AUSTRALIA: Metro Trains Melbourne is investing A$1m in toilets, showers and changing rooms to accommodate the increasing number of women in its workforce.
Minister for Public & Active Transport Gabrielle Williams said this ‘demonstrates a commitment to recruiting more women into the railways, taking up fulfilling, flexible opportunities’.
Last year MTM opened new driver facilities at Flinders Street station which include gender-neutral locker rooms with private change rooms, a maternity room with modern facilities and private meeting rooms and spaces.
The operator said it has more than 2 200 female staff, including over 580 drivers (38·9%), up from just 27 in 2009. The number of women signallers has grown from 16% in 2009 to around 40% today.
‘As one of the largest public transport operators in Australia, we are committed to achieving a 40% female workplace by 2027’, said CEO Raymond O’Flaherty on November 13.
