Brian Watson – Production Worker

“I much prefer to be at work than at home not working”

Pictures really can tell a thousand words. And that’s exactly what happened when Brian Watson of Skelton was interviewed for a job at Cleveland Circuits, a company which builds printed circuit boards. His photographs of the intricate cardboard model cars and buses he builds as a hobby were his key ‘selling point’ as a job candidate. The pictures said more about his abilities than Brian could have expressed in words.

 Like most people Brian felt nervous about his interview. But because he has generalised anxiety disorder, interviews present more of a challenge for him than they do for other job candidates.

For production manager Darren Flint, Brian’s photographs proved that he could pay the kind of attention to detail that is required by the production workers at Cleveland circuits.

Employer's story

“I could tell from the photographs of his work that he had a good eye for detail” says Darren Flint about his interview with Brian. He adds: “Working on circuit boards requires a lot of concentration and I could see from the models that Brian had made, that he had the level of concentration that’s needed for the production worker job. I could also see from the photographs that he worked in a methodical way. That was something else that convinced me that he would be good for the job.”

Trial period

Brian’s enthusiasm for wanting to work also impressed Darren. He was aware that Brian had been diagnosed with anxiety and sometimes had panic attacks but didn’t see this as a barrier to employing him.

Like all new employees, Brian was initially employed on a 13 week trial basis. The trial period benefits managers and potential employees as it allows both to assess whether the job and the employee are a good match. Brian’s probationary period and training was successful and he was eventually offered a permanent contract with the company.

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Employee's story

After being unemployed for about five years, Brian was keen to get back to work. He improved his interviewing skills by attending job sessions organised by Remploy, an organisation that offers support to disabled people or people with a health condition and helps them find ‘sustainable employment.’

Brian’s investment of time to improve his job hunting skills paid off and his interview at Cleveland Circuits was so successful that he was immediately offered a job as a production worker.

Brian’s main job is to assemble the component parts for circuit boards using techniques such as cutting, soldering and forming. He particularly enjoys using the ‘wave machine’, a machine which is used for lead free soldering applications.

Benefits of work

He takes medication to control his anxiety and doesn’t need any particular support at work. He sometimes needs reassurance but Darren sees doing that part of his role as a manager rather than something specific that he needs to do for Brian.

Since he started to work at Cleveland Circuits in 2007, Brian has had only one panic attack. Previously, he had several attacks a week.

Brian is getting used to the benefits of having a regular income again. He also enjoys working for a company that is local and close to home. He says, “I like the money that comes with working. I’m not spending as much time on making models as I used to do, but I’m busy in a different way and I’m glad that I’ve got money to spend.”

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