Female truckers interested in applying for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Women of Trucking Advisory Board still have one week to do so.

The FMCSA has announced that the application deadline has been extended to April 15. The application deadline was April 8.

The agency encouraged female truck drivers to apply for the new council, which was mandated by the Infrastructure Act 2021.

“Promoting women’s accomplishments, being a voice in the industry and improving the trucking industry,” FMCSA wrote in a tweet on Thursday, April 7.

The FMCSA is pleased to announce the expansion of the Women Trucking Advisory Board (WOTAB). The WOTAB app will continue to accept applications until April 15, 2022. Promoting the achievements of women, being a voice in the industry, and improving the trucking industry. pic.twitter.com/GBSigVphsG

—FMCSA (@FMCSA) April 7, 2022

According to the FMCSA, women currently hold 24% of transport jobs. The council’s mission is to coordinate with trucking companies, non-profit organizations and trucking associations to support women in trucking.

The Women in Trucking Advisory Council should focus on four areas:

• Assess barriers and trends affecting women in trucking across the country and ways to support women pursuing careers in trucking.
• Identify opportunities to expand women’s roles and increase the number of women in the trucking industry.
• Provide advice on policies that provide education, training, mentoring or outreach to women in the trucking industry.
• Examine opportunities to improve the safety, training, mentoring and education of women in the trucking industry.

The board will include a minimum of eight members with diverse backgrounds, experience and certifications to provide balanced viewpoints.

The group should include representatives from a variety of backgrounds:

• Women representing small, medium and large trucking companies and not-for-profit trucking industry organizations.
• Associations of trucking companies.
• Independent owner-operators and professional truckers.
• A college or trucking trade school.

“The creation of the Women of Trucking Advisory Board reinforces our commitment to collaboration, fairness and safety in the trucking industry by evaluating existing and potential opportunities for women in the trucking industry,” said the Acting FMCSA Administrator Robin Hutcheson.

How to register

A letter of interest is required from applicants. It should list what qualifies the nominee to serve on the board. A resume of relevant work experience is requested along with a letter of recommendation from someone who knows the driver and his professional accomplishments first hand. This can be a supervisor or a colleague.

Those interested in applying should visit FMCSA.dot.gov/wotab. Email your questions about the advisory board to [email protected] LL