How Gus found himself a second job through his community connections

Gus Reichelt has worked at the CSIRO as a part-time Research Technician since 2019, the year after he finished year 12. He works 15 hours a week and is paid Award wages. But this isn’t enough income for a man in his twenties with a goal to move out of the family home, especially in Canberra’s housing market.

In this presentation, Gus and his father, Ronny, will tell how Gus found himself a second part-time job through his patronage of a local men’s hairdressing salon. They’ll describe how his employers have worked with Gus and Ronny first to determine Gus’s interest in and commitment to the role and then to customise his training and duties.

Transcript

Gus

Hello. I am 22 years old. I live at home with mum and dad and two siblings.

I like playing tennis and going to the gym, and I love singing karaoke at home. I love visiting my grandparents. I enjoy my cooking. I like playing board games.

I finished year 12 in 2018. Now I have two part-time jobs. I started work at CSIRO in 2019. I got the job because someone in the workplace knew I could do it. I am a Research Technician. I work five mornings a week from 9 to 12. I wear a white lab coat like the scientists. I collect dirty glassware from the scientists. I clean it in a dishwasher, and then I put it in an autoclave. Then I take the clean glassware back to the scientists to use in their experiments.

I like working at CSIRO where I get to see everyone and have tea and some snacks. But I only work at the CSIRO for 15 hours a week. I need more money to get my own place.

I started going to Martino’s to get my hair cut. I got on really well with the owners, Joe and Tony. They are great people.

Last year, they asked if I would like to work with them. It made me feel so proud. I am a Barber’s Assistant, and I work six hours a week. Here are some of my jobs: I clean up after a haircut, and I keep the shop neat and tidy. I get hot towels and other things for the barbers. I welcome the customers and ask them if they would like a coffee. I restock the products. There are lots of products.

Joe and Tony want me to learn lots of jobs so that I can be a great assistant. They teach me skills at work, then I practice those skills at home. At the moment, I am learning to take payments and mix hair colours.

I like going out to get coffee for the customers. I like chatting to people. I like learning new things. I like wearing good clothes and looking great.

So in my future I would like to move into my own place, meet more people my age. I have a girlfriend (her name’s Brianna), and get married, and have a great life.

This is what I would like other people with disability to know: it’s good to work, makes me feel so proud. It is good to have money (I love money so much). You meet lots of great people when you go to work, okay. And now I would like to introduce my dad, the Rabbitohs supporter, Ronny Reichelt!

Ronny

My name’s Ronny. I’m Gus’s dad. I’m proud that Gus has so many valued roles. He’s a tennis player, gym member, singer, domestic god at home, research technician, barber’s assistant, and taxpayer. These are great roles to have as a young man in their twenties.

I’m also a taxpayer, alas, no longer in my twenties. I’m an engineering consultant, president of the Braddon Tennis Club, tennis player, gym member, yoga enthusiast, Bunnies supporter, but please don’t hold that against me, husband, and father of three.

My lovely wife, Jacki, sitting down there, and I have had a strong vision for all our children, aged between 16 to 24. We’ve encouraged them all to make their way in the world and contribute and learn and work hard. When people meet and get to know Gus, they discover he’s an enthusiastic learner, self-motivated, he has a great memory, especially for dates and upcoming events like birthdays.

He has a great sense of direction as well, he walks to work and also walked to school. He can do many tasks completely independently, but he thrives in the company of others. He knows how important it is to make himself understood. This motivates him to practise reading and working twice weekly with his communications mentor. He’s got a great sense of humour, as you all found out, and is also great company.

Today, I am going to expand on what Gus told you about his second job. It’s largely a story about Gus and many accomplishments which have happened in spite of the low expectations that others have had of him.

And, it’s a story that’s happened because Gus lives in the mainstream world. As you’ve seen from his presentation, Gus found himself a second job through his community connections. You could say that Gus got himself a second job because of his beard. Let me explain.

