Happiness is HR Lorena Kollar tells Kathryn Kernohan that no two days are ever the same as the HR Officer with Melbourne’s plumbing company, Chadoak.
“I am the standalone HR [officer] at Chadoak, so I get involved with all facets from performance management to inductions, as well as WorkCover and injury claims,” Lorena Kollar explains. “I love working here, it is always challenging because I have so many different roles but there is always something exciting to work on.” Lorena’s job description has become even broader in 2020 as Chadoak, like every other business in the country, has had to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. “We had to stock up on PPE [personal protective equipment] and provide our staff with everything they need to enter high-risk facilities. I have also been involved with the development of COVID policies,
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high-risk plans and staff training,” she says. Fortunately, Chadoak, one of Melbourne’s largest plumbing and building maintenance businesses, has not been impacted by the pandemic as much as some others. This is because of the “huge growth” the business has undergone in its construction and commercial departments and its involvement in many major projects that have continued throughout 2020. “We have been working on the Victorian Government’s Metro Tunnel project, providing infrastructure for the new stations going underground including hydraulic plumbing. “Top-tier Government jobs like this haven’t stopped during COVID.”
The $11 billion Metro Tunnel project, estimated to open in 2025, will add five new underground stations to Melbourne’s train network. Other projects Chadoak has been involved in include redeveloped train stations at Reservoir and West Footscray and a relocation of reticulated gas, water and sewer mains at the iconic Flinders Street Station. Another major success has been the construction of the Burwood Brickworks precinct, designed and built as Australia’s first fully sustainable shopping centre. Chadoak’s brief was to promote recycling and the use of blackwater from the centre’s onsite wastewater treatment plant. The finished product is Australia’s first retail build to receive a 6 Green Star
