Women In Trades Wednesday- Lydia Hill
Lydia Hill is a Machine Operator who has been working in the industry for 10 years. Holding her truck licences class 2 and 4L, Lydia also holds her wheels, tracks and rollers endorsements, tickets she gained through North Tec Whanagrei.
Day to day tasks are constantly changing for Lydia- “It changes every day to every week. Some days I can be stripping top soil and cutting out house pads which I am still learning about, or I could be building bunds, cutting drains, stripping roads…there is just so much that goes on in any given day in earthworks- it's never dull!”
Early on, Lydia wanted to be an air hostess, but her grandfather who owned an agricultural contracting business needed someone to work, and due to there being no males available to take it on, she was it! “I didn’t see myself doing this for a life career, but ending up enjoying it when i ventured out on my own. After 4-5 years of working for my grandfather, I moved to Auckland and started a life for myself continuing what I knew best (earthworks).”
Working in construction hasn’t been without challenges to face to get Lydia where she is now- “Being female in this trade is hard! I've worked in a few different types of earthworks and always come across some males that are against women in this trade and think they belong in the kitchen. I’ve even had men try to get me fired. I found my biggest challenge was to build my skin thicker and not allow them to affect me. In the end, I'm proud of how far I've come, how much I have learnt and I accept that I'm still learning.”
Lydia notes the environment as what she loves most about her trade- “It's so peaceful- finding new places you’ll never find when looking from the road or down an old path. I love starting new developments and being able to see it start to finish and be proud of how it’s turned out- it’s like a painting really!”
Operating diggers isn’t just digging a hole or loading a truck. There is so much more; forestry, subdivisions, civil, agricultural, and many others. Lydia counts developing these skills as her most proud career achievement to date.
Lydia’s future career goals include- “getting all my truck licences and being able to develop a house site top to bottom for when I go to build my own home one day.”
As far as the impact her career has had on her life, she says- “you’re working 12 hours a day, roughly 6 days a week. I don’t have much of a life outside of work, but that doesn’t bother me. I'm not a usual 23-year-old, I'm not into drinking or partying.” Lydia cites her time in her trade with the development of her confidence over the years. “I've learnt that if u don’t give shit back to the blokes, they don’t respect you, and just treat you like a delicate little girl-which you don’t want to be while operating heavy equipment.”
Her advice for anyone looking to follow in a similar career path is- “Absolutely do it! I've never looked back. It’s great money and great opportunities for those that are driven and have nothing holding them back. It's a full on, fast moving industry. You have some amazing moments with old and young people you never thought you would make friends with. All I can really say is my name is Lydia Hill and I can’t wait to see you all out there!”
