WTS International President & CEO Quoted in Bloomberg Government

On August 1, 2022, WTS International President & CEO, Sara Stickler, was quoted in an article in Bloomberg Government that discussed the significant workforce shortage within transportation, and specifically around recruiting women in the industry and at the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT).  

According to the article, the transportation industry’s demographics mirror those of the U.S. DOT. “The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that women made up 24.8% of transportation and utilities employment in 2021, including rail, aviation, and trucking.” 

“We have seen that progress is slow, but we do see change happening,” said Stickler. “Unfortunately, through the pandemic, we lost a generation of women in the workforce.” 

The department through the leadership of Secretary Buttigeg, the first openly gay secretary, has taken action to diversify its workforce. The article reports that, “Nuria Fernandez, head of the Federal Transit Administration, was the first woman of color confirmed to that post, while Ann Phillips was the first woman confirmed to lead the Maritime Administration. Biden also recently nominated Denver International Airport CEO Phil Washington to lead the FAA, who if approved would be the first Senate-confirmed Black administrator of that agency.” 

“There is change happening at the top,” Stickler said. “But again, that’s where it takes time for it to move into the entire body in the entire administration.” She said they continue to work with DOT on the hiring process and making it less cumbersome. 

Read the full article here.