Women – the untapped workforce of the railway sector?

One of the professions where you rarely see women is that of locomotive mechanic, even if the percentage of women taking mechanic roles for the railway sector have increased a lot in recent years. Our consultants have taken a closer look to this specific job and how women can play a significant role in narrowing the demand for skilled and unskilled workforce.

There were many obstacles and they are still obstacles in the way the railway sector gives access to women to become a locomotive mechanic. In the past, women were not even accepted in the railway field. But there is currently a great crisis of mechanics in many European countries, given that fewer and fewer people specialize in the field. Under these conditions, women are welcome.

The history books mention that women started to be accepted as locomotive mechanics in the 70s and 80s. For example, in France and the United Kingdom, women were only able to drive trains after 1975. The first woman to drive a TGV did so in 1982. Karen Harrison is the first woman to run a train in the United Kingdom in 1978.

This unfortunate problem was also a matter of perception. The locomotive mechanic role was considered back then to be suitable only for men, as the train technology was not yet developed enough and driving trains implied physical and manual labour and high responsibilities. Not to mention that during the steam era of the railways, everyone in the cabin did only hard physical work and the conditions were very difficult (e.g., extremely high temperatures).

However, technology evolved and perceptions have changed. And in countries such as United Kingdom, Ireland, France, India, Japan and Germany, there are programs that encourage women to enroll in qualification training programs .

In other countries such as Russia, the legislation was forbidding women to take roles such as train mechanic. But as the technology improved and the pandemic revealed so many issues in many workforce sectors, the legislation in the Russian Federation had to change in order to make room for women as the demand for workforce is increasing.

On March 8, 2021 – Women’s International Day – a train operator in the UK promoted opportunities for women to take up jobs on the railway, particularly those for train drivers. This gives recruiters and private companies active in the railway sector a clear signal that it is time to encourage women to take into consideration more seriously work opportunities in roles considered not long ago, more traditional. And although the training and educational process is slow in many European countries as the curriculum needs to be adapted to the latest developments of technology and health and safety measures, our consultants are hopeful that the railway industry is breaking stereotypes about jobs previously meant for men.

The matter is far from being sorted although stereotypes involving women as locomotive drivers are falling down. In our consultants’ view, one such issue which still needs to be addressed by the management teams of railway companies is related to the well-being of women mechanics and gender discrimination by their male colleagues, which are still considering female colleagues to be weak although they are delivering results as men do.

Our agency recruits for European companies developing railway construction projects. Our candidates are thoroughly scanned before being selected and presented to our business partners. At Geologic HR we put all our leadership and business skills into action for our business partners. We understand the market’s challenges and we are building innovative strategies and online campaigns to recruit the best temporary workers. Last but not least, we ensure that these jobs can deliver both core labour and a sustainable income, with legal protections, wages, and safety nets that are enjoyed by temporary workers in the whole EU, taking pressure from our partners in finding the right people. In case you will have any questions on how we can help you do not hesitate to write us at or give us a call.