Graduate Health & Safety Consultant at Alcoa Australia at Alcoa Australia
Where did you grow up? Important stages of your life (school, education, experience abroad, jobs etc.)
I grew up in Perth and attended John Septimus Roe Anglican Community School from pre-primary to year 12. I graduated from JSR in 2012 and started studying at Curtin University in 2013. I completed a Summer Vacation Program at Woodside which was a great introduction to the oil and gas industry. After the program, I started my first full-time job as a Hygiene Consultant flying in and out of mine sites across Western Australia. I spent my time travelling around South East Asia, North America and South America.
How did you get to your current job position? For how long have you had it?
I knew that FIFO wasn’t a sustainable career option for me and I wanted to utilise my HSE degree so I started applying for graduate programs. I received a few job offers however I chose Alcoa due to their renowned Graduate program which offered on the job training at a refinery with no FIFO work. I’ve been working at Alcoa’s Wagerup Refinery since January 2019.
How did you choose your specialisation (compared to others)? / Were you weighing up any other alternatives before choosing this specialisation?
I studied Surveying during my first year of University because I enjoyed math and wanted to work in diverse environments. By second semester I knew Surveying wasn’t for me so I started researching alternative career options with the aim of finding a career that I could impact peoples lives in a positive manner. I narrowed my search down to two options, nursing or HSE. I chose HSE because it can be applied to multiple industries and every day I’ll be faced with new challenges that I can overcome with the overall aim to improve the working environment for employees and contractors.
What was your interview process like? What kind of questions were you asked?
The interview process was slightly different as I was working on-site during the scheduled interview dates, so I had a phone interview. There were four professionals on the panel, a recruiter and three Health & Safety Managers. The panel asked me a series of both behavioural and technical questions. A couple of weeks later I was asked to complete psychometric testing at Chandler Mcleod in Perth. I was then invited to meet a recruiter and the Wagerup Health & Safety Manager in person, this was a casual meeting and not an interview. The final stage was a pre-employment medical before I was offered the job.
Alcoa is one of the world’s largest alumina producers, we mine bauxite which is then refined to alumina and shipped to be smelted into aluminium.
What are your areas of responsibility?
During this first year of the Graduate program, I’ve been learning about the Bayer Process and the role and responsibilities of a Health & Safety Consultant. Some of my responsibilities include facilitating incident investigations, reviewing and signing off High-Risk work permits and imperfect isolations, assisting in the development of fatality prevention projects and advising managers, employees and contractors on the company and Australian regulatory body standards and regulations.
Can you describe a typical workday? What was the last thing you worked on?
A typical day starts with a 5 AM wake up and off to the gym, driving an hour to work and arriving for a 7:30 AM start. The Health & Safety Department have morning meetings on Monday and Friday to discuss safety incidents, current projects and any issues members of the team are facing that need to be resolved. After the morning meeting, my tasks vary depending on what has occurred the previous day and the type of support I need to provide to the operational centres. This can include facilitating incident investigations, to completing risk assessments. The afternoon is usually spent completing field verifications out in the refinery and scheduling appointments for the next day before finishing work at 3:30 PM. My afternoons are spent winding down, cooking and preparing for the next day.
What are the career prospects with your job? / Where could you or others in your position go from here?
As a Graduate Health & Safety Consultant the next step in my career is to apply for a Health & Safety Consultant position and work my way up to a Senior Health & Safety Consultant position then Health & Safety Manager.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Yes, Alcoa has previously employed Health & Safety Consultants with a background in operations who have become Safety Representatives and shown a keen interest in health and safety.
What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now?
If I wasn’t working at Alcoa I would have accepted another Graduate offer and be working as a Health & Safety Graduate in another industry such as construction.
What do you love the most about your job? Which kind of task do you enjoy the most?
I love working in a refinery because every day I’m faced with a new problem to solve. The tasks I complete are so diverse which keeps it interesting.
What’s the biggest limitation of your job? Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Do you have to work on weekends? Are stress levels high?
The biggest limitation of my job is lacking operational experience, almost every day I learn something new, whether it’s learning more about the Bayer Process or learning the critical steps to a high-risk task in order to better understand how to implement critical controls.
There is no weekend work involved for my job and so far it hasn’t been stressful however over the next couple of years as my responsibilities increase I’m sure this will change.
Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student? They don’t necessarily have to be related to your role or even be career-focused.