Jorien is a real all-rounder in the warehouse of HJ Bakker. She sorts cargoes, takes over tasks from team leaders and also drives the forklift. Something she herself enjoys enormously. “With my hearing impairment, I thought I would never be able to drive a forklift. A doctor approved it and HJ Bakker was willing to cooperate. I am so happy with this, I really enjoy doing this work.”
Jorien has now been working in the warehouse for several years. Her tasks initially consisted mainly of scanning and sorting cargoes. She has since taken on more responsibilities. For example, she checks the loading of trucks and sometimes takes on some team leader tasks.
Driving a forklift with a hearing impairment
Jorien does not let her hearing impairment stop her. After just one year, she obtained her certificate for EPT and was allowed to use an electric pallet truck. Whether she could also obtain her forklift operator permit was still a question. “There was a risk that my application would be rejected, but I wanted to try it anyway. Fortunately, the doctor approved my application and now I have my permit.”
Extra careful
To give Jorien the opportunity to drive a forklift, a number of precautionary measures have been taken. For example, Jorien mainly works during the quiet moments and often drives in reverse. This way her colleagues can see that she is coming by the blue dot that is projected on the ground. The colleagues are well attuned to this.
Director Sander Bogers explains: “Jorien told us that she would like to drive a forklift. And we were happy to offer her that opportunity. Of course, we first investigated what the impact of this would be. Everyone is entitled to a safe working environment. With the agreements made, that is completely in order. And for us, it is great to have such an enthusiastic forklift driver as Jorien driving around.”
Jorien’s future in the warehouse
If you ask Jorien, she is in the right place. “As far as I’m concerned, this is my forever job. In this job, I have the chance to climb up. I will not let such an opportunity pass by.”
