by Saudi Arabia job ad for women train drivers draws 28,000 applicants
Adela Suliman - Stuff, 04:30, Feb 18 2022
The ad was put up by Spanish transport company Renfe.
An ad for a job has created a clamouring rush in Saudi Arabia, where more than 28,000 female applicants have signed up to jostle for just 30 spots to work as train drivers in the kingdom, which is trying to liberalise economic opportunities for women.
The advertisement is for a position as a train driver for Renfe, a Spanish transport company responsible for operating bullet trains between the two Saudi cities of Mecca and Medina – a route travelled by millions of Muslim pilgrims each year.
Women in the conservative kingdom were permitted to get behind the wheel of a car only in 2018, after much global scrutiny and internal social pressure.
Renfe said in a statement earlier this week that it was the first time in the country’s history that Saudi women would have access to such a profession. It added that more than half of the applicants had passed the first phase of the hiring process, which assessed academic records and English language skills.
“More than 28,000 candidates of Saudi nationality have registered in just one month in the selection tests,” the company said. “Those selected will drive the train that connects the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, the first high-speed train to be built in the Middle East.”
The hiring process opened in January, the company said, with candidates' ages ranging between 22 and 30. Those lucky few who make it to the next round will need to undertake more tests, an interview and, if successful, one year of paid training beginning in March, Renfe said.
Women make up about 42 per cent of the Saudi population but account for just 21 per cent of the total labour force, according to World Bank data.
They have long faced strict gender segregation rules and guardianship laws requiring permission to travel and marry, with jobs largely confined to professions such as teaching and health care.
Female participation in the workforce has nearly doubled in the past five years to 33 per cent, according to Reuters, but female unemployment remains far higher than male, despite the de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman working to diversify the oil-reliant economy and expand the nation's workforce.
Women make up about 42 per cent of the Saudi population but account for just 21 per cent of the total labour force, according to the World Bank. (Sean Gallup / Getty Images)
“I think the great success this call for applicants had reflects the will of Saudi women to join the new economic and social change that is taking place in their country,” Rosalina Reyes Ges, Renfe's train operators trainer, said in a video posted online.
“I think they have seen an opportunity to do a different job, a job that is normally done by men. And they've also seen an opportunity to contribute financially in their home, gain financial independence and improve their prospects,” she added.
Renfe said it had already hired and trained more than 400 Saudis for jobs at stations and on trains, but it did not specify their gender.
The Haramain High Speed Railway, which opened in 2018, has revolutionised how pilgrims, who flock to perform the umrah and hajj in Saudi Arabia, move around.
The high-speed bullet trains, equipped with special sand blowers and air conditioning able to withstand scorching desert temperatures, reach a maximum speed of 300 kilometres per hour, or about 186 mph. At least 20 trains run each day, with more added during the month of Ramadan.
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