Stronger as a team – well-being at Syklo
Eetu Hämäläinen and Kaj Jokilahti have only worked together for about a year. Yet they speak with one voice when it comes to resilience and well-being at work.
For Eetu Hämäläinen and Kaj Jokilahti, the most essential thing at work is having a good team. Together with the other employees, they feel that they have formed just that in Syklo’s new circular economy unit at the Rusko waste sorting plant, opened autumn of 2021.
“The waste sets the pace for us, or in other words, it determines what kind of day it will be,” Hämäläinen says. The work is physically demanding and the conditions are challenging in the midst of the noise and dust, despite having the right equipment. That’s when a good team is a vital asset. “Together, we got the new facility off to a great start last autumn,” Jokilahti sums up the team’s strength.
A high level of well-being to balance out a job that demands an attitude
In their work, Hämäläinen and Jokilahti do not talk about problems, but about challenges. According to Jokilahti, the team “sows the seeds positivity.” A good team and positive spirit create an open atmosphere, which is the key to a smooth flow of information and the opportunity to develop and improve operations. “We are allowed to use our own capacity as much as we want and to speak our minds,” Jokilahti says.
It is impossible to prepare for the work elsewhere, as no similar facility exists. The work requires you to be a self-starter, but it also provides an opportunity to develop both at work and personally. “The circular economy is a field of the future that offers a lot to learn. It is one of the reasons why I applied for a job here,” says Hämäläinen.
Looking at the entire spectrum of well-being
The men counterbalance their work with physical activity. They also praise Syklo‘s contributions as an employer. “The company has looked at the entire spectrum of well-being in a holistic way,” Hämäläinen says.
For example, Syklo offers ePassi employee benefits that can be used for, among other things, cultural activities, massages, or sports. There are regular surveys on well-being at work and a decent amount of shared leisure activities. Hämäläinen says: “I feel that I have made the right moves in my working career. I feel like I’m in good hands at this company”
This article was originally published in Oulun Energia’s customer magazine 2/2021. Text by Mari Siliämaa, photos by Kati Leinonen.