#GoodNews: Chennai Gets Its First Woman Delivery Executive
After Jayalakshmi took on the role of a delivery executive, many women have followed suit.
Food delivery a man’s job? Not anymore, proved 40-year-old Jayalakshmi, who became Chennai’s first delivery woman to hit the roads on her two-wheeler, delivering packed food at doorsteps, reported The Times of India.
Fond of riding two-wheelers, Jayalakshmi was never skeptical of looking for a job that required her to traverse parts of the city every day. However, until a few weeks back, the Swiggy employee was uncomfortable using apps like Google maps and barely knew the roads in Chennai’s Alwarpet – the area assigned to her. But not one to give in easily, she learnt the ropes during her training period.
At a time when Jayalakshmi interviewed with Swiggy, the online aggregator was not hiring women, according to the report. But three months later, she received a call for an interview with them, and there’s been no looking back since.
Now more women have followed suit, taking on the job with equal elan.
Mother of two girls, Jayalakshmi works from noon to 5:30 pm, so she scores enough time in the evening to look after her kids.
"I pack their lunch and send them to school and am back home in time for dinner. This is very comfortable," she told The Times of India.
Jayalashmi’s work draws a mix reaction from the customers. "Initially people thought I was from customer care. They were surprised that I am a delivery executive," she said.
(With inputs from The Times of India)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)