Inspiring launch to Women in Rail South division

18th September 2018

With just 16% of jobs in rail filled by women, we need to understand how we can encourage others to join the industry and not just attract women to the railway, but also to keep, develop and promote them.

This was the key message shared at the launch of the Women in Rail South division, held in September at the Bath Function Rooms.

Set in the particularly fitting re-purposed old Green Park Railway Station in Bath, a mix of men and women from across the industry met to celebrate the launch of Women in Rail South.

Attendees heard from inspiring women working in a varied range of roles across the region, including Anna Delvecchio – Commercial Account Director for Amey, Joanna Whittington – Chief Executive Office of Rail and Road, Rajinder Pryor – Network Rail and Estelle Whittaker – CCO Achilles to name but a few.

In total, eight women shared their personal experience of working within the industry and told stories of why they love working in the rail sector.

From being part of an essential network underpinning the economic activity of the country to inspiring changes in attitudes and enjoying flexible working opportunities and the fantastic opportunity for promotion and personal development, each speaker shared their own reasons for loving being women in rail.

Inspiring speeches sparked interesting debate around what Women in Rail and the industry in general can do to close thegender gap in the railway sector, including;

• Raising the profile of rail as a sector and engineering to school children
• Boosting the profile of the rail industry to attract women to the sector
• The need for male champions to further women in the industry
• Flexible working/job shares and shared paternity leave
• Celebrating the success / raising the profile of successful women as champions of the sector

But it wasn’t all serious talk, with networking drinks following the inspiring speeches, which provided a great opportunity to make new connections with people from all across the sector disciplines.

The evening proved to be a fantastic opportunity for members to meet others who live and work in the area, develop their professional network and engage with key industry leaders.

Are you looking for your next move in the rail sector? For our latest rail jobs, to register for job alerts straight to your inbox or view our live jobs here.

To find out more about Women in Rail and become a member, please visit: https://lnkd.in/eW6ApbG