MatchWorks job seekers beef up Bannockburn business

SageFarm in Bannockburn developed a relationship with MatchWorks during the middle of 2016 and has since recruited three job seekers.

SageFarm Chief Executive Farmer Chris Balazs said the relationship started when an opportunity arose to put a current driver on a part-time contract.

SageFarm Chief Executive Farmer Chris Balazs (middle right) with MatchWorks job seekers.

SageFarm Chief Executive Farmer Chris Balazs (middle right) with MatchWorks job seekers.

“It was then I found out that he was listed with MatchWorks. When I contacted MatchWorks about the staff member, I was very pleasantly surprised that I was provided with a lot of really helpful advice and a wage subsidy that really assisted with the cash flow issues of putting on a new staff member,” Chris said.

“Kelly, our business development consultant, has been fabulous. She has proactively managed all the employment aspects and has taken the time to get to know our business, such that she can suggest standout candidates when they present themselves.”

Chris said the three staff members recruited through MatchWorks are great and have fitted into the business well with eagerness and vitality. The job seekers are now employed in kitchen, logistics and farmhand roles.

“Sage is not only about the ethical treatment of animals and the product that we produce, but we are all about the ethical and respectful approach that we have to all staff,” he said.

“All our staff are worthy of respect no matter what position they have in the organisation. Each staff member, including myself, has their strengths and weaknesses and their challenges. We just try to be really open about that and recognise when people are having a bad day and celebrate the good times when we have our many wins.

“One of the fundamentals of the Sage business is:  ‘to do things differently – to make a difference’.  That means a difference to the land that nourishes us, the animals we care for, the customers we feed, and the staff that make it all possible.”

Chris will continue to use MatchWorks services and aims to recruit further job seekers when opportunities arise.