Women in Trucking

Peggy Arnold is the Women in Trucking’s 2022 Driver of the Year.

The announcement was part of the association’s March 25 Salute to Women Behind the Wheel event at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky. According to the organization, they receive 60-100 nominations for the award each year.

Peggy Arnold accepting 2022 Driver of the Year by the Women in Trucking Association.
The announcement was part of the association’s March 25 Salute to Women Behind the Wheel event at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky.

Arnold was the third recipient of the award, but the first to receive the honor in person. The previous winners were unable to with MATS canceled because of the pandemic the past two years.

A driver with Yellow Corp. for nearly 30 years, Arnold called the honor “a win for women.” After the event, she reflected on the importance of the award and how she plans to support other female drivers.

“It’s important to me, because when I first came in to trucking it was hard,” Arnold said. “But I knew if I could make it that I could then pass it on to other women. And that’s exactly what I want to do. I want to pay it forward to other women. I want to help them and be a lifeline. Because to get me here today, I stood on the shoulders of other women before me. And I’m now going to be the shoulders.”

Ellen Voie, president and CEO of Women in Trucking, said that drive to pay it forward and mentor other female drivers is what their organization is all about.

“This is a sisterhood. We want them to mentor each other,” Voie said. “We want them to come to this event, see each other like it’s a family reunion, and get together and support each other. Because they’re still a minority in this industry.”

The event marked the 11th annual Salute to Women Behind the Wheel. Despite the continued efforts to promote the achievements of female drivers, Voie said she still hears negativity from men in the industry. However, she says those comments are getting fewer and fewer and believes change is on the horizon.

“I still have men who will come up to me and say women shouldn’t be driving trucks. And all of these women here have heard those comments when they’re out on the road. But they’re getting fewer and fewer of those comments and those men who make those comments,” Voie said. “As these women become more prominent and more comfortable in being a louder voice, that’s going to change. Because they are going to not put up with those kind of comments, and they’re going to give it right back.”

It is widely reported that women make up roughly 10% of the trucking workforce. In an industry dominated by men, women often struggle to gain the same level of respect and legitimacy their male counterparts enjoy. Despite the status quo, Arnold said she remains positive about the future of the industry.

“We have a ways to go, but we’re gonna get there,” she said. “We have to be positive about it. We have to band together and take women – and men as well – to support us and get us along. And we’re gonna do that, one day at a time.” LL