If you are a typical trucking company, you have one female driver for every 19 males. This is the national average (around five percent).

However, there are some carriers who have a much higher female driver pool. What are they doing differently?
  • First, they have a culture that values and appreciates women. Years ago you could walk into a terminal and see more women in the mechanic’s calendars than you did in trucks. There were only men’s restrooms and showers and the few female drivers who entered the lounge were teased mercilessly. Fortunately, that has changed, but not everywhere. There are some places that haven’t changed the environment and those are the carriers that have a hard time attracting women to the workforce.
  • Look at the company’s recruiting ads. Do they always show a male driver with his mind on the “wife and kids at home?” One recruiting ad said the company was looking for “a few good mustaches.” Another ad read “take your wife to the big island.” Do they really think women feel included in these recruiting efforts?
  • Are there women visible in management roles at the carrier? If so, women will feel welcomed and valued by the company when they see more women in leadership roles.
  • Another thing to think about is your pet policy. For many women, a pet is not only a companion, but also a safety feature. A barking dog has scared away more than one predator in a parking lot and many women require a pet friendly company policy.
Following are ways some carriers that have joined Women In Trucking Association as corporate members are engaging their female drivers.  
  1. Find a way to bring them together. Host an event or give them all t-shirts that identify them as drivers for your company.
  2. Sign them up as members of Women In Trucking. They’ll receive invitations to networking events, opportunities for mentoring, a weekly e-newsletter, a lapel pin and membership card and more, for only $10 under the corporate membership.
  3. Send them to the Salute to Women Behind the Wheel at MATS. They’ll receive a red t-shirt and a bag filled with goodies from the sponsors while they enjoy the chocolate fountains and entertainment. Visit salute2women.com for information about the event.
  4. Direct them to the Women In Trucking Association Facebook page. Over 5,000 drivers share tips, trials, and successes with one another. The site is monitored by drivers for drivers and the information is current and relevant.
  5. Encourage your current drivers to mentor a newcomer. You can direct them to the Women In Trucking website, or just ask your own drivers to offer support and encouragement to those new to the company.
There are carriers that are becoming more aggressive in their efforts to recruit female drivers because of the benefits women bring. Not just as drivers filling a need, but as well qualified employees who bring a different perspective to the job. For example:
  • As drivers, women take fewer risks according to Ron Kipling, author of “Safety for the Long Haul.” Kipling credits this trait as being related to differences in the level of testosterone between men and women.
  • Trucking company executives often say women are more efficient at completing their paperwork and often treat their equipment better than their male counterparts.
  • Women are often viewed as communicating better with customers. 
As trucks become more driver friendly and the freight is no longer being “fingerprinted” by drivers, the opportunity to become a professional driver extends beyond those who are big, muscular, and mechanically minded. The length of haul is getting shorter and time at home is viewed as crucial in attracting and retaining drivers. Adding women to the driver pool is not just something we should do to fill a need; it’s something we should be doing because we have an opportunity to utilize under-represented potential.

Comments (6)

Ellen Voie

Ellen Voie founded the Women In Trucking Association in March of 2007, and currently serves as the nonprofit organization's President/CEO. Women In Trucking was formed to promote the employment of women in the trucking industry, remove obstacles that might keep them from succeeding, and to celebrate the successes of its members.

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I would think male and female teams may often make the best teams. The innate skills of each should compliment each other.

May 30, 2014 19:12:22 PM

I have no problem with female drivers.Wish there were more out here.

May 21, 2014 22:27:30 PM

I have seen and worked with a few women driving water tenders on wildland fires. I can say they are more level headed than most men and they are every bit as efficient as any man in this position. There are also more and more women wildland firefighters.
Back in my full time flatbed days on the Oregon coast there was a women running a chip truck that I would meet several times a day, her headed one direction and me the other direction. She was in her late 50's to mid 60's and out hauled every other chip truck driver running in that area. She was extremely professional, motivated and portrayed every positive aspect that Henry, Bob and Linda and others are portraying and always talking about.

May 19, 2014 10:41:45 AM

Women can be a great resource as drivers. The ad thing bothers me a little. When you are 5% of the market advertisers are not going to focus on you. I don't have a problem with the ads showing the male driver coming home to his family. It is the ones with the ads with attractive women in suggestive garb and situations that would bother me. They bother me as a male driver, I could only imagine that they would infuriate a female driver.

I totally agree on encouraging women drivers to get involved with WIT. It is a great group. I do think that suggesting that companies giver them a week off to attend MATS could be counterproductive.

May 19, 2014 5:52:42 AM

Women can be a great resource as drivers. The ad thing bothers me a little. When you are 5% of the market advertisers are not going to focus on you. I don't have a problem with the ads showing the male driver coming home to his family. It is the ones with the ads with attractive women in suggestive garb and situations that would bother me. They bother me as a male driver, I could only imagine that they would infuriate a female driver.

I totally agree on encouraging women drivers to get involved with WIT. It is a great group. I do think that suggesting that companies giver them a week off to attend MATS could be counterproductive.

May 19, 2014 5:51:54 AM

2014 TIME IS NOT WAITING ON NOBODY WE ALL ARE HERE TO GET A JOB DONE. MAN OR WOMAN IF THE JOB GET'S DONE IT DOES NOT MATTER WHO'S IN THE DRIVER SEAT...JUST SAYING...

May 18, 2014 19:46:04 PM