Female employees represent 30% of our total workforce with an equal number in leadership positions

In an effort to promote women’s opportunities in the South Africa, Bombardier, a global leader in the transportation industry, celebrated the contribution of Women in Rail and Aviation sectors in South Africa. The event, in recognition of worldwide celebration of International Women’s Day, focused on diversity and women in leadership in the local transportation industry.

Bombardier fosters diversity and equal opportunities for our female employee’s interest and professional development and is committed to providing a work environment free of barriers and biases. Bombardier firmly believes that gender diversity and women in leadership are essential elements to our long-term success in South Africa.

In the aviation sector, Bombardier is globally a member of several diversity associations, including Women in Aviation International, and we offer scholarships to support the development of women in aviation around the globe. We are also a strong advocate of the Women in Rail community and are active participants in the national conversation on practical ways for women to drive their careers forward. As we develop our game-changing products at Bombardier, it is apparent that diversity drives ingenuity and innovation, which is what Bombardier is all about.

Aubrey Lekwane, Chief Country Representative, South Africa, Bombardier Transportation said, “With the goal to make our operations in South Africa more attractive to female employees and encourage more heterogeneous teams, we have taken various steps such as launching Women Empowerment Committee (WEC), Women in Engineering (WIN) and Prevention of Sexual Harassment Committee (POSH) across our sites to increase diversity and greater involvement of women.

In April, our female employees have planned to spend a day with girls aged between 11 and 20 from various foundations Bombardier is supporting in South Africa. This will help the girls get an experience of a professional work-life and provide an overview at careers mainly focusing on technical and manufacturing jobs.”

In Bombardier, we place a lot of stress on women’s professional development, training, education and mentoring. We are committed to the professional development and greater inclusion of female employees in managerial roles supporting profitability and sustainability of our organization helping us together moving millions of people daily globally.