What To Know About Women Truckers

The need for truck drivers is reaching all-time highs as production continues to grow while driver capacity shrinks. It’s a scenario that has provided an opportunity for more women truck drivers to join the male-dominated industry.

Women In Trucking

Women truck drivers make up 12.1% of professional drivers, according to the Women In Trucking Association (WIT). While they represent a small minority, organizations such as WIT build community among female truck drivers and provide training resources. “Trucking is a terrific profession, no matter what that skill set you have looks like. There are opportunities for women across this entire industry, and that makes it exciting to me,” says Jennifer Hedrick, president and CEO of WIT, in an interview with FleetOwner.

Supply chain disruptions and surging demand during the pandemic amplified a years-long trucker shortage. However, women have been joining the industry at higher rates. Many teachers, nurses, and service workers transitioned to trucking. With the industry facing increasing shortages, initiatives to bring in more women drivers have escalated.

“[Women] can make the same amount of money as a man because the steering wheel doesn’t have any idea who’s holding it, so it doesn’t matter your age or your ethnicity or your race or whatever, so we’re really pointing out the fact that there’s a lot of jobs right now in the trucking industry and we need to fill those seats so, women can do it,” says Ellen Voie, former president and CEO of WIT, in an interview with ABC.

Trucking is not for the faint of heart. Male or female, being a truck driver is one of the most dangerous jobs in America, reporting the eighth-highest fatal-injury rate in 2021. Though, the benefits of introducing more women into trucking have led to expanded safety measures.

Rough Translation: What Women Truckers Can Tell Us About Living and Working Alone

As part of the series @Work, NPR’s Rough Translation podcast spoke with truck drivers about experiencing life in the small spaces they call home. Their stories show us how we can use alone time to figure out who we are and what we really want.

This is an update of a blog post originally published on May 10, 2018.

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