Plasterers with whom she worked for helping her successfully attain the Plasterer title.