Dive Brief:
- Northstar Recycling of East Longmeadow, MA was named one of the 100 best workplaces for women by global research firm Great Place to Work of San Francisco, and Fortune magazine, following a survey of more than 135,600 female employees.
- The women surveyed took into account the fairness of promotions, access to information and leadership, support for employees’ personal lives and the degree of inclusiveness and connection they feel with colleagues. Scores also considered how well-represented women were within the workforce, management and executive positions; fairness in the workplace; and how women’s experiences compared with the 138,000 men surveyed.
- Northstar Recycling said in a news release, "As the sole representative of the waste and recycling industry, we consider this honor exceptionally notable because the recognition is based on women’s own assessments of the quality and fairness of our workplace."
Dive Insight:
Women are still a minority in the waste and recycling industry, but their influence is growing.
Michelle Leonard, the new president of the Solid Waste Association of North America, was profiled this month in Waste Dive's new Women in Waste spotlight. She said, "I’ve never felt that women couldn’t play an important role in this industry, and I think we’re seeing women play a more and more important role in the industry."
Mary O'Brien, chief marketing officer of Ponte Vedra, FL-based Advanced Disposal, in August was named a "woman of influence" by the Jacksonville Business Journal, which noted "her professional accolades as a woman in the male-dominated environmental services industry as well as for her dedication to various community initiatives." She told the Journal, "I never thought I would grow up to become a garbage lady, but it has been a career of a lifetime."
These women, along with Northstar, are lighting the way for the future of the industry.