VIDEO: Meet the women changing the face of the tow trucking industry

[TowNews]

 

VIDEO LINK: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-17/meet-the-women-changing-the-face-of-the-tow/104233162

 

When it comes to heroines, fast-talking female tow-truck drivers probably aren't what springs to mind.

A purple tow truck, which features the slogan "hook'n ain't easy" and a "towie as" numberplate, provides a sneak peek into the personalities that sit behind the wheel.

Amanda Antoniolli and Amber Scott don't wear a costume and cape, but they can leap onto the back of a flatbed in almost a single bound.

"The looks we get sometimes, they are underestimating us, but they change their minds," Ms Scott says.

The best mates live in Agnes Water, a coastal town in the Gladstone Region, almost 500 kilometres north of Brisbane.

Ms Antoniolli owns the only towing business in the area.

She says there aren't too many owner-operators in Australia, and even fewer female ones.

"I'd be the only one that ever started a tow-truck business without a vehicle, but it was just something I really enjoyed doing," Ms Antoniolli says.

"And I never looked back since. I really enjoy what I do."

Ms Antoniolli first moved to Agnes Water, known for its laid-back lifestyle and beaches, in 2000 with her two children.

She started the business 15 years later.

"I really was one of those sorts of people that woke up and said 'I'm going to buy a truck today'," she says.

"Looking back now, I probably should have put some thought into it, but I've learned a lot and I have learned the hard way about things, but I've enjoyed every minute of it."

Ms Scott initially joined the business in 2021 to help her friend for a few months.

After a relationship breakdown, the mother of two boys, now 11 and 13, says she found more than work. 

 

"I was just trying to find myself again; I had no confidence, I hadn't worked for a while," Ms Scott says.

"I got in the truck and it's really empowering."

Breaking into 'male' industry challenging

Less than 5 per cent of general truck drivers in Australia are women.

Ms Antoniolli says over the years she's felt she's had to work twice as hard.

"Being a female in a male dominated industry, and being an owner operator, it was hard," she says.

"The rural area was a bit of a bonus I think, because there wasn't a lot of boys, so we didn't have to fight for our spot, and the work is different.

"In the city they do a lot of cars, but out here we do machinery and caravans and boats, and so there's a variety and that works for us."

When picking up the phone, the women are often asked to provide "experienced" operators.

"Older men, when you get there, they kind of roll their eyes at you, like they think, 'How are they going to do that' and then by the end they're hugging us and we get their respect," Ms Scott says.

 

While they are up for any challenge, like getting a 6-metre shipping container out of the sand or trekking through national parks to find four-wheel drive adventurers, there are other logistics that are an unfortunate reality.

"We find it hard at night, as we can't go out on our own, it's just something that we don't do, for safety," Ms Scott says.

Women well suited to trucking

Women in Trucking Australia was formed five years ago, to support women already driving or wanting to enter the sector.

"We have a critical shortage of skilled heavy vehicle drivers and to meet that shortfall there are a lot of international drivers coming into Australia," chief executive Lyndal Denny says.

"The freight task is increasing at a rapid rate."

Ms Denny says the organisation hopes to increase the number women in the workforce to 50 per cent by 2050.

"To date, recruiters have been reluctant to recruit female heavy vehicle drivers. That's slowly changing," she says.

"Our board and myself are working female heavy vehicle drivers and are at the coalface.

"Women don't need any special polices or procedures or things like that put in place before we come into the workplace, if you've got supportive management and people are willing to listen.

"There is no reason why female drivers can't thrive in the sector."

Ms Denny says women are "hardwired" for heavy vehicle driving.

"The bottom line is safety and women sweat the small stuff," she says.

"And it's sweating the small stuff that dovetails into greater safety out on the road, so really it's a no-brainer."

Ms Denny says Ms Antoniolli and Ms Scott are setting an amazing example to other women.

"Mandy and Amber are in a class of their own. Those two girls are absolute trailblazers," she says.

"They actively encourage women on board for training and recruitment, so they're very supportive."

 

Leading by example

For this pair, towing isn't just a job.

"I love the challenge, I think that's what gets me, the challenge of every day of every job being different," Ms Antoniolli says. 

She describes the truck as her "happy place".

"There's never two jobs the same, whether it's the environment or it might be three containers, the driveway might be different; so it's always challenging and that's what keeps me excited," Ms Antoniolli says. 

Their passion for the work is what drives them to help others into the industry, having helped other women achieve their truck licence. 

"I love what we do, and we want to get more women into tow-truck driving, so making it softer," Ms Scott says.

"So it's not that horrible grimy thing that people think of tow-truck drivers, that we are going to take your money or that we are ambulance chasers, we don't do that.

"We want to try and change the image of tow trucking altogether and show them that we're not so scary and we are just there to help you."

But the plans for their business don't end there.

Ms Scott has recently achieved her wrecker's licence to start the region's only car wreckers and is working on an app to help guide drivers through the post-accident process.

But at the end of the day, they are just single mums making a go of it.

"My boys are watching me and I want them to be proud of me and be proud of us," Ms Scott says.

"They love the business; they're always helping us and it's cool to be able to show my boys that we can adapt."

"When they want to spend time with us, they know they gotta get in the truck," Ms Antoniolli adds.

"When they're having a bit of an unbalanced day we say, 'Get in the truck, let's go' and they come with us and they love it."