Mum, bless her, was always a somewhat dominating influence and so having completed my apprenticeship I was setting my sights set on a long and happy career with NZED – I was already studying the gazette for future jobs.
However Mum had other ideas! On one of my regular weekend trips home to Manurewa Mum said now that you are qualified it is time for you to go and learn something else! I was, I think 21 at the time.
What! Not likely – I am now a tradesman – I am skilled !!
Needless to say my protestations got me nowhere. Mum had decided that I should go for an interview for an office based job, and even arranged for this to happen that weekend!
There was no backing out.
I therefore presented myself for interview that Saturday afternoon at Alcan Industries with Mel Beaton(who was to become my next boss. )
Whilst not originally enamoured with the job of Sales Administrator as the interview progressed I felt that this might be fun, in fact more than fun.
If I got it (there we about 6 applicants all of similar age) it would mean no more overalls, I would be wearing collar and tie to work each day and we didn't start work till 9 a.m. Each day!
What rapture.
What I think encouraged me most was that one of the questions on the 6 page application form was 'What salary do you require to come and work for us?'
As a recently qualified govt trained apprentice this threw me somewhat – never having had any such option before.
So I asked what I should do. I was told that the figure I nominated was just one of the things to go into the mix of deciding the best candidate. If too much could rule me out altogether, to low probably the same. But no chance of ever complaining about insufficient salary.!
Please remember three months earlier I had been on an apprentice wage, this had doubled once qualified and here I was being asked to nominate a salary.
Mel said look simply ask for 20% more than you are getting at the moment! Just think about the figures for a moment. The actual figures don't really mean much any more but it effectively meant that If successful I would be getting almost 3 times what I was earning 3 months earlier. And yes I got the job ahead of all the other applicants,
I then had the unenviable task of resigning from NZED, leaving behind all the other technicians and all the 'hopes and dreams' for the future.
So back home to Manurewa and the family home – we built a sleep-out for me in the back yard from the standard NZED single men's quarters plans,(of which I had a copy of course) into which I had a fridge, 2 beds, an office desk and a workbench.
Rob and Sue were still in the house with Mum and Dad,
At this stage I was still using my good old Morris 8 car, but while I had been with NZED I had been lent out for work experience with John Henderson's in Newmarket. and they used Morris Minor vans in their fleet of vehicles and ever since then I had yearned to have one of my own.
This I did – forthwith!
Whilst not new when I bought it I kept if for probably 20 years and still have photo of it on my wall.
I started work at 9 a.m. each morning a couple of kilometres away so although I could have walked I usually took the van.
The company provided lunch and we finished for the day at 4.30 p.m.
My siblings regarded this as Warwick's part time job.
I was in a nice warm comfortable office, had my own secretary, gave dictation, dealt with customers over the phone and was responsible for the detailed analysis of sales all over the world.
I also processed orders large and small. So although 'not on the road' which is what I aspired to, I was largely the face of the company for many customers.
As a company man, I was regularly late away home, went into the office on Saturdays etc.
They also allowed me to take paid time off to help with Southwell Operas
Socially I fitted right back into my pre Hamilton days, so much so that quite often people did not realise I had even been away – having a much better vehicle also helped.
I somehow got involved in motor sport around this time.
I belonged to both Auckland Car Club, Northern Sports Car Club, did timing at Pukekohe, and competed in trials throughout the area.
It didn't take long to realise that the van's 4.5 Gal petrol tank was far to small I then had a special 25 gal (something over 100 ltr) tank made and fitted.
These days, of course, this would be regarded as a modification requiring a complete recertification of the whole vehicle!
The look on the face of garage attendants when told to just fill er up was a joy to behold. Two of us, Peter and I had girlfriends in Wellington and a weekend jaunt was to take the (good reliable) van driving through the night on a Friday, spending the next two days with the girls and then driving back home through the Sunday night and going straight to work on the Monday morning.
We used to take Peter's brother Tony with us as the extra driver and thus the practice of driving for an hour, sleep for two hours has stood us in good stead throughout the years. The special size mattress in the back made all this a breeze. By our standards anyway.
We went everywhere in that van. Michael and I did a trip throughout the South Island while I was in Auckland and we all went down to Oamaru to do checkpoints for the North Otago Car Club 1st ever week long trial.
During this time I did the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) test but have no record of just how well I did.
Although now an Office Wallah, I maintained my interest in the electrical industry, attended the monthly meetings of NZ Institute of Electricians and continued to subscribe to the magazine.
This proved to be fortuitous to say the least.
One month there was an advert calling for a ' Young well qualified single man prepared to travel extensively throughout New Zealand. advising customers on their electrical instrumentation requirements.
The minimum qualification required are having been trained in the armed services or Govt. Departments, having passed all necessary exams and also competent in preparing written quotes, undertaking sales analysis and generally dealing with customers.'
BINGO.
To me at 21 or 22 this looked to have been almost written just for me.
Needless to say I applied.
The assistant manager flew up from Christchurch to interview me, at which time he explained that their Instrumentation Specialist, (for that read Brain Box) was looking for a younger leg man to take some of the travelling load off him.
I must have made some impression as they then wanted me in Christchurch ASAP for an in depth interview (which they paid for).
I took a Friday off work to give me the whole weekend in Christchurch.
I went down on a Thursday night stayed in Cokers Hotel and presented myself for this in depth interview next morning.
George had this 10 page list of technical questions he wanted to ask me (after all they needed someone with in depth knowledge) and he apologised for that while confirming that as he was getting older he needed someone to take the countrywide travelling load off him a bit. This sounded good to me.
Once he got to the end of the first page of this questionnaire (and I had answered them all – probably somewhat fully-) he said there is no point in continuing with this - when can you start?
But not so quick.
I wanted to know Salary (this 20% increase was another good start)
Would I get a company car – yes it's in the garage over the road I can show you
As an Aucklander I needed to know that I would get back to Auckland with some regularity.
Yes we will see you get to Auckland at least twice a year! (Yeah right it turned out it was more like twice a month! Mum left me with my own key and bed always made up.)
I also explained that my current boss was going to be away all January and I had already agreed to cover for him, and then we would need more hand over time once he returned – so we agreed on a start date of the next March 1st.
The next day I drove the rental car over the Summit Road and said to myself 'this will do me' a decision I have never regretted.
I then had another horrible job of resigning from a job I loved ,
Mel was most understanding and explained that he had been going to 'put me on the road' the next year – knowing that was what I really wanted.
Naturally I continued to give my all both while he was overseas on holiday and after he came back
I then had to wrap up the projects I was involved with before I left.
One such was installing lights at Jellicoe Park Tennis Club, of which all the family were members. Probably unwisely and ignoring all the policies of NZED I had a ladder fully extended to the top of a round pole when – yes you guessed it – I fell heavily onto the hard surface landing on my bum – then unable to move.
The boys loaded me into the good old reliable morris minor van and rushed me to hospital. Where I was eventually diagnosed with a broken pelvis.
It was not able to be plastered so I would be laid up for at least a month!
Remember I was supposed to be starting a new job down south in about that time.
Once again Alcan came to the party.
Although I had already resigned they kept me on the payroll and paid me until I was to be back on my feet.
My Christchurch job was also therefore put back a month or so Once I could walk again I went back to work and even remember that after my official send off I still had to go back to my office to sign some letters. Dedication?