How one Rehab Management employee is breaking down gender stereotypes in the workplace
This August, Brad is taking part in Sydney’s best-known marathon, the City2Surf. As Brad will tell you, his relationship with the City2Surf wasn’t always a love affair.
Meet Brad, our newest Corporate Services Assistant at Rehab Management and AimBig Employment.
This August, Brad is taking part in Sydney’s best-known marathon, the City2Surf. As Brad will tell you, his relationship with the City2Surf wasn’t always a love affair. At age 10, Brad’s mum signed him up for the fun run for the first time.
“I was sulking, dragging my feet and falling behind. I was a 10 year old kid, I didn’t want to be there,” recalls Brad. “My mum always tells people how she had to let me jump in piles of dead leaves and crush discarded cups with my feet to keep me moving”.
Flash forward to 2014, Brad was participating in the 14-kilometre-long run again, but this time, with much less protestation. Brad’s sister, Madeline, set up a team in honour of their Dad, Steve – an avid runner, a member of the Kembla Joggers and a repeat City2Surf participant who sadly lost his battle with skin cancer in 2008.
This year #TeamSteve will be taking on the City2Surf again with the goal of raising $700 for Cure Cancer Australia.
“You hear it all the time, people are always asking you to donate to this cause or to that one, but there is almost always a story behind it. For us, it’s about remembering our Dad’s legacy and contributing to a day when we don’t all have to worry so much about cancer”.
To Brad, family is the most important thing, which is why, he says, he likes working with the administration team so much.
“We all work together really well. We’re like the gatekeepers of Rehab Management, everything comes through us”.
Brad also likes working in admin because of the “transferable skills” he has developed as a self-confessed nerd, “getting to work in front of a computer all day and process information is a dream to me”.
And as for the stigma that men are less inclined to thrive in administration roles?
“I take pride in breaking through that stereotype. If you can do the job, and you like the job, and you’re qualified for the job, go for it. Man or woman, it doesn’t really matter. The best way to breakdown these stigmas is to get in there and get the job done”.
While Brad’s mum won’t be walking him through piles of leaves this year, she will be waiting for him at the finish line. Brad will also have the full support of the Rehab Management and AimBig Employment teams as he and the rest of #TeamSteve make their way from the CBD to Bondi on 14 August.
You can donate to #TeamSteve here: https://city2surf2018.everydayhero.com/au/teamsteve.
