Viridiana performs the same activities as her peers, dispensing gasoline, checking oil levels, the air in the tires, and windshield wipers.
Mazatlán, Sinaloa.- There are jobs that were believed exclusive to men, however, women increasingly show that they are capable of performing all kinds of tasks, such as dispensing gasoline.
Viridiana, 37 years old, performs the same activities as her peers, dispensing gasoline, checking oil levels, the air in the tires of the cars, windshield wipers, and everything that is offered.
She has eight years of experience in service stations, seven in his native Tepic, Nayarit, and one here in Mazatlán, where she has the same length of residence.
She shares that he previously worked as a mayor in a gym, but he got divorced and had to leave it because of the “broken” schedule, which made it difficult to take care of his two children; She was unemployed for a long time and one day she passed by a gas station that had female dispatchers and came to ask for reports, another day she took the application, they interviewed her, took the documentation and hired her.
” The need and desperation that I didn’t have a job and that I had to feed my children led me to ask for a job, I made the decision to work at the gas station, where at first I felt strange, