The Australasian Railway Association (ARA) has established the groundbreaking Champions of Change Rail Group to advance gender equality in the rail industry in response to a key recommendation of a joint report with the National Women in Transport.
The group comprises of 10 high-profile CEOs and senior executives of rail organisations with 32,000 employees collectively, including the ARA, Australian Rail Track Corporation, Bowen Rail, Downer, Hitachi Rail Australia, Keolis Downer, National Transport Commission (NTC), Sydney Trains, Transdev and Queensland Rail, which are dedicated to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace.
ARA CEO Caroline Wilkie said forming the Champions of Change Rail Group is the first major step towards implementing the recommendations of the Progressing gender equality in the Australasian rail industry: challenges and supportive practices released in July.
"Improving gender diversity in the Australasian rail workforce is a key priority for the ARA. Through initiatives such as the Champions of Change Rail Group, our leadership scholarships, diversity training and Women in Rail Mentoring Program, we are supporting the development of women leaders at every level and enabling more women to pursue careers in rail," Ms Wilkie said.
"The Champions of Change Rail Group is part of a national effort to achieve inclusive gender equality in rail within one generation, ensuring that our industry not only thrives, but also reflects the diversity and potential of our society.
"Increasing female participation in rail plays a vital role in ensuring a strong, sustainable industry for the future and drives performance innovations and better solutions. We hope to see the rail industry transform into an employer of choice for women."
The group represents senior leaders from passenger and freight rail operators and providers of integrated rail infrastructure networks and includes:
- Caroline Wilkie, CEO, ARA
- Kat Stapleton, CEO, Queensland Rail
- Michael Hopkins, CEO, NTC
- Wayne Johnson, CEO and Managing Director, ARTC
- Matthew Longland, CE, Sydney Trains
- Brendan Lane, General Manager, Bowen Rail Company
- Brian Brennan, CEO, Transdev Australasia
- Julien Dehornoy, CEO, Keolis Downer
- Sarfaraz Samnakay, Managing Director and Country Director, Hitachi Rail Australia
- Stephen Kakavas, COO Rail and Transit Systems, Downer Group
The Champions of Change Coalition was founded in 2010 by Elizabeth Broderick AO and brings together more than 260 CEOs from diverse sectors who are committed to driving meaningful change within their organisations and the broader community.
Research by the ARA released in March this year shows female participation in the rail workforce overall has risen from 24 per cent in 2020-2021 to 28 per cent in 2022-23.
The Gender Diversity Data Report 2024 is based on the Australian Government's Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) survey and is conducted by the ARA every two years to track the industry's progress across Australia and New Zealand.
The survey, which was sent to about 220 rail organisations from April 2022 to April 2023, also showed that 26 per cent of CEOs in rail were female in 2022-2023, up from 16 per cent in 2020-21.
The ARA matched 98 pairs in 2024 for the Women in Rail Mentoring Program, and is providing 13 professional development scholarship opportunities in 2024-2025 for women in the rail industry to undertake professional and leadership development courses and sponsored two men to participate in Women Rising's Male Allies program as part the ARA Women in Rail Strategy 2023-2026 to improve education to support increased inclusion for women in the industry.
