In the interest of fulfilling a key Detroit Department of Transportation objective to increase the number of buses providing service to Detroit commuters, the City of Detroit actively sought to significantly step up bus maintenance operations and hire more qualified fleet maintenance personnel. DDOT needed more diesel mechanics to make repairs and maintain the bus fleet. Detroit Employment and Solutions Corporation came to the aid of the on street mass transportation system and worked with DDOT to put 12 candidates through training at Wayne County Community College. All were offered positions with DDOT, and 11 accepted. Qamara Rasul was one of the 11, and the only female.
Rasul came into a DESC One-Stop Service Center seeking employment, having been unemployed for seven months from a minimum wage job. She learned of DESC’s diesel mechanic training program and decided to enter the traditionally male vocation.
“Women do not like to get dirty, however, [I knew] this would be a skill that I will have forever. … And you can always wash off dirt,” the newly hired DDOT mechanic quipped.
Rasul told DESC staff that she was looking for a career, and one that would afford her a livable wage as well as an opportunity that would always be in demand. Fortunately, although the determined young woman recognized that she was entering a male-dominated field, that she set her standards high and prove to herself as well as her classmates that she deserved to be in the field. “Women make the best mechanics because [we] are very meticulous, and pay attention to detail, she was often heard saying to some of her classmates and instructors.
Rasul was part of a cohort of 12 trainees that took a 16-week course. And although she was the only female to even apply, she passed with a 3.4 GPA. She now has two certifications (Heavy Duty Truck Diesel Engine Repair and Heavy Duty Engine Repair), and is employed full-time, earning $13.30/hr. plus benefits.
“It just shows you that the earned credential is a genuine path of opportunity,” said one DESC spokesperson. “It demonstrates that with hard work and focus that a female can play a productive role in transportation and logistics.”
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