“a Woman’s Voice on the Phone Matters”: Gendered Nature of Worklife in Logistic Sector in Turkey

Transport and logistics have been mentioned among the male dominated industries in all over the world. However, the global increase in the ratio of women in labor market and paid work influences the logistic sector and women has begun to make significant inroads to this sector. On the other hand, literature on the gender compositon of employment in the logistics sector clearly shows the persistence of disadtantegous position of women compared to their male colleagues in terms of career opportunuties, payment and salaries and building business networks. This presentation is based on a field research hold with female employees from different departments and positions and employers in logistic firms in Turkey. Focusing on the Turkish logistics sector which is barely discussed in the literature on the subject, our research shows that, it is not only the overall increase of the number of women in the general work force, but also the need for employees in customer services and sales open up more career opportunities for women as the logistic firms are emergingly institutionalized, prioritize customer relations and preserving/increasing global connections. In addition to confirming the constant inequality between men and women in the sector in terms of opportunities for higher managerial positions and network building, the results of our research suggest that as the emotional labor is inextricably linked to the logistics work, firms tend to employ more women and women are expected carry on traditional gender roles in workplace. Drawing from the results of our research, this presentation will discuss the place of emotional labour in gendered nature of worklife , women’s strategies of balancing family and work life, and the tension between the growing number of women and women’s disadvantageous position through the logistics sector in Turkey.