Briagolong’s very own Melissa Ryan was recently named Young Driver of the Year by the Australian Livestock and Rural Transporters Association.
The 24-year-old B-double cattle truck driver travels across Australia, hauling cattle from point A to B.
Among eight other finalists, Ms Ryan was the only woman.
Awarded Young Driver of the Year in a male dominate field, Ms Ryan was determined to not let gender stereotypes define her.
Working on a farm back in Briagolong, Ms Ryan only began driving trucks after she turned 18, starting out in a horse truck.
Now the haulage hero, she can endure 14 hour drives across state lines in her T909 Kenworth and road trains.
According to 2021 figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), only 2.9 per cent of drivers in the trucking industry are women.
A truck driver earns between $80,000 to $160,000 a year depending on their skills, experience and type of job, with the average weekly pay for a truck driver $1638, according to the ABS.
The road freight industry is the backbone of the Australian economy, moving 234.6 billion tonne in the 2021/22 year period, employing 274, 200 people.
It’s an expanding industry, with a suspected 77 per cent growth in freight volume from 2020/2050.
Women in truck driving have become a workforce necessity recently to meet truck driver shortages following COVID-19.
Women in Trucking Australia, Randstad and Transport Women Australia’s report into women in transport said, “The business case for boosting the number of women in the transport industry is increasingly compelling”.
“More female recruits would help to overcome driver shortages. Improved gender balance could also strengthen customer engagement, insight and advocacy in a sector that’s moving closer to end-users,” they added.
“The transport industry needs more women at all levels. Gender balance would help to make businesses stronger. It also brings benefits to the entire workforce – a more inclusive culture and more empowered ways of working,” the report concluded.
One thing is for sure, Ms Ryan and her incredible achievement serves as a strong reminder that there is a job for everyone and that if you love, it never stop.
