Forget about Iron Man. This Stoughton mom reaches new heights as ironworker.

STOUGHTON — Ironworker Jessica Devance has a 13-year-old. He makes her drop him off up the street from his school. And there's no way the eighth-grader is letting her go inside.

But when he's in a car driving past the new Verizon building towering over TD Garden, he's not too mortified to acknowledge his mother.

"He's like, 'My mom did that," Devance said. "It's an awesome feeling. I wouldn't trade it for the world."

The 33-year-old left a career in health care to take up ironworking. The share of construction jobs held by women has been on the rise, but it's still low. About 4%, according to federal stats. Female ironworkers are even more rare, estimated at less than 1%. Devance is proud to be one of them.

"So many people, I tell them I'm an ironworker and they're like, 'Get out of here,'" Devance said over coffee two blocks from her current job in Chinatown. She's on the fourth floor of what will be the seven-story Josiah Quincy Upper School.

Devance and her son live in Stoughton. Many of her fellow ironworkers work downtown Boston jobs from further afield, like Rhode Island or New Hampshire. She finished her three-year apprenticeship this summer and is now a full-time journeywoman with Iron Workers Local 7.

"Jessica is a great example of what Local 7 is all about: bringing new people into the ironworkers' community who otherwise may not consider the trades," said Local 7 Business Manager Mike Hess.

Ironwork runs in the family. Quietly.

Devance had been working for Tufts Health Plan for seven years when she decided on a change. Her mom worked for a trade school and one of her mom's GED students suggested that Devance apply for an apprenticeship in ironworking.

The idea of ironworking didn't come out of the blue for Devance. Her father, Anthony Albury, had been an ironworker, though she didn't know that until after he died in 2013. She discovered it while cleaning out his apartment.

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But Devance didn't mention her father being an ironworker while applying for the apprenticeship. And she kept quiet about it until a year-and-a-half into the program. She didn't want to be seen as someone throwing around a family connection.

"With any job that I do, I'm big on my reputation being based off of my work ethic," Devance said.

Devance was raised in Roxbury in what's now Nubian Square and went to high school in Brookline. She graduated from Southern New Hampshire University in 2018.

"Ironworking isn't for everybody and it's not that everybody can't do it, it's just it can be a tough job," Devance said, citing the minus-10 degree workdays in winter and the 100-plus degree conditions in summer.

There's also a certain mindset any ironworker needs.

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"One thing to always keep in mind as a female is this is a man's business," she said. "So you have to have a backbone. And they're scared of me. I'm a super nice person, but they know I don't play around."

In other words, Devance gives as good as she gets with banter.

"It's a guy's business. They talk about things that women shouldn't be around for, right, they say things and they're like, 'Oh, my bad. I didn't know you were there.' So I'll do it back."

Ironworkers, like any elite group, have a history of putting apprentices through rites of passage.

"You go tell them to find tools that don't actually exist," Devance said. "I mean they're walking around for four hours like, 'I can't find it.'"

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Devance does mostly structural ironworking, which involves building the skeleton of high-rises like the 32-story Verizon building or the 17-story MassMutual building in the Seaport.

The money's good. A typical structural ironworker makes $58,550, according to U.S. News & World Report. Devance said she brings home about $50,000 after taxes. She says it's a good feeling to be able to provide for her son.

Ironworker hours can vary considerably week to week depending on projects and the weather.

"It's the best decision I've made," she said. "I can get laid off but I can go to the [union] hall right after I take my tools off the job and they'll say, 'Be at this place tomorrow morning by 6.'"

One challenge Devance and other women ironworkers face is getting work clothes that fit. The gear is mostly sized for men, she said.

"I've been talking about it for three years that I want to start a women's workwear clothing line that sells nothing but high visibility tops," Devance said. "[The job] makes me so tired, by the time I get home I can't think about starting a business."

Send your news tips to reporter Chris Helms by email at CHelms@enterprisenews.com or connect on Twitter at @HelmsNews. Thank you, subscribers. You make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Brockton Enterprise.

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Stoughton mom Jessica Devance is an ironworker in Boston