Women In Trades Wednesday - Julie & Shoshana
Women In Trades Wednesday - Julie and Shoshana
This Women In Trades Wednesday, we are lucky enough to share the inspiring stories of two amazing women who work for Z Energy. Julie has been working as an Aircraft Refueller for close to a year and a half, and Shoshana has been a Terminal Operator for five years now.
Julie
Julie worked as a special-needs teacher's aide for 14 years while bringing up her own children. Then, once they were self-sufficient, she could use her Truck and Trailer Licence (Class 5), which she has had since the age of 18. She worked for a couple of different companies driving trucks around the North Island. However, the hours were long and the minimal time she had at home, the tiredness and the lack of exercise started taking their toll.
After seeing her coming home all hours of the day and night, Julie's neighbour Paul asked if she was interested in becoming an aircraft refueller at Z Energy. She had no idea what that role entailed but was very interested, so she spent a day with him on the job to see what she thought. Julie could not believe how close they were to the runway with the planes taking off and landing. “Paul inspired me with his knowledge and interest in the job and, from what I had seen, I was very excited to apply.” Julie started with a three-month training programme learning about jet A1 fuel and how to fuel different types of aircraft. The training also included sitting an Airside Driver's Licence to enable her to drive a truck on the airport apron.
On a day-to-day basis, put simply, Julie connects the hose to the plane, fills the fuel tank and checks with the pilot that they are happy with that fuel amount. “And then on to the next plane. There are many different types of planes, protocols and procedures that you have to follow and remember.” Julie’s biggest challenge to overcome in the beginning was her lack of upper body strength. While hooking up the hose under the aircraft is mostly about technique rather than strength, as she was learning the technique, she found she was lacking in strength. “My husband bought me two dumbbells. Lifting those every day built up my strength enough to be able to learn the technique.”
Julie loves being out on the Airport Apron with the fast pace, hustle and bustle and quick turnaround of the regional and light jets. On other days, she enjoys the slower pace and the incredible size of the international aircraft. “I also enjoy the safe environment and respectful workplace that Z fosters.” Julie feels proud that she has gone into a career that she knew nothing about and now has a whole lot of new information and feels confident in what she is doing. Doing her first refuel on her own after her training, was a massive achievement. “Knowing that the fuel you just put on will be enough to get the plane and its passengers to its destination safely and you were in charge of that.”
Julie’s future career goals are to keep learning, listening and continuing to be open to new skills and advice. Experience and knowledge of the job is the key to where the future will take her. Although this job Involves shift work, the hours are friendly and considerably less, leaving more time for family and her hobby of motorbike riding.
For anyone who might be interested in starting a career in this industry, Julie suggests that a Class 4 Driver’s Licence and some experience in driving is a definite advantage. She suggests that an open mind and a willingness to learn are vital, as most of the learning is on the job.
Shoshana
Before working at Z, Shoshana worked as a Locomotive Assistant (Assistant Train Driver) for a small tourist railway in Dunedin. “It was a great job, but I had pretty much learnt all the skills I could and, being a smaller railway, there wasn’t much further I could go within the company.” The Terminal Operator role at Z offered her the opportunity to learn new skills in a more varied role, while still working within an operational and safety-focused area. She saw an ad for the Z role online and had never heard of the job before but thought it sounded like an interesting and varied role. She would be able to use her previous experience in a safety-focused operational area while learning new skills. When she looked into Z further, she was impressed with their Stands (company values) on safety and well-being, diversity, inclusion and environmental sustainability, so she applied for the role - and hasn’t looked back.
Shoshana’s day-to-day work is varied - on any given day she could be assisting with the product receipt from tankers, testing fuel samples to check the quality, inducting & permitting contractors on site, carrying out safety checks around the terminal and making sure everything is working as it should be, completing ongoing training, transferring fuel to fishing vessels, administrative work and much more. Shoshana’s role is specific to the fuel industry so there was a lot of on-the-job training. “The general idea is that we take receipt of millions of litres of fuel from tanker ships into our bulk storage tanks, test if the product is okay to release, then bulk tank truck drivers pick up fuel from our gantry to deliver to service stations, farms or other private customers.”
Shoshana’s friends and family could tell she was interested in finding a career where she could learn varied skills and so encouraged her to apply for this position. “When I met the Terminal Manager, I was inspired by his passion for the role and his insistence on making sure the Terminal was a safe and welcoming place for everyone to work.” She didn’t know very much about the fuel industry, or how a terminal even worked, and had to learn how to slow down, “something I’m still working on!” Her previous roles had always been about getting the job done as fast as possible so it felt strange, but great, to be told to take her time and make sure the job is done correctly and safely.
The varied nature of the job is something Shoshana really enjoys. “I can be doing compliance and administrative work one day, then going on board an international tanker to sign it up for a tanker receipt the next day.” She also loves working in a small team, as she feels it’s like a second family. Z goes out of its way to make its workplaces inclusive and safe for everyone, so Shoshana doesn’t feel like she’s a woman working in a traditionally male job, “I’m just coming to work to do my job and that’s awesome.”
Receiving sign-off to be a General & Hot Work Permitter as well as an Assistant Shore Officer were both great achievements for Shoshana. “I’m really pleased with how much I have learnt in my time in the role.” She’s most proud, however, of arranging for the whole of the Dunedin Terminal to be signed off for Rainbow Tick Training; “we were the first location in Z to have one hundred percent engagement with this, and that’s fantastic.” Rainbow Tick is a certification mark for organisations that complete a Diversity & Inclusion assessment process. The certification process tests whether a workplace understands and welcomes sexual and gender diversity. The process involves an ongoing quality improvement process.
Although, looking back, having better mechanical and engineering knowledge would have been a plus, the constant ongoing training and buddy training system at Z has been really helpful. “Z is also really big on being flexible and looking after their employees’ wellbeing - so if we need to leave early one day, we can always make it up somewhere else down the track which is great.” Shoshana’s future goals are to continue to keep learning as much as she can and is looking forward to being fully signed off with other types of permitting jobs and to be signed off as a full Shore Officer.
For those looking to get into this line of work, Shoshana says it’s not a role that comes up often - so if you see it, apply for it, even if you don’t think you have the right skill set. “It’s a really interesting and rewarding role and mostly on-the-job training. If I can do it, anyone can!”