Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/718143
54 September 2016 BestDriverJOBS www.bestdriverjobs.com Women In Trucking with men. "The importance of allowing female trainees to obtain a private hotel room for themselves even if it means paying out of pocket without reimburse- ment (is important)," she said. "If I was given this option before arriving or once I arrived, I would very likely have stayed for training and be currently em- ployed there despite the vague descrip- tion of boarding I was given." While I was familiar with opposite- gender training while on the road, I was surprised to hear that some schools treat all of their students the same, to the ex- tent they have to sleep in the same room. Are we really attracting women into the trucking industry with policies like these? The Women In Trucking Association Facebook page has nearly 10,000 folks who share their expertise when asked. I created a poll and asked the female driv- ers to respond to the following question. "Did any of you have to share sleeping space with males during training, not in the truck, but at the school or carrier's facility?" I was surprised to learn that ten per- cent of the respondents were provided a shared sleeping facility with men. Some of the drivers stated the names of their training provider. Many of these are members of Women In Trucking Association. This is truly unacceptable and could be a reason some women won't suc- ceed as professional drivers if they are concerned about their safety or their personal items in a non-private area. Even the men agreed. A male driver commented about sharing a space with anyone because he's "nervous (about) them stealing his belongings." Another male driver said his wife would not have accepted the arrangement. We have a long way to go before we've addressed the challenges women face as they consider a career as a professional driver. However, personal safety and privacy while in training should be the standard for all drivers. Men and women are not the same, and carriers that ignore gender differences are not creating a positive environment for the demographic we are trying to attract. If you are a training facility that expects all of your students to share sleeping quarters, we ask you to con- sider whether this would be acceptable if that woman was your own daugh- ter, wife, mother or sister. If not, then change it. bdj Simplify your life on the road. The FREE Truckers Tools smartphone app can help you locate truck stops, find the best fuel prices, track your route, and a ton more to make life on the road just a little bit easier. BROUGHT TO YOU BY OverdriveOnline.com Facebook.com/OverdriveTrucking