Badger Galore
Staying ‘Up Over’ for a while.
Induction Pt 2.
So...today I had to again meet the Librarian at 8.30 am but today we were to go to Warwick for the rest of our Induction programme. We were to be given a car to get to Warwick but the Librarian was unsure whether she was able to come with Jenny and I as there might not be room. At this news I wondered what kind of car we might be going in if there was only room for two and as it turned out she was talking about a Ute (Utility Vehicle). All three of us went over to the Council Offices and we were ushered through the glass security doors into the Corridors of Power. We were introduced and greeted, again, far more effusively than you would expect someone who was just going to work for 6 hours a week might expect. As the Ute was not sufficient for our needs we were given the Councillor's car as it was not booked out for today."Am I looking for a Rolls Royce?" I asked the Librarian as I was first out into the car park."Sadly, no," was the reply.It was quite nice car, I don't know what make it was but it was silver and looked Councillor-ish. The Librarian popped the boot as we were taking some books for theLibrary in Warwick with us. The boot was empty except for a Light Sabre."Heck! The Councillor is a Jedi Knight!" I exclaimed. "How cool is that? It's good to know 'The Force' is with us on this Council."I sat in the back for the trip to Warwick just to see what traveling was like for Councillors/Jedi Knights. As soon as the engine started the radio came on and some tacky Breakfast Show hosts were discussing the best way to use toilet paper which kind of ruined the Councillor/Jedi Knight vibe a bit.It was a smooth trip and the Librarian stuck to 80 kph even though the speed limit was 100 kph, but that's Librarians all over for you. Everybody was overtaking us but I resisted giving them the Royal wave from the back.Our day started in the Warwick Library meeting the staff there and then we had a meeting with the Human Resources Officer. We were waiting in the Video Conferencing Room and this huge bloke in came in with a battered flask and dirty Eski (Cool box), wearing a fluorescent jacket and labourer's clothes which I thought was unusual attire for a Human Resources Officer but hey, this is Australia.As it turned out this was Pete, and he was not actually a Human Resources Officer but the new Backhoe driver for Waste and Water department. He was having the Induction too. I nodded politely at first as if I knew what a Backhoe was but the more it was mentioned the more I wanted to know what it was."Sorry what's a Backhoe?" I asked, just like a Casual Librarian who never gets his hands mucky. It turns out I did know what one was but I call it a JCB. Pete was hoping he was getting a new one. It turns out the new ones have a coffee machine inside the cab."Well, it's a 'pommie' machine" he said "and they need something to keep them warm."Our talk by the Human Resources Officer was very interesting and she told us all about Council and the hierarchy and what was expected of us and what we could expect from them. Much of it did not apply to Jenny and I as were only Casual Librarians of only a few hours a week.The issue of the random drug testing reared it's head again."That will be interesting," said Pete. "They were going to do that down on the Gold Coast until they realised that if they did they would end up with no Council workers at all."Jenny and I gasped slightly, as you would expect Casual Librarians to do at hearing such shocking news.After the H.R Officer in came an Expenditure Officer. We were told she was the most important person in the building as she was the one who sorted out the pay.She was lovely and very efficient and reminded me of Susan Boyle but with the brains of Carol Vorderman. Her chat was interrupted by the CEO who was ushered in to meet us.The CEO introduced himself and asked our names and shook our hands and welcomed us to our new jobs. He was keen to know if we had any preconceptions about working for a Council but we hadn't. The Council has been through many changes since he took over two years ago and before we met him we had heard he was dynamic and hands on. He wants to meet with us again in a few months to see, as newbies, how we have found beginning our new roles with the Council...yes, even two lowly Casual Librarians and a Backhoe driver matter to this CEO. Surely he was Jedi too!The Expenditure Officer continued her chat after The Jedi Master left and then Jenny and I left for a bit as she had a bit more to talk to Pete about. He was full time, he was getting a mobile phone and he potentially had a coffee machine in his cab. Yes, Pete was a lucky bastard!.....sorry, that's not very Librarian-ish is it? I still have much