29 years later and Cairo is still loving his work
CAIRO PODHAM’S father saw the name of Egypt’s most famous city in a book and thought it sounded alright, so when his son came along, that’s the name he got.
And just as that famous trading hub on the Nile River has stood the test of centuries, so too has Dubbo’s own Cairo shown he’s a stayer having worked at Fletcher International for almost three decades.
“Probably around 29 years ago I started in the boning room as a boner, I didn’t really like that, I wasn’t suited to it, so I moved to load-out, then to chilled load-out and then to the gatehouse – this is the best job I’ve ever had,” Cairo told Dubbo Photo News.
“Before here I was working on properties, driving around catching sheep, mulesing sheep – anything to do with sheep, we did it. It meant travelling away all the time so it was no good. It was also very seasonal, too. But at Fletcher’s, you’ve got a job every day, every day it’s there and you just turn up and it’s good.
“It’s the best job I’ve ever had. If it’s raining I’m still working so I’m still getting paid,” he said.
Seasonal employment has long been the mainstay of regional jobs in many cases, but with that comes uncertainty of work and concerns about the longevity of performing hard physical labour day-in, day-out.
“If Fletchers wasn’t here I don’t know what I’d be doing and I’d be too old to be catching sheep.
“It’s a very important industry for Dubbo because there’s plenty of people like me,” Cairo said.
“I could probably do this job until I was 70 if I’ve still got my health – and I’m working on keeping my health!”
He says he appreciates the work ethos instilled in the company culture, and the fact that employees know that management is working with them and for them, for the best outcomes all round.
“Fletcher’s looks after you, and if you look after them you’ve got a job until you don’t want it anymore. That’s the way it is, it’s a good company and that’s very important because if they weren’t here there’d be a lot of people without work, definitely,” Cairo said.
“Once you’ve got your foot in the door, there’s always opportunity to go further up the ladder if you apply yourself.
“That’s the beauty of the job: there’s opportunities there to improve yourself and get better and better,” he said.
Cairo has noticed many changes in the nearly three decades he’s worked at the plant, but above all he appreciates the visionary strategies of company director Roger Fletcher, a bloke he believes is always looking at least 10 years ahead.
“Fletcher’s is looking further down the road for other opportunities to try and expand, it’s cementing the jobs already here,” Cairo said, pointing out that the new operations such as the grain terminal and freight rail interchange have injected a huge amount of confidence into the workforce.
“I’ve seen a lot of people come and go but a lot are still here. (I work with) a lot of good blokes and there’s good morale at the plant and it’s improving all the time,” Cairo said.
“That’s the way they work, they try and look after you and if you’re not happy where you are, well, when the opportunity comes, they’ll transfer you to another place.
“I love it, there’s always something going on, with different people coming and going. Anybody who comes through the gate that wants a job, if you apply yourself, you’ll be right – you’ve just got to apply yourself,” he recommended.