Iowa Workforce Development, IowaWORKS and Hawkeye Community College are using a $75,000 Walmart Foundation grant to introduce low-income Iowa women to high-growth construction jobs. The grant covers the costs of bringing a specialized Hawkeye Community College construction equipment simulator along with an instructor and assistant to each of Iowa’s 15 IowaWORKS offices in 2016. The simulator is part of the “Six-Step Workshops,” which allow women in the Promise Jobs program the opportunity to learn about construction jobs and experience a hands-on simulator to operate construction equipment. Construction is the second-highest-paying industry for men enrolled in the program; however, females represent only 2.3 percent of that workforce. Average hourly wages for heavy equipment operators is $20.84 per hour, and projected openings and wages are growing.