A.P. Moller – Maersk has increased the workforce of its new warehouse in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, India with the addition of 84 women.
The 100,000m² warehouse, located within the company’s Container Freight Station (CFS) facility, is the first of its kind, with women managing and handling all operations and duties at the facility.
Hand-picked from nearby villages, Maersk recruited, trained and created jobs for 84 women who needed employment but lacked suitable opportunities.
According to the Danish shipping company, the journey began in January 2022 when the existing team at the Dadri CFS started having a dialogue with local contracting agencies to build a case for women to be trained and offered employment in the upcoming new warehouse.
Much deliberation later, the on-ground teams realised that the biggest challenge was convincing the families of the women to let them come and work in a warehouse. By March 2022, the teams started approaching the families of potential women candidates to counsel them about the benefits for the women who would work at the Maersk warehouse.
Once the families were convinced about the safety of the women, hygienic working conditions, and fair opportunities, the organisational design was drawn, and workforce requirements were charted.
While some women could take up unskilled and semiskilled jobs immediately, others had to undergo skilling that involved operating Material Handling Equipment (MHE) such as reach trucks and forklifts.
During April and May, the institute and trainers were identified to undertake the training for these women in specialised tasks. After much preparation, these women started receiving their training from July onwards.
Vikash Agarwal, managing director of Maersk South Asia, commented, “While expanding our warehouses across the country, we wanted to create opportunities for women in a traditionally male-dominated sector. As per the 2021 census, Dadri has only 6% working women of its total population, and our team on the ground had a strong desire to contribute towards a change in that respect.”
