With this year’s Black History Month theme of ‘Saluting Our Sisters’ in mind, two colleagues tell us about the women who inspired them and about the path to equality and diversity at work

ALESSANDRA DELLA SCALA
DRIVER DELIVERY MANAGER

I’m inspired by writer and activist Bell Hooks. She fought for black women’s rights and strongly supported the importance of self-love. My mum is also an inspiration, she went to the US and has three degrees – she is a nurse, teacher and a chartered accountant. At age 65 she is still studying for her master’s degree,
and she has inspired me to always keep learning.

Being a woman of colour has never impeded my progress. I’ve always put myself out there and also been lucky to have a mentor at ARL who has helped me along the way. I graduated from university in 2008 and joined the business as a customer host, before becoming a supervisor, then station delivery manager, customer experience manager and now a driver delivery manager. I have also qualified as a yoga instructor around my railway career. Colleagues from all backgrounds should not shy away from going for certain positions – the business will support them to get where they want to be.

There is more to do at ARL, to promote diversity at a leadership level. Progress is encouraging – evident in the inclusion of female directors but further strides towards inclusivity are imperative. There also needs to be greater representation of ethnically diverse women among train drivers – an area that remains predominantly male-dominated.

Culturally, there is sometimes a feeling that we need to prove ourselves. That can have a negative impact on our mental health. So, my advice to any young black woman at the start of their career would be that if they already have the job they want, they shouldn’t feel they have to keep proving themselves. They’re good enough as they are!

DENISE ANDERSON
CUSTOMER HOST MENTOR
AT WILLESDEN JUNCTION

An inspiration for me is Besse Coleman, the first African American woman to hold a pilot’s license. Many women of colour work in the airline industry, but Besse helped pave the way for more female pilots.

Another big inspiration for me is Rosa Parks. Her strength, resilience and determination were amazing. My mum is my biggest inspiration though. She was a very strong woman who always taught me to look forward and never give up.

It’s rare now but I do still experience prejudice. I recently had an issue with a customer who didn’t speak any English and needed directions. I used Google Translate to communicate with her and asked where she wanted to go, but she wouldn’t acknowledge me and was getting very upset. It turned out she didn’t want my help – or that of my colleague – because of the colour of our skin. Although I felt a bit insulted by this, I knew that ARL would provide support and counselling if I was deeply affected.

ARL is an inclusive place to work. I’ve been here since 2003 and it’s more multicultural now. There are opportunities in this industry for everyone to advance. If you start in the ticket office or on the gates, and want to move on to be a train driver or go into management then there are always opportunities.