Women’s Labor in Transport Sector: Women Drivers and Machinists Working in Ankara

Women are rarely employed for the jobs which are not seen “suitable” for them especially in some occupational sectors. To illustrate, they seldom work as taxi drivers, bus drivers and subway mechanists in Ankara. Neither women working in those jobs (so called “men’s job”)” nor their problems are visible in society. During this research, in order to point women working in “men’s job” and to reveal their problems, qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The questions were asked to the women who work as taxi drivers and subway machinists. Results of the study indicated that recruiting women to these jobs generally seems possible by the efforts of sensitive executors. Women working in this sector are in equal position with men in terms of their education levels and working conditions. There are no policies of affirmative action, except being free from nightshift. Results also showed that they are often mobbed by their colleagues or passengers.