Biden-Harris Wants to Advance Women in Trucking

The Biden-Harris administration has a plan to tackle the disparity of women in trucking. They call it their "Trucking Action Plan" and it means business. One aspect of this plan is to create a board of women advisors to analyze women and their positions within the trucking and transportation industry. It is the administration’s hope that this board can help recruit, retain, support, and ensure the safety of women in the trucking industry as a whole. It is no secret that women make up a disproportionately small percentage of the workforce in the trucking industry. Women hold only 24% of all transportation jobs. The administration’s office hopes to raise these numbers closer to the number of women there are in the world. To do this, the transportation industry needs to look within and see how it can do better.

 

This inner focus is what the Women of Trucking Advisory Board (WOTAB) is all about. The board consists of 16 all-female members from all over the trucking industry. They have five current CMV drivers and four former drivers. The rest of the board consists of executives and authors. Together, they have more than 275 years of trucking experience shared amongst them. They work in all aspects of transportation. This includes working with small, medium, and large trucking companies as well as independent owner-operators. They've seen the transportation industry from the ground up and know how to make a difference for women in trucking.

 

Women In Trucking Board Wants to Help Transportation for the Long Term

 

With their powers combined, they can look into many aspects of the transportation industry. With so much experience, they already have a general idea of many things the industry can do to help attract more women to the industry. Even if they bring more women to trucking, they also need to focus on improving the quality of the jobs and retaining these new employees. They plan to evaluate the barriers of entry and any trends that keep women from entering the workforce. Once they identify these factors, they can find ways to expand the roles for women. The WOTAB will have advisory powers that can help write more favorable policies. These policies should provide education, training, mentorship, and outreach. It is the board’s job to think creatively and expand the industry into the future.

 

Trucking, historically, is a male-dominated profession. The Biden-Harris administration feels that way of thinking will never lead to a healthy industry. If there were more voices at the table, there could be more ideas to help the industry as a whole. It is obvious the old way of thinking is not working. The trucking industry is slowly failing, and a burst of fresh ideas can do nothing but improve the situation.