Women In Motion Sets Path to Advocate for Female Truckers
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AUSTIN, Texas — The Women In Motion advocacy group of American Trucking Associations is ramping up a new membership program and crafting a booklet that is focused on female independent contractors, group adviser Brenda Neville said during ATA’s Management Conference & Exhibition.
The group was created to promote and support the advancement of women in the trucking industry, and convened a meeting earlier this year in Washington, D.C., to brainstorm ideas and set priorities. Neville, who is president of the Iowa Motor Truck Association, discussed those priorities during an Oct. 15 MCE session.
“We engaged in conversations with our entire council, a diverse group of 34 remarkable women, to ensure that we are strategically dividing, conquering, and most importantly, poised to make waves in our industry,” said Neville.
The group plans to launch a webinar series focused on addressing issues that women face in the workplace, and explore retention policies that resonate with women.
The group’s See, Believe, Become campaign was recently launched to showcase diverse career opportunities for women in trucking. The series aims to provide insights into their journeys and why they love the trucking industry by featuring interviews with women in different types of positions through the industry.
#ATAWomenInMotion presented the fundamentals of effective advocacy during the Mastering Advocacy: Driving Local and National Change Educational Session.
Thank you to our sponsor @MarshGlobal. pic.twitter.com/NmXr5DceTW — American Trucking (@TRUCKINGdotORG) October 15, 2023
“It will also provide advice and counsel for those that are considering entering it,” Neville said. “We’re going to make these interviews available to high schools across the country to inspire the next generation of women leaders that will help grow our workforce, which is so desperately needed.” WIM-Sponsorships
She also announced that the group will elevate to the status of an ATA council in 2024, which will “open up membership opportunities for anybody who wants to get involved,” she said.
The group is also planning an event to directly engage with policymakers.
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“Something that I’m very excited about, we are planning a Women’s Call on Washington in 2024,” Neville said. Tied in with that is the booklet, which Neville said is intended to be a resource for work the group does in Washington in advocating for women and the small businesses that they create and run.
Women In Motion also is taking its message on the road. “We’re going to be launching a speaker’s bureau that will be at your service, that will help place women on panels in front of audiences across the nation,” she said.
The group also is planning a collaboration with Transport Topics called Cab Convos, where female CEOs in trucking will be interviewed by TT staff and share their stories of working in the industry, Neville said.
