Parking wardens promote safety

By MARK STORY

Traffic wardens no longer warrant the label public enemy number one.

At least, that's the view of Shuzika Sharday, 42, park safety officer with North Shore City. She believes recent makeovers, giving wardens new titles, less formal uniforms, more training and better pay has added respectability to a once-loathed occupation.

A former self-employed Cantabrian, Sharday thought working as a parking officer would be a good fill-in job before going overseas.

Five years later she's still working for North Shore City Council. Things she says she wouldn't trade for the big OE or a return to secretarial work include being outdoors, helping people, making roads safer for the public, and constant variety.

Pounding the beat in all weathers and occasional abuse don't bother her. Sharday's only real frustration, she says, is general public ignorance.

Because people don't understand the contribution parking officers make, she says many don't regard her occupation as a real job.

Contrary to popular speculation, she's not mandated to issue a minimum quota of tickets.

Dave Law, senior human resources adviser with North Shore City, says that while the emphasis is on safety and traffic flow, ticketing is an active deterrent.

"We want to give local shopkeepers a fair go. That means keeping the traffic moving," says Law.

So what does Sharday do when she's not issuing tickets? The job is never boring, she says. During her first week on the job, Sharday was not only proposed to, she attended an explosion in a factory and assisted the police following a fatal accident.

"We're often dispatched at night to attend accident situations, clear blocked accessways and are now responsible for abandoned vehicles."

The best aspect of the job for Sharday's co-worker, Karen Boyes 36, is dealing with the public. "Working alongside the police and road-safety coordinators, much of our role is education and public relations-based.

"A lot of time is spent in the schools teaching children about road safety."

What formal skills do parking officers need, and what training helps with on-the-job hassles?

Recruitment is more intuitive than qualifications-based. But Colin Waite, chairman of the NZ Parking Association, says School Certificate is becoming a minimum requirement. No parking officer can hit the beat until they've passed various internal tests.

Once warranted, they are - like the police, traffic officers and airport authorities - entitled to remove vehicles and issue fines. In addition to initial training, on-the-job mentoring and ongoing in-house programmes, parking officers are encouraged to complete a New Zealand Qualifications-accredited national certificate in compliance.

There's no clear career path for parking officers, but they can apply for other positions within local government. Waite, who's also Waitakere City's parking services manager, says with the skills acquired through training, including time management, people and customer service, self-discipline, area management, conflict resolution, traffic regulations and parking bylaws, parking officers are marketable everywhere.

After a lengthy stint as parking officer, Boyes has spent the last two years as prosecutor for North Shore City. Being a parking officer provides a good foundation for a career in enforcement.

Many have gone onto careers within the prison service, traffic engineering, the police and armed forces and in tourism, he says.

Growing demand for parking has seen officer numbers at North Shore City swell around 30 per cent in recent years - Waitakere City has experienced similar increases.

So what sort of people are attracted to these jobs?

At 1.67m in height, Stephen Lamusitele, 40, a parking officer with Waitakere City, says he's living proof size isn't an issue.

After nearly three years on the job, he has no plans to quit. With much of their time spent outdoors and lots of people contact, he's not surprised parking officers tend to become long-term employees.

"It's now five years since one of our parking officers was assaulted. Efforts to change public attitudes through education is working," says Lamusitele, a former taxi driver.

It's the same on the North Shore, says Law. He attributes the predominance of female park safe officers - they tally 80 per cent - to the recognition this isn't a job requiring strongarm tactics. But a thick skin is still essential.

"We're looking for positive, well-rounded individuals who can demonstrate flexibility, and empathy, whatever their background. A sense of humour and first aid knowledge is also helpful. Growing cultural diversity means we'll need to be more conscious of language skills with future appointments."