Opportunities abound.

I was diagnosed with mental illness about 10 years ago and I also had injuries from an accident, so I had been out of work since 2018. 

I started feeling guilty because I was fit and active enough to work, so I wanted to get a job part time, just one or two days a week and I wasn’t sure how to go about finding that. I really wanted to get a foot in the door into the working world and I just didn’t know how to so I was at a bit of a crossroads. 

I came across one of the team through a group meeting. They had posted on Facebook looking for people to unload containers, so I called them up and said I’m keen, but I only want one day a week to get me back into the workforce. 

I suffer a lot of low moods and low energy from my mental health treatment, so I wanted something flexible as well. They said ‘that’s cool, we can help you out with that’, as they had a lot of work on. 

What I really liked about the job was the flexibility. The people are great, Oak Tree are awesome, really approachable, they work around what suits you and it’s really important to them that you’re happy with your work. That was awesome. I felt really well respected from day one. I initially only wanted one day, but ended up signing up for two days a week and things have been really good. 

A lot of people were saying we want fit and healthy people. I’m 40 now, so I was up against a lot of young people so chances were I wasn’t going to get taken on, even into a part time role in the workplace because my injuries, but they saw I was keen for work, not a lot of work, but a couple of days would really suit me. 

I’m still receiving the benefit but I can add a lot to my weekly allowance working just a couple of days. It gives me a sense of pride, belonging and the satisfaction that comes with being employed that I’d been missing. It’s been awesome for my self esteem, working for a company that respects me, that is flexible around what I want from a job, as much as what they need from a worker.