The RTBU has a proud history of women standing up for the rights of all Members.
RTBU Women repeatedly break barriers in the rail industry.
Over the past ten years, our Women’s Advocate network which was created within the Rail Division, has grown to over 50 Advocates across the industry.
We are very happy to announce that for the first time in 35 years, V/Line has employed 3 new women as Shunters.
The RTBU has been advocating for more women to join the railways for a long time, and we’re happy to see the major companies finally acting on this. It is especially great to see more women entering the blue collar space which has remained male dominated for too many years.
It’s not just about getting women through the door, but it’s also important that we focus on retention and on ensuring that women have appropriate facilities within the workplace, and are treated as equals.
As a part of supporting female shunters at Southern Cross, we have pushed for the addition of a new facility to accommodate the introduction of female shunters to the worksite.
V/Line have agreed to fund a new facility so that women don’t have to utilise the same toilets and change rooms as the men on site.
We are opening up further Women’s Advocate elections across the industry, and if this position sounds like something you or your work mates would be interested in, please reach out to Sally Van Bragt, Caitlin Brown or myself to learn more.
By Darren Galea
Divisional Secretary
