Dublin Bus has said its plans for two female-only recruitment days are not “patronising” women. 

It announced last week it would hold two open days for women in October and November. 

Women in attendance will meet current female drivers and inspectors to learn about their experiences with Dublin Bus and will have the opportunity to drive a bus themselves. 

Dublin Bus Spokesperson Vivienne Kavanagh told Newstalk she does not think it is patronising to organise women-only events. 

“Anyone can apply for the position of bus drivers, [applications] are open at the moment for men and women,” she said. 

“The percentage of women are so low in bus driving, only 5.4%, and when you know 50% of the population is women, we definitely need to do something around that. 

“So, this will be considered positive action.” 

We are hosting Female Driver Recruitment Open Days this Autumn at Dublin Bus. Find out more https://t.co/bjOnvD6uMo pic.twitter.com/ezkkvJ9kEm

— dublinbusnews (@dublinbusnews) September 15, 2023

Ms Kavanagh said previous women-only recruitment days were successful in increasing representation of bus drivers. 

“We held some in 2019 and 2020, and we increase the number of female drivers then by 70% due to the open days so we know that they work,” she said. 

“We want to try and challenge the perceptions people have around being a bus driver.” 

Potential Dublin Bus staff must have a Category B (car) drivers’ licence for at least two years to apply for the role. 

Dublin Bus says the salary starts at €815.30 per week, increasing to €943.99 over six years. 

Any new drivers will operate scheduled services covering a five-day week with rotating shifts, including nights.