Women sought to fill jobs in manufacturing, trucking

From Waterbury Republican American.

In the trucking industry, where only 6 percent of commercial truck drivers are women, according to LTX, companies are offering more incentives to attract drivers.

“Truck drivers are getting more money, more benefits, sign-on bonuses,” Sculley said. “That will attract anybody.”

Sculley said traditional gender roles could be to blame for the transportation industry’s trouble putting women behind the wheels of big-rigs.

“Construction workers are kind of the same; they’re typically men. Women are not excluded, but it’s just something men gravitate to, and trucking has been the same,” he said.

The industry is also lobbying for federal legislation that would lower the minimum age for commercial truck driving from 21 to 18. Sculley said industry leaders believe many potential drivers are lost to other career paths as a result of the high minimum age.

Anecdotally, he said he has seen more women at truck stops during recent MTAC events.

Women in Manufacturing reports similar success. It’s membership has grown steadily since the organization was founded in 2010 to be a national resource for women in the industry. The group has more than 1,200 members spread over chapters in 14 states, including about 100 members in Connecticut, according to Zoldy.

View the complete article at the Waterbury Republican American.