When Hayley Delmenico walks past a school party visiting the Australian War Memorial, the kids stop and take notice.
In her yellow hi-vis jacket, big boots and helmet, she's a rarity in the construction industry.
"Someone will say 'girl tradie'," the 19-year old electrician says.
She doesn't take it amiss. The remark comes from mixed parties of girls and boys who she thinks have it in their minds that tradies are invariably men.
Grown men occasionally think the same: On her very first day as an apprentice on another site, she says another construction worker came up to her and told her point blank: "You shouldn't have a job here."
Not that school was much better. She went to a private school in Canberra (which she tactfully doesn't name) where she says she had no encouragement to go into a trade.
"My school was hesitant just because it's not very common for girls."
But she has a kicker of a retort: "When people tell me 'No', I just want to do it more."
Intelligence and thoughtfulness shine out of her. She thinks about femininity, masculinity and relations between the sexes.
When she takes off her helmet and work boots, she makes a point of showing signs of traditional femininity: "I like to have my pink pen and my hot pink drink bottles. It's just nice to get dressed up."
And she has a pearl earring.
Her boyfriend is an electrician so the respect is there within the relationship.
On the War Memorial site, there are four women electricians and seven men - not quite 50:50 but a long way from the crusty old male-only world.
Four of the five project managers, overseeing the $550 million project, are women.
One of them is Rebecca Conway who has been in the construction industry for 10 years. In that decade, she says attitudes have changed. Women were rare then, and often taken on reluctantly as times started changing.
"It's definitely improved. When I started, there was a bit of tokenism but now it's much more about getting the best person for the job."
And that means women on site. "I just think people recognise the skill we bring."
For her as a manager, often of labouring men, that means a more subtle - intelligent even - type of management than was the traditional macho, male way. She thinks female managers have more "empathy". They are very aware of safety issues.
"There's an assumption that in construction you have to be tough," she says. "But you don't have to be. You can still be yourself."
Her route to a hard hat was more conventional. She studied architecture in university but came to realise that working on sites was what she really enjoyed.
Neither she nor Hayley has ever suffered a wolf-whistle. They both say they get treated with respect at the war memorial site.
Both of them wish schools would do more to change the idea that trades are for the men.
"I think it's important for the construction industry to be promoted to girls in school," Rebecca said. "I graduated in 2021," Hayley intervenes, "and in private schools it's just ATAR."
She has no regrets about taking the other route. She's proud that she as a Canberran is working on the memorial's rebuild.
"In years and years' time, to be able to say 'I put those lights in' - that's something to be proud of."