Good grooming is so important, especially for young people with disability, especially working in a professional environment like the CSIRO. Gus has decided to grow a beard, but had trouble maintaining it. It’s not age-appropriate for mum and dad to do your daily upkeep, so we started looking for a good local barber, because image is very important. We found Martino’s, Martino’s met all the criteria. They’re next to King O’Malley in the city. They’re close enough for Gus to walk to work. They offer quality hair services, and it turns out the owners, Joe and Tony, are really lovely people who have been part of the Canberra business community for the past 30 years.

We made an appointment, and they did a great job. So, Gus continued going by himself for a haircut and beard trim every month. About the fourth appointment, Joe asked Gus if he’d be interested in helping them out. Gus said yes, so Joe asked to meet both of us at the end of the day. I didn’t know about the conversation Gus had with Joe, so I thought, hmm, I wonder what this could be about. As you know, if somebody asks you to stay back, it’s never really good.

So, Joe told me that he’d been talking to Gus to see if he’d be interested in helping them out as a barber’s assistant. He wanted to know… basically, he wanted to know what Gus’s current commitments were and the times he might be available. I became aware that they actually didn’t know that Gus was already working with CSIRO. When they found out, they wanted to know what his duties were and more.

Joe and Tony explained to us that what they were looking for, and there was some of the criteria that they’re after, they made it clear that this wasn’t a tokenistic offering that met some sort of diversity or inclusion, they actually really needed somebody, because in the past they had previous barber’s assistants who they trained up and then left.

So they generally needed somebody to fill the role. Ideally, someone who would be loyal, and they didn’t want to put all the training in to see him leave. Joe and Tony proposed that Gus start on a paid probation period so that they could get to see whether it was a good fit for both parties. He could work three short sessions weekly, each session lasted 90 minutes long. That way Gus would learn what was expected of him, and Joe and Tony could get an idea of how Gus learnt.

As you can see, I wasn’t very much involved in the process at all. Basically, Gus got the job by himself because he had that pre-interview the four months beforehand, talking to them.

My only role in helping Gus to get the job were telling Joe and Tony about Gus’s job at CSIRO and what his duties were, helping them understand what his capabilities were, and assuring them that Gus could learn anything if he had the right training and support, and also establishing an open communication conduit.

Some of Gus’s initial duties was on that list, which they showed me a list…what’s a typical barber’s assistant and what they usually do. And then we went through it bit by bit, and we asked us, do you think you can manage to sweep the floor? Yep. Tick. Can you manage to wipe down here from shoulders? Yep. Tick, and so on. So the majority of the duties on that list, yeah, Gus was capable of doing straight away, if not with further training.

Joe and Tony enlisted the help of a former barber’s assistant called Julio, which is pointing to him, which was a natural support because he knew exactly what was required, and what training was needed.

After that, Joe and Tony took over the job… on the job training, which was no different to any other employee. We made Gus a checklist so he could tick off the jobs as he did them, which was something that really worked well, as Gus used a similar approach at CSIRO.

As Gus learned the tasks, they added more to the list. We found it useful for me to come in once a week for half an hour to learn the new skills with Gus. That way, I was able to help Gus practise the more difficult tasks at home. Joe and Tony already had many processes in place for most of the jobs because they taught the same skills to other assistants.

Some skills that took a little bit more practise included folding the silky scarves as they were pretty slippery. And they wanted them folded a particular way and hung over a particular way so that they don’t hang on the floor or on the side of the chair.

Folding towels a specific way so they look neat and tidy in the shop and on the shelf. Brushing down the hair and asking clients to turn around.

To begin with, Gus was a little bit shy speaking to people. At CSIRO, he basically doesn’t get to meet many people. He is basically, I guess, in a separate area where all the sterilising and everything happens for all the equipment. Sweeping the floor and getting all the hair off the floor. Attention to detail.

Looking clients in the eyes when saying hello and goodbye. This takes courage and practice. Gus has always been involved in doing chores at home from a very young age, just like his siblings. He’s quite accomplished at many domestic skills like cleaning, unpacking, putting away the groceries, food preparation, taking out the bins, loading and unloading the dishwasher. The domestic skills have helped with both jobs, unlike our other two.