to learn.Out in the corridor along comes the Health and Safety Coordinator from yesterday with one of his colleagues."Steve, this is Nick. He's new but we have to watch him as he gets up to a bit of mischief."I feel I am getting a bit of reputation in this new job before I've even got started. The Librarian appeared again and took us into the bowels of the building to meet someone else who gushed over our appointments as very Casual Librarians. I found out that I am the first male Librarian in the area for 20 years."Times they are a changing" I said. "Why is that? Have you not had men apply for jobs before?""Oh, we have," I was told, "they just haven't been successful."Back up in the Video Conferencing Room we met an I.T Officer who chatted about the Internet and Intranet and he took our photo for our new I.D badges."Jenny, does my hair look OK? " I asked before I had mine taken.We waited for our new badges and were free to return in the Councillor's/Jedi Knight's car. I let Jenny sit in the back for the return trip.Back at the Library in Stanthorpe I asked the staff on duty today if they had ever been in the Councillor's car. They hadn't."We have" I smirked, "and guess what we found in the boot? A light sabre.....The Councillor is a Jedi Knight!"Jenny starts next Monday I have to wait until my Police Check comes through. Hopefully it will before next Tuesday when I am due to start...unless someone discovers that body....oops!
Induction Pt 1.
So...today I was at my first induction morning. I met the Librarian at 8.30 am and was taken over to the Council Offices to the same room where I did my 15 minute test before my interview. There I met Jenny, the other successful candidate for the post of Casual Library Officer...(very 'casual' as Jenny noted dryly upon the minimal hours we will be called upon.)We spent about 90 minutes with the Council's Health and Safety Coordinator taking us through all things to do with Health and Safety. I used to be Health and Safety Coordinator at my school in England so it was all nothing new to me.We were told that we are responsible for our own safety and that of others,"So Nick if you see that the power cord to the photocopier is frayed you need to report it or Jenny may come along to use it and end up in hospital.""I'm sorry Jenny" I said, " I won't do it again."When discussing the Drugs and Alcohol Policy I discovered I might be randomly tested for you are, apparently, not allowed to be drunk in charge of books."We have strict procedures in place, " said the Coordinator, "because Jenny might report you Nick, suspecting that she can smell alcohol on your breath, but it might just be that she has a grudge against you so we have to ensure against that.""She is probably still not over the photocopier incident" I said.When talking about risk assessments..."Perhaps Nick might, as a joke remove, a wheel from Jenny's computer chair, and Jenny not being one to sit carefully down but rather she throws herself into it's comfort and with her chair being so close to the top of a staircase, what do you think the likelihood is of injury?"'Pretty certain' we decided."And what could be the consequences.""Catastrophic" I said...adding" It's not looking like I am going to be in this job very long is it?"We were supposed to viewing most of the information on PowerPoint presentations but the room we were in did not have internet connection and the Coordinator couldn't get the mobile hotspot to work.I tried to pay close attention to it all but I was distracted by a display of tacky gifts, obviously presented to the local authority from visitors around the world. There were a pair of gaudily decorated wooden Llamas and a wooden pig, a Chinese paper umbrella and a couple of Japanese Fans and a few other trinkets that you would not even look twice at a jumble sale.The rest of the morning was spent over at the Library. We were shown around all the different sections. Do you know you can even borrow jigsaws? Heck! How do we check if all the pieces come back?I did find one book, in passing, out of place upon the shelf and correctly placed it and was able to assist one customer in finding the latest from Wilbur Smith, "Pharaoh" and he was most grateful.The Coordinator appeared with some laminated 'H&S Induction Completed' cards and said to the Librarian.."You need to watch this one" nodding at me, "he gets up to allsorts of mischief!"It seems I cannot be rostered as yet as it is gong to take sometime for my police check to come through as I have been in three different places in the last five years but when I do I shall be doing Tuesday mornings and alternate Saturdays....plus covering for others who are sick or on holiday.There seems to be a lot to take in but I am sure I will be able to cope with it.