Don Hummer Trucking Corporation

Women in Trucking

Posted on May 8, 2015 at 2:43 PM by Blog Committee

Don Hummer Trucking proudly employs female drivers.  We currently have 5% of our fleet that are females.  Many mistakenly think that female truckers began to emerge in the 1970's and 1980's.  However, during World War I & II, woman began driving trucks because of a driver shortage that was caused primarily because of the men going to war.  Many women began their driving careers during this time and many transported mail in the United States and Europe.

Women endured harsh working conditions in a job that was deemed "Men Only Jobs".  In times of peace, after the men returned from the battlefield they demanded "their" jobs back.  Working women were perceived as taking available jobs away from men.  

There are many women truckers who worked hard to pave the way for current female drivers.  One such driver was Rusty Dow.  In the 1940's, Rusty was the first female driver to conquer the Alaskan Highway.  Rusty recalls a time when she was under her truck completing some repairs.  She overheard two men talking and one told the other "if it becomes so tame that women can drive then it's time to roll our sleeping bags and move on to the next job."  Rusty said that she was often perceived as not belonging in a trucker's world but said that she was primarily treated very kindly.  

A few famous female truckers include Della Reese and Bea Arthur.  The last century has seen many changes in trucking and the perceptions of female contributions in industries that are typically dominated by the male population.  We are honored to employ female drivers and celebrate these women who have blazed a trail for today's women who move America's freight!  

 

Submitted by Dena Boelter

 

 

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