We are- Nº8

P E O P L E S 15 P E O P L E S vous and somewhat uncomfortable. It seemed odd that they acted natu- rally, not surprised at all, even though I was. Later, when I had been intro- duced, I was assigned to work with Victor, my colleague, whom I want to say hello from here. Everything was quite normal, we began to talk and I felt that I was integrated. They took good care of me. After I completed my first day of work, I got a call from Human Resources and they told me that if anything happened, the door was always open. Nothing has ever happened, however. Did you ever feel discriminated at work or have you experienced any uncomfortable situation? No, everything is very normal. I have not witnessed any discrimination and everyone has tried to make me feel part of the team. I am just one more employee who performs her job. I have always been treated with res- pect, nothing strange has ever ha- ppened and they have always made things easier for me, not because I’m a woman, but because I have been working there for a short time and they want me to be part of the team. How long have you been working at the company? Four months and I hope that I work here for a very long time because I am very happy. I work hard and I think that my bosses are happy with me. So, let’s see what happens. I am particularly happy with my colleagues and want to thank them. What does your job at the com- pany entail? How is your day-to- day work? We work in rotating shifts. For exam- ple, the morning shift starts at 6:40 a.m. Before we start to work, we change clothes and put on our work clothes. We drink coffee and talk. We then collect the work instructions and the list of tasks for the day and are as- signed to a team. We then go out to the streets to do our jobs. The driver and a worker always work together. I am the worker and we go on the truck to the sites where the boss has sent us. We load water and begin to clean. We lift the sewer grids, change them and clean with them with pressurized water hoses. We lift the lids and I check if the water flows through the entire sewer. We take a 20-minute break for lunch, have a sandwich at the nearest cafe- teria and continue working until the end of the working day. Can you tell us any story about anything that happened at the company? Yes, I remember the summer months and the flooding. I remember going from Santa Isabel to Parque Grande removing the sewer grids since all the drain holes were clogged with leaves because of the great amount of rain. Even though our work clothes are wa- terproof, we were soaked that day but I felt happy with my work. Work on those days was quite hard. Another anecdote has to do with the fact that I am a woman. One day, we were cleaning with a pressurized wa- ter hose and I was wearing my uni- form cap, I heard an elderly person who was looking at us as we worked, say to another man: “Look at that chap; he looks like a young woman.” I thought it was funny and laughed but said nothing. Why do you think that no women ever worked before in the sewer service? I do not think we have to look for anything strange. I assume that so- ciety was not prepared for this, but things have evolved. Thank God that News published in the newspaper Periódico de Aragón society has evolved and now we have the possibility of working at any job. Often, women are the ones who have a closed mind and don’t take a chan- ce. I went to the job interview with an open mind and willing to do anything. When they asked me if I was willing to work at the sewers I doubted for a minute, but I quickly said yes and I think that’s the reason I’m still working here. I would like to encourage other women to go with an open mind. We are capable of doing anything. What does your husband think about your job? He always tells me that he is proud of me and that I can do anything. I believe him. I say this because this is how I feel. Why not? I have gone down to sewer wells, nothing special about that. What are your aspirations in the company? I am quite happy. I signed up for dri- ving lessons since, thanks to the com- pany, this is free and, after getting my driver’s license, I want to get a license for driving a truck. Maybe someday I will be driving a large truck.