I often take photos or video footage when Gus is learning a new task. It’s really helpful to get Joe and Tony to demonstrate how this task is done. Gus and I then review those videos at home and recall the steps, and just practise them. And usually it only takes a week, and he’s got it down pat.

Another thing that helped has been regular open communication and feedback. During the probation period, Joe, Tony, Gus, and I met monthly to check on how everything was going. The early feedback we got was pretty good. Gus took a little bit longer to learn than they’d experienced with other or previous employees. But that was okay because they wanted to get that job right from the first place and not have to fix things up afterwards. And he sped up the more experience he got.

Gus was a little shy initially, but is now part of the team. Yeah, not anymore, are you? Gus has sometimes found it a challenge to interact with customers, but the more he works there, the more comfortable he is getting.

Sometimes Gus would have a really good day, and sometimes not so good. Joe and Tony’s approach is that we all have good and bad days, but they would always ask if anything was wrong, which was really nice. Customers now know Gus, and some talk to him more than they do Joe and Tony, which was quite amusing to Joe and Tony.

He even managed to score a coffee with a client of theirs, called Ricky Stewart. He’s the Raiders coach. Gus is a big Raiders fan.

Both Gus’s jobs have helped us learn more about his conditions of success, and these include working alongside people, while working along alongside other people. While he can work independently, he does prefer the company of others. A relaxed and friendly environment, understanding the role and expectations, having systems and processes in place, and having music playing in the background. And every now and again, he breaks out into song himself.

Gus thrives when he receives praise from Joe and Tony about how well he did a particular task. This is immediate feedback and a big driver for him. I once made the mistake of trying to help Gus with the task. I was immediately stopped and told, “No, Gus needs to learn that task and do it by himself”.

So another condition of success is having bosses who assume competency.

Gus’s initial duties really focus on helping barbers at the beginning and at the end of appointments. One challenge appeared during times when both barbers were busy, and the clients, and Gus had no task, or Gus had no tasks. He didn’t know what to do and didn’t ask, so he found himself a bit at a loose end. This was easily remedied by teaching Gus additional jobs to do during that time.

Once Gus was trained in the basics, Martino’s put him on a part-time salary with super. So now Gus works six days a week because he works on Saturdays as well. They took Gus and myself out for dinner to celebrate him officially joining the team. Gus was able to start wearing the coveted Martino’s vest, which is now his official uniform. With the new job, came new duties. Gus started ordering coffee for clients at nearby cafe and gets the occasional one for himself, getting cutthroat razor for the barber. Joe and Tony taught him the proper procedure and safe handling. Setting up decorations. It’s on special occasions like Christmas, Easter, and so on.

Mixing hair colours. There are a lot of hair and beard grooming products and skincare products. Who would’ve thought for a humble male? Thought it was only for women. We’ve taken an assortment home and practice identifying them several times a week so that Gus can grab the products when requested, and also do the restocking.

But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing. There’ve been times when something unexpected has happened. A few weeks ago, I got a call from Joe and Tony to let me know that they found Gus sitting on the floor in the kitchenette. He appeared out of sorts and not himself, which was very unusual. He said he had a headache, but couldn’t explain to them exactly what was going on.

The following week, it happened again. Joe and Tony could easily have assumed the worst, that he was just being lazy. But to their credit, instead of making assumptions about what his behaviour meant, they reached out to me and asked what was my thoughts? May, of course, that I had no idea.

I thought he might have been, a reaction to a pollen from the pine trees in our in our street, because our cars were laden with pollen dust. But then Gus said something smelled bad at work, and then I realised what had happened. He was learning how to mix hair colours those two weeks. The fumes were powerful and made him feel sick and unwell, and headache-y.

We were relieved to find out exactly what the cause was, and we suggested that Gus wear goggles and a mask when mixing the colours, and he was happy to try this idea. Since then, no problems.

Gus is currently learning how to use the cash register and take payments from customers. To help him learn, I’ve taken a video of Joe demonstrating the process and then a video of Gus learning the system. We practise that at home. Each fortnight, Gus will learn additional processes of the payment system. When Gus masters this task, then it frees both Joe and Tony up to do a lot more with their clients.

Other interesting tasks in the pipeline: how to do a crew cut. So Gus has already had experience of this with Julio, the barber’s assistant. It was pretty exciting. I was surprised when he said, “Oh, Gus just gave Julio a crew cut”. And Joe and Tony said, well, once he masters the crew cut, there’s no reason why they can’t see why he can’t add style. And they have many more tasks, which they’ll include one step at a time, not to overwhelm Gus.

As you can see, Gus is a valued employee of Martino’s. In fact, Joe and Tony’s greatest fear is that by presenting here today, someone will snap him up. They were worried to lose him. But, I don’t think there’s any chance of Gus leaving Martino’s. He’s very loyal and really loves working with them.

I’d like to finish with some words for other families. First of all, I want to tell you, know that in our family’s experience, life at school is so much better after school, as you probably… some of you already know.

During most of his schooling, Gus wasn’t supported to meet his potential and often wasn’t offered opportunities that were given to his typical peers. But once he finished school, this all opened up. While many of you would say, “Gee, Gus was lucky to get that job at Martino’s”. But in reality, Gus created his own luck by forming that relationship with the barbers himself.

Gus’ experience reflects how lots of young people get jobs. It’s often about being in the right place at the right time. The old adage, ‘it’s not what you know, it’s who you know, or who you get to know,’ is very true, but it’s difficult to make your own luck if you are not in the community and doing typical things in typical settings.

My other message to families is Seeing is believing, a photo speaks a thousand words. The power of a photo cannot be underestimated, which is why a visual resume is so powerful.

And I’ve also got a message for schools. In 2023, students with a disability should not have to face such low expectations from professionals who are supposed to prepare them for life beyond school.

So, teachers, please share the stories you’ve heard during this conference with your colleagues, encourage them to start thinking differently about their students’ potential, challenge them to have much higher expectations. The young people you’ve seen in the past few days have already had such great success exploring employment; imagine what students with disability could do if the education professionals were enthusiastically supporting them.

In conclusion, dream big. Share your vision with confidence with everyone. Have high expectations for your child. Embrace the mainstream because it’s filled with new and exciting opportunities. And expect to meet amazing employers who see potential, where others can’t. As you can see from Gus’s experience at Martino’s and CSIRO, they’re definitely out there.

I wish you all well, and look forward to hearing your stories at future conferences. Thank you.

Meet Gus Reichelt

Gus Reichelt is a Canberra local in his early twenties. He still lives at home with his parents and siblings but has a goal to move into his own place in the next year or two. Since finishing Year 12 in 2018, Gus has worked at the CSIRO as a Research Technician. More recently, he found a second job at Martino’s Hair and Grooming in the city. He now works 21 hours a week and will increase his hours at Martino’s as he learns the ropes.

When he’s not working, Gus can be found at the local gym, learning tennis at his local club, or playing FIFA22. He works twice a week with a mentor to improve his reading, writing, and clarity of his speech. Gus loves extended family gatherings, cheering for his favourite football teams, and singing. He’s quite a domestic god, having mastered many cooking and cleaning skills, and he makes brilliant cups of tea.

Meet Ronny Reichelt

Ronny is a husband and father of three children. As a Chartered Professional Engineer, Ronny works as an Engineering Consultant, specialising in electrical design and project management. He enjoys his work because it makes a positive impact on the environment and the way people work and live.

Ronny enjoys challenges and loved the process of renovating the family home, a nearly-100-year old building in a heritage area. He turned the drafty double-brick building into a comfortable, energy-efficient home that retains the building’s original features. In his spare time, he enjoys playing tennis, yoga, cycling, gym, and gardening.