In celebration of International Women’s Day UD dealer CMV Dandenong handed over six all new Croner PD 25 280 curtain siders to Visy Logistics and the graduates of their Female Drivers Trainee Program.
On the 3 March a group of six women received their first ever truck as a part of their employment with Visy Logistics, a next generation logistics company born from within packaging and resource recovery leader, Visy. The Croner PD 25 280 from UD Trucks was Visy Logistic‘s truck of choice for the program due to the vehicle‘s ability to maximise productivity and minimise downtime. This means more time on the road and less time in the workshop, so drivers can deliver regularly and reliably to customers. Visy Logistic‘s Glen Fulton said: “Reliability and fuel efficiency were huge selling points of the Croner.”
Promoting and celebrating diversity is something that UD Trucks holds close to its core, and something that Lauren Downs, vice president UD Sales, is particularly passionate about. “We were thrilled to hear about the fantastic Female Drivers Training Program by Visy Logistics and are extremely humbled and proud they selected UD Trucks to be part of the initiative. We would like to pass on a very warm welcome to the industry to the graduates, and hope they enjoy the new UDs as much as we do.”
UD Truck‘s dedicated dealer partner CMV Dandenong hosted the handover making it a momentous occasion for all involved. Sales manager Ian Rimmer said: “Women are an integral part of the trucking industry and we were thrilled to handover the vehicles to the Visy Logistic graduates.”
An education seminar took place at the dealership hosted by key account handover and delivery manager Patrick Ryan. All six women are new to the trucking industry and recently participated in a fully-paid, four-week intensive driver training course to obtain their heavy duty rigid license, as part of the Visy Logistics Female Driver Trainee Program.
Fulton stated that reliable and passionate individuals who will thrive in their roles is what the business needs. “Driver shortages are an issue across the industry, and we want to attract the best potential candidates to Visy Logistics. And then, once we have the best drivers, we want to keep them here. It‘s part of our long-term recruitment and retention strategy.”
As a small part of that strategy, Visy Logistics has designed the Female Driver Trainee Program to specifically attract a potential candidate pool who may not have considered a career like this previously. Women are a largely untapped source of talent within the transport, logistics and supply chain industry, and there‘s really no reason this should be the case.
Over the course of the truck handover day, the drivers discussed their career history and it was fascinating to learn that the women came from a wide range of backgrounds from landscaping to nursing. Driver Kate explained: “More women are entering this male dominated industry because we have so much to offer. We come from different backgrounds and have different mindsets that make us very employable.”
UD Trucks supports women in the industry and Downs said: “Thank you to all of you for choosing to join this fantastic industry and paving the way for future generations of truck drivers and careers in the transport industry. Wishing you long and successful careers.”
