We are proud to have many talented and resourceful women working at Interlate. To celebrate International Women’s Day, we asked Melissa, one of our productivity supervisors, why she chose to become an engineer. This is her story about what inspired her to follow her dreams:
“I have two older brothers and the three of us were the first from both sides of our family to go to university. They both completed their university degrees in engineering before I finished high school. I had always looked up to them so, of course, I thought ‘when I grow up, I want to become an engineer too’. Visiting my eldest brother at a coal mine and having the rush of fear and later on, excitement when a blast we were watching went wrong and rocks came flying towards us also seemed to spark that desire to become an Engineer. My career pathway decision didn’t have much more to it than that. I was just a young girl wanting to be a cool engineer like her brothers.
I have been lucky enough, in my 12 years of work, to have some great opportunities and work with some amazing people at large mining companies. The last couple of years have been a whirlwind – having a baby, maternity leave, moving to Brisbane and starting to work at Interlate. Finding a balance has been challenging but every woman should know that “if you want to do it, you can”. Just believe in yourself and you can achieve anything.”
#balanceforbetter