A Job for life

The average worker in Britain today can expect to have nine jobs, swapping roles every five years with one complete career change.

With this in mind, KWL appears to be bucking the trend with many of our employees starting out as Apprentices and staying with the firm throughout their entire career; accessing promotions and moving around through our departments – sharpening their skills and expanding their knowledge along their career journey.

This might explain why applications from Apprentices increase year on year – for 2020 we received over two hundred enquiries for ten positions.

Phil Bunby is a Supervisor of Main Trades at KWL. He is another great example of the positive culture here at KWL, starting out as an Apprentice with Hull City Council in 1994 then transferring to KWL.

He has seized opportunities for promotion, initially training as a Painter and Decorator. He is currently working on the refurbishment of Newtown Court, where at times there have been up to 40 people on site. This project includes the refurbishment of flats for Hull City Council – soon to be made available to tenants who are seeking the good quality accommodation that the Council invests in.

Phil says: “There is a great atmosphere here at KWL, everyone seems to be happy in their work. Part of the reason is the variety of projects we work on, there is always something different.

“To me a good Supervisor is someone with excellent communications skills. This is passed down by Senior Management and I feel able to build a good rapport with the teams I work with. All members of KWL are highly skilled with vast experience so we always feel confident the job will be done well.

“I know nationally there is no guaranteed job for life anymore but this isn’t true is true at KWL. Many of us have spent our whole career at the company.

“I have aspirations for the future and hope to complete a Degree in Management.”

Phil was born and brought up in Hull, attending Kelvin Hall School in the 1990s. He adds:

“The purple logo is well known and highly visible around the City. How many times a day do you see one of our vehicles? I feel proud to be part of the KWL brand, it feels like a family and a community of our own.”