Diesel women in high demand — Defund the Patriarchy

Diesel women in high demand

Women may be hitting the glass ceiling when it comes to corporate boardrooms, but they are increasingly hitting the highways as truckers. and making up to $100,000 a year. With the pandemic seriously escalating demand for shipping, the trucking industry in both Canada and U.S. is experiencing a severe shortage of drivers. With only 3.5% of professional truck drivers in Canada being female, the federal Ministry of Transport is funding initiatives to remove barriers. In the U.S., which expects to be short about 100,000 drivers by 2023, incentives by organizations and companies to recruit female drivers include free tuition for certification (up to $7,000) and openness to husband and wife driving teams. In just two years, the industry has seen the percentage of women grow from 6.7% to more than 10%. Says one woman who has had a long career as a trucker: “My steering wheel doesn’t know the gender that holds it, and it really doesn’t care,” she said. “It’s just always been labeled a man’s world and always been labeled a man’s job.”  Women, start your diesel engines.

AK

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