Crystal Stanbury was a self-described tomboy growing up, with a keen interest in trucks – but it never occurred to her to drive them for a living.
The Adelaide woman was working in admin when she decided she’d like a change, and one day her partner’s dad mentioned that he used to work for Hanson Australia.
“He said it was a pretty good job, so I thought – why not give it a go?” she told Big Rigs.
Crystal then applied to become a driver through Hanson’s Trainee Driver Program, and ended up being one of five new starters at the company in May last year.
Hanson paid for her to get her heavy rigid licence before she headed out in the truck, with more experienced drivers showing her the ropes until she was given the green light to go it alone.
“It was a big help that they paid for my licence, because it’s quite a lot of money,” she said.
“The other drivers were also great at answering my questions – if they didn’t know the answer, they would point me to the right person.
“That helped me to do my job better.”
The 23-year-old now drives a concrete agitator, making deliveries from the Hanson plant to customers throughout the Adelaide area.
During her training, she visited different sites with her mentor drivers, which has stood to her in her work.
“That was great, because I got to meet all the concrete batchers and learn how to get loaded at different locations,” she said.
“Some of them had screens where you could see if you had done it correctly, while others had a mark on the ground where you had to park yourself.
“They were all different, so it was good to see how each place worked.”
She’s loving her job so far and said every day is different.
“You never know where you are going to go or who you are going to meet, which makes the job interesting.
“I think it’s the coolest thing ever.”
Although she is very happy in her role, she has thought about upgrading her licence in the future.
“I just take every day as it comes, but one day I might like to drive a semi,” she added.
Despite being a minority as a young female driver, Crystal finds Hanson to be a respectful workplace.
“I get along with everyone and they treat me with respect,” she said.
“They shouldn’t have to change the way they do things because of my gender.
“Being a female in this industry, I don’t want to be treated differently – I just want to be treated fairly.”
Sharing her advice to other young people who might like to get into the industry, she said: “Don’t be scared. You might think you need to be really tough to work as a truckie, particularly for a concrete company – but just give it a go.”
To learn more about current traineeship opportunities at Hanson, visit hanson.com.au, or contact one of the company’s regional offices.