The first thing you notice when working at Amazon is that teamwork and safety are the number one priorities.

Fil has been working with Amazon since September, here is his story…

“For 17 years I worked for the an airline in Brisbane and over those 17 years I became part of the furniture at the Brisbane Domestic Airport Terminal as a guest services coordinator. I would work with customers all day, checking them in and helping them out if they missed their flight - that was my little world. It all changed when COVID-19 hit.

After being given a redundancy, I spent the first five weeks homeschooling the kids. When that finished up and I had to look for work, it really hit me - 17 years of my life had just come to a screeching halt. I’m not someone who can just sit around, so I knew I was going to have to find a new job.

One day I was waiting for my wife in the car while she was shopping and was scrolling through job ads. I saw a full-time role at Amazon advertised and applied straight away. There was a wave of relief when I got the job!

The first thing you notice when working at Amazon is that teamwork and safety are the number one priorities. It is emphasised every single day, especially around COVID safety. We all understand that if one of us was to get it, it could impact us all. We work as a team to help make sure that does not happen.

The teamwork and the systems in place here are phenomenal. For so many packages to smoothly be, picked, packed and sent… it’s actually a sight to behold when it’s in full swing.

During busy periods, you can see the team really pull together to make sure we are working efficiently and effectively, so that customers get their orders as quickly as possible. It’s an all-in effort and it’s actually great to be a part of.

People ask me what I miss most about working for the airline. I think it’s the team there and also interacting with customers face-to-face! There are a few former team members here at Amazon that also transitioned across with me from the airlines and it’s good to have them here as they can relate really well to the experience I’ve had.

I can see myself being with Amazon for a long time. I love learning everything I can about my job and training myself up for what could come next. I can see a clear path for career progression and that’s really important to me. I also really love the open-door policy here. For instance, if you have a new idea on how to improve a system or suggestion on an alternative way of doing something, you have the freedom to approach the managers and they are very willing to listen.

One big change for me has been my work-life balance. I was getting up at 2am for my old job and it wasn’t great for my sleep. Nowadays, I start work at 8 am and I feel much more energised. My work-life balance has definitely improved since being here.

Looking back on my time at the airline, my role was to make sure passengers had a good experience and got to their destination on time. Well, my role at Amazon is similar in a way. We are all really committed to making sure that every customer has a great experience and that their package arrives safe and sound. That’s something we take a lot of pride in here at the Brissy fulfilment centre.”