Pickwick was recently invited to present at the National Jobactive Forum held in Melbourne. The event brought together leaders of organisations that seek to help those out of work find meaningful employment. The Forum was organised by the Australian Government’s Department of Employment which is responsible for national policies and programmes that help Australians find and keep employment and work in safe, fair and productive workplaces. The Department is implementing a new business model which will be officially launched on 1st July.

Having been invited to present at the event by business partner Direct Recruitment, Pickwick Victorian State Manager Tim Broatch gave a presentation on their long and successful relationship in recruiting staff, many of whom are long-term unemployed, parents returning to work and mature aged workers. Tim commented “The most pleasing thing for me is seeing people going on to have long careers at Pickwick with some reaching supervisory positions.” He added “We have placed a lot of good people who have been out of employment for a variety of reasons at high profile client sites such as Cary Grammar and more recently Deakin University. Having them gain confidence and prosper with our company culture is most rewarding.”

As part of the Forum Tim participated in a panel discussion to answer questions from those present. “Hearing from other employers such as McDonalds and gaining insights from leaders of training organisations too was invaluable” he says.

Sometimes our CEO Ken Holder offers practical assistance! Ken was in Sydney late April visiting existing and prospective clients. Upon returning to the NSW branch later in the day he happened to notice a tyre on a vehicle in the carpark owned by one of Pickwick’s office staff was flat. Removing his jacket and tie he got down and dirty in the drizzle to change the wheel. NSW State Manager Nicholas Jenkinson couldn’t resist the opportunity to grab a photo. Nick later joked “We have all heard the adage ‘He’s from Head Office and here to help’ which no one believes. Well at least on this occasion Ken did!”

In March Pickwick’s client The Village in Mt Gravatt, Brisbane and managed through LaSalle Investment Management held its annual Holden Car Enthusiast show. The 5,000 plus crowd was drawn to an array of vintage and top of the line Holden cars. Pickwick worked alongside the client and the event organisers to ensure that the day was a success. Our cleaners received excellent feedback from the tenants ensuring the centre looked its best at all time. Well done team on a great day.

One of our long standing employees recently scooped the jackpot at the Melbourne Cup sweepstakes at Inala Health in Brisbane where she works. Zoila Butzelaar has continued the tradition of the old saying “Third Time Lucky” by winning the mystery trifecta with a $3 bet. Her winnings tallied close to $1,000 which will come in handy prior to Christmas.

Adding to this, Zoila recently became a first time grandmother, she is about to celebrate 10 years with Pickwick, and was nominated by her Client Service Manager for a Building Services Contractor Association of Australia (BSCAA) award. Though she unfortunately didn’t win, the acknowledgement alone was great recognition of her loyal and dedicated work to Pickwick. So yet again, it appears that 3 is a lucky number for this lady!