Women in the driving seat

Women drivers are a common sight abroad, even in many traditionally male-dominated Asian countries. It has taken Sri Lanka many decades to realize that they are lagging behind in this sphere. Ironically, SriLankan Airlines have several women pilots who fly jets that are much more complex machines. Yet, we do not have a single woman bus or truck driver. This is indeed a shameful situation.

Transport Minister Kumar Welgama has decided to change this status quo. He has revealed that the Sri Lanka Transport Board would recruit women drivers and conductors soon.

The minister made this announcement while launching an equally laudable initiative - the new women's special bus service from Kottawa to Pettah. This service is likely to be expanded to more routes depending on the demand. According to him, plans are underway to start the women's special bus services across the country to provide a safe and comfortable journey to women commuters.

The Minister has said that the recruitment of women drivers and conductors would boost women's empowerment while providing a solution to the harassment of women in commuter buses.

He said that the SLTB plans to commence a women's super luxury bus service once the Matara-Colombo highway is opened. Women drivers and conductors will be deployed for this service.

The Minister has highlighted a fact that most of us already know: Women drivers are generally more cautious and courteous than men and therefore, the safety of the passengers (and other road users) is very high. Women conductors are likely to be equally courteous to the commuters.

It goes without saying that the prospective candidates should be trained thoroughly in all aspects of the two respective jobs. Driving a heavy vehicle is not just about turning the steering wheel - one should have a sound mechanical knowledge as well to the extent of being able to perform a minor repair or part replacement.

It is therefore heartening to note that the training will be equivalent to that given to male drivers. The authorities are likely to start with smaller buses for the women drivers and then as they gain confidence, move them over to the big ones.

However, this is not the first time that women conductors have been deployed. A couple of decades ago, several women conductors were deployed on selected routes but it had to be shelved after around six months due to various factors.

The authorities must ensure that there is no repeat of this episode. The programme must be continued. They should take a cue from the massive response, especially from female passengers, to the deployment of women taxi drivers by a start-up taxi company. They are reported to be on par with their male counterparts in terms of driving skills and mechanical knowledge.

Indeed, there must be a shift away from so-called 'male only' jobs in this country.

The Armed Forces have shown the way, with some of the jobs such as parachute jumping earlier dominated by men now regularly featuring women. The other sectors must emulate this example.

If women can drive taxis and buses, why not trucks and construction machinery such as earth movers and backhoe loaders? There are a lot of opportunities in the construction sector especially in the context of the rebuilding process in the North and the East. There is no reason why women cannot gain at least some of the opportunities available in this sector after comprehensive training. There are many women engineers, but there is a paucity of women in other jobs in the transport and construction sector. This shortcoming has to be addressed.

Agriculture is another sphere where women can play a greater role. They already help around the paddy field and home gardens, but it would be gratifying to see a rise in the number of women taking up agriculture as farmers themselves instead of just playing a supportive role to male farmers.

In this context, it was worth noting that a woman had been chosen as one of 40 Govi Rajas (Farmer Kings) in a recent competition, all the other winners being males.

This indicates that women can become savvy farmers. The authorities should strive to attract more young women towards farming.

If we have more women in hitherto male dominated skilled jobs, the overseas job market may also open up for them. After all, women truck drivers and construction workers are common in many countries. This is an area our foreign employment authorities must explore.

While taking all these steps, the authorities should address one problem that still lingers like a colonial hangover. Women are paid lower salaries or wages than men in certain vocations for an equivalent amount of work. This undermining of women's labour must stop. They do an equal amount of work (or more) and make an equal contribution to the economy. It is only fair that their efforts are duly recognized.

They should be given equal wages. This is especially important in the case of women who are the sole breadwinners in their families.The private sector should also be involved in the exercise of generating more employment among women. We have seen employment advertisements that say 'females are encouraged to apply' for more traditional male-dominated jobs. This is one way of saying that they welcome women applicants for jobs that were earlier considered exclusively for males.

Sri Lanka has a good record when it comes to women's empowerment.

There is near-universal education for female children and the female health indices are on par with those of the developed world. Still, wrong attitudes prevail in society that women are not geared for certain jobs. The employment of women bus drivers and conductors will expose this fallacy and open the floodgates for women to enter other jobs and sectors that are considered 'manly'.

The authorities should create more opportunities of this nature for women to showcase their capabilities and skills for the betterment of society. It will be a worthwhile investment for the next generation of Sri Lankan women.