Succeed as a contract labourer - PART 1

Having recently left the Labour Hire industry after a varied thirteen year stretch, I felt I might be able to pass on a few pointers. This is a sincere attempt to help new starters in the industry and have a laugh. Some points are very obvious but they are all sound principles and make life easier when followed.

I refer to myself as an industrial cleaner. I do the dirtiest, most difficult, uncomfortable and tedious jobs that companies can't, or won’t, get their own employees to do. There is no shame in taking up this slack. I made a great deal of money doing ‘leftover’ work. There’s other perks too if you’re willing to play the game. Here’s how:

(If you don’t like strong language, do not continue reading. Delicate natured people aren’t a good fit for this particular industry anyway so I’ve just saved you a great deal of time.)

Everyone hates the first day of work. You don’t know anyone, you can't find anything and nobody will help you out. Well, get used to it, Contract Labour Hire will consist of hundreds of first days. You’ll need to prove yourself again and again and again. You’ll have to learn how to tolerate all types of weirdo’s. You’ll need to effortlessly change your duties on the boss’s whim without showing annoyance. If you’re still with me after that, read on.

Don't be a brown-noser. You won’t get any respect from bosses or other employees following that path.

Be assertive. Don't accept abuse or other demoralizing tactics commonly aimed at labour hire employees. You decide how to deal with this type of problem in your own way. Being friendly and helpful and doing your job will help you avoid this situation. Your work and attitude should speak for you. If that doesn’t impress your employer, move on. There’s always another job.

The dead-shits who have preceded you into this line of work, are the reason you will face a lot of negativity when you start a job. I define dead-shits as the group of people who float from one company to the next, stealing and bludging and causing trouble. Employers now automatically expect you will be the same until you prove them wrong. Make your boss think there’s still a few of us left who are trustworthy and hard working.

(See - Succeed as a contract labourer - PART 2)