The Northern Rivers Times – Edition 225 Out Now!

Grab the latest edition of The Northern Rivers Times, available at all newsagents, Woolworths Supermarkets, General and Rural Stores, Ampol Foodary, and select service stations from Coffs Harbour to Coolangatta.

This Week’s Main Stories:

• EXCLUSIVE:  Singer Shannon Noll Honoured with Commissioner’s Commendation for Courage
• Kyogle and Tweed Mayors Share Their Hopes and Goals
• NRPP Rejects $80M DA on Floodplain
• Duck Race – You’d Be Quackers to Miss It!
• Cheers to Beers at Frida’s Field
• Council Reconsiders Pool Complex Name
• Ken Weeks to Celebrate 111 Years – Our Oldest Resident
• Kerbside EV Charging Launches in Ballina Shire
• Help Save Our Shorebirds – Stay Off the Dunes
• Janelle Saffin on Historic Rental Reforms
• Byron CoLab Opens at Former Byron Bay Hospital Site

And much, much more!

Singer Shannon Noll Honoured with Commissioner’s Commendation for Courage

By INSPECTOR PAUL COWLES REGION OPERATIONS MANAGER

VRA Rescue NSW Commissioner Brenton Charlton has awarded a Commissioner’s commendation for courage to singer and performer Shannon Noll for the courageous conduct for his efforts to save the life of a member of the public after a road traffic crash.

Singer Shannon Noll Honoured with
Commissioner’s Commendation for Courage ©The Northern Rivers Times

At approximately 8:50pm on Saturday 9th December 2023, a single vehicle veered off a rural road in Northern NSW near the town of Casino.
The vehicle collided with a tree and was engulfed in flames with the driver and a passenger still trapped inside.

Without any training in any aspect of rescue or advanced first aid, Mr Noll approached the burning vehicle and managed to extract the passenger, he moved them away from the fully engulfed vehicle and commenced CPR on the unconscious person.

At some point after NSW Police and VRA Rescue NSW crews arrived on scene and took over lifesaving efforts with a defibrillator and CPR.

Sadly, both occupants passed away.

At the point of the crash Mr Noll has no personal protective equipment to protect himself or others during his rescue attempts.

Mr Noll gave every chance of survival he could at the confronting scene.

For his quick actions in a dire emergency situation and taking responsibility and control of a major incident, Mr Shannon Noll was a worth recipient for the VRA Rescue NSW Commissioners Commendation for Courage.

Main story

Stake your career on the meat industry

By Samantha Elley

When that juicy medium rare steak hits your plate and the fragrance of chargrill wafts into your olfactory senses, you can be assured a wide range of trades were behind the ability to make that scenario happen.

As the town’s largest employer, the Casino Food Co-op, formerly the Northern Co-operative Meat Company, provides a wide range of careers to ensure the people of the Northern Rivers and beyond get to enjoy the savoury pleasures of a meat based diet.

Yasmin Harvey and Ben Blackadder are two employees of the Co-op who are very satisfied with their careers in the meat industry.

“I’m an apprentice fitter and machinist,” said Yasmin.

“I came here six months ago from Newcastle.

“I basically am doing machining, fabricating and getting called out to jobs when there is a breakdown, so we go out and fix conveyers, chains, so if anything breaks, we are there.”

Yasmin started her apprenticeship at Port Waratah Coal Services in Newcastle but got a transfer back to Casino where she was from originally.

“(Working in the meat industry) you get to see the production, how the cattle come in and the finished product,” she said.

“It’s pretty cool to see all the machines, mainly hydraulics and pneumatics which is oil and air.”

At 22, Yasmin is one of three women working in the services area of the Co-op and says she loves it.

“The atmosphere is pretty cool, as you get along with the tradies really well,” she said.

“It’s close to home and the meatworks is very clean and tidy and controlled.”

Ben has just gained his full qualification as a fitter and turner and is involved in general maintenance within the plant.

“I’ve been with the meatworks for nearly four years,” he said.

“(A normal work day entails) breakdowns, could be big ones, could be small ones, a bit of fabrication, some machining, odd jobs.

“We get work orders to service machines for preventative maintenance.

“I grew up on a farm so if we couldn’t afford to buy it we always had to make it.”

Before working at the meat co-op, Ben helped a chicken farmer to convert his sheds from meat chooks to eggs.

Yasmin Harvey and Ben Blackadder at some of the machines they use. Photo Samantha Elley

“So we put monorails in his sheds and makeshift chicken caravans with auto belts and egg chutes,” he said.

“(Working in the meat industry) you get the odd gross job here and there but you get that everywhere.

“It’s pretty clean in most areas.”

Both Yasmin and Ben agree there is a great variety of roles for people interested in a career in the meat industry.

As a young father, with a second child on the way Ben said the Co-op is a great place to work.

“They tend to be pretty flexible,” said Ben.

“If I need to be home for something, I can.”

Engineering Services Manager, Gary Alcock runs the maintenance staff of 65 for the Co-op.

“We start to look around (for apprentices) about this time of year in preparation of what’s going to happen next year,” he said.

“We have an interaction with the local schools and participate through the HR department with careers expos but it’s a matter of submitting advertising and looking for applicants.

Gary said they are looking for future employees who have a good deal of aptitude, initiative and willingness to engage and search for a problem and solution.

“What we can offer as a business and an opportunity for training is that we’ve got such a diverse and vast range of things they can work on, that the scope of their knowledge can be very broad,” he said.

“We have a range of things they can work on (such as) fitter and machinist or electrical, but in those there’s a wide range of things they can work on.

“They can be manufacturing, repairs, work on the slaughter floor or the boning room.

“On the electrical side we manufacture everything from our switchboards through to heavy equipment and machinery.”

Gary said while they look for apprentices, they are also looking at ways of upskilling their qualified tradespeople once they are fully qualified.

“We are looking at what other skills we can actually roll into that fourth year (of their apprenticeship) or post trade training as well,” he said.

“We are looking at upskilling them all the time.”

Gary said finding and having skilled labour is currently a problem for the Co-op.

“The drain on resources in the local area is significant,” he said.

“Whether it be the mines or wage levels or whatever it might be we are always measuring ourselves against others.

“Whether it be the local or wider economy or other industries are poaching our people.

“How can we make it more attractive for our people?”

Gary said they don’t have a high turnover but anyone who leaves after 20 years of experience and knowledge, is a huge impact to the business.

With the advent of young women entering the industry, Gary has seen a difference in the work force.

“They provide a significant impact and change of culture,” he said.

“They bring a different element to the group and its great.

“Collectively they lift the whole group.”

If you are interested in a career in the Engineering Services section of the meat industry, keep an eye out at the career expos or contact them at 6662 2444 for further information.