People tend to look at truck driving as a male-dominated industry, and statistically, it is. Only approximately 6.6 percent of truckers are female. However, the tides are turning in trucking. Since 2010, the number of professional female truckers has risen 68 percent.
Women are an untapped labor force in the trucking industry, but in order to acquire more female drivers, it’s important to accommodate a female workforce by creating equal opportunities and making women feel safe while traveling.
Despite male truck drivers historically outnumbering female drivers, women have still played a large part in shaping the transportation industry. Here are just a few famous female trucking trailblazers:
Luella Bates is credited with being the first female commercial truck driver. She was a promotional driver and test drove Model B trucks. She was also known for being a mechanic and truck inspector.
Lillie Elizabeth McGee Drennan got into the business of trucking during her second marriage. She and her husband started the Drennan Truck Line, and when they divorced, Lillie took over the company, becoming the sole owner. While running her business Lillie also continued to drive trucks herself and was a known advocate for workplace equality.
Mazie Lanham became a truck driver during World War II. Mazie was the first woman hired to drive for UPS in 1943. At the time, men who drove the package cars and their helpers wore the iconic brown UPS uniforms and were referred to as “Brown Buddies,” which led women UPS drivers to eventually became known as “Brown Betties”.
Adriesue “Bitsy” Gomez was a female trucker that formed the Coalition of Women Truck Drivers in the 1970s during the feminist movement to fight discrimination and harassment in the industry. She even had a story published about her in Time Magazine.
These women, and so many others, have helped pave the way for future female truckers. But there’s still room for more trucking trailblazers. Who knows, maybe the next trucking trailblazer is you!
Are you ready to start your career in trucking? CRST Dedicated is committed to ensuring both our customers, and our drivers, are happy.
Some of the benefits of working for CRST Dedicated include:
- High paying trucking jobs
- Guaranteed home time
- Schedule consistency
- Health insurance
- Retirement benefits
Contact us today by calling 866-271-1054 to learn more, or view our current openings.
