It’s no secret that truck driving is a male-dominated industry, but companies like Visy are taking steps to encourage more women to join the workforce.
Visy’s 2023 Female Driver Program saw seven women without any prior experience in the transport industry put through their paces across eight weeks of onboarding and training.
All participants now have heavy rigid licences and have already hit the roads, serving customers across Melbourne.
“Visy is encouraging more women to join our logistics team to serve our customers and build a fulfilling career,” said Rita Scriba, Visy Logistics’ state manager for Victoria.
“Our training program is opening the door for more women to become truck drivers. We’re equipping our new staff with the skills required to hit the road from day one.
“Our comprehensive driver training combined an accredited course with hands-on, real-life experience—fuelled by our new drivers’ passion for the road!”
As part of the Visy Female Driver Program, which was based at the company’s training centre in Shepparton, participants completed a theory component through Wodonga TAFE.
Visy also conducted hands-on training, including real-life driving experience with an accredited driver trainer at the Driver Education Centre of Australia training facilities in Shepperton.
Ongoing support will be provided over the next 12 months, with an opportunity to upgrade to a MC licence upon completion.
Visy, who also ran the Female Driver Program in 2021, said that they plan to make it a “core component” of their future driver acquisition.
They are currently recruiting heavy rigid, and heavy and multi combination drivers in metropolitan areas across Australia, as well as multi combination linehaul drivers in Victoria and NSW.
You can search and apply for all the current roles on the website visy.com.au/careers.