Fix Breakdowns
Newcastle Herald
Thursday June 28, 2001
TO be an NRMA road service patrolman you need to be much more than a mobile mechanic.
Bruce Putnam has been involved with NRMA road service in various capacities for 20 years and believes the job is as much about having the right skills as it is about having the right attitude.
`Not only must you be prepared to deal with any mechanical situation, you need to be understanding,' Mr Putnam said.
`You need to be able to put yourself in the member's shoes. Some of the situations can be very stressful for them, while others are simply embarrassing.'
Mr Putnam is a senior patrolman at the Morisset branch of the NRMA, where they are seeking an applicant with the right qualifications.
He said the job offered many rewards, but the greatest was personal satisfaction in the knowledge you just helped somebody.
`To be able to get paid to simply help people is amazing,' he said.
Mr Putnam said it could sometimes be as simple as a flat tyre or even someone trying to start an automatic car that was in the wrong gear, but you had to be prepared for all instances.
`You aren't meeting people under their best personal circumstances.
`Often they are in a rush, like they need to pick up their kids.
`You must be an understanding and an unbiased adviser.
`If you can't fix their car immediately, you need to be able to give them unbiased and educated advice on what their best course of action would be.
`You can't be doing it for the money, your number one priority must be to help the member in whatever way you can with the resources you have.'
Mr Putnam said patrolmen were hard to find because the position was so specialised.
Often hard and unforgiving, but personally it was so rewarding to help people as a job.
Applicants must be a qualified and experienced mechanic.
It is also essential that they are able to work from the Westlakes area because after-hours services are from home.
If you think you have the right stuff contact Jeff on 0408 225356 between 8am and 6pm weekdays to apply.
© 2001 Newcastle Herald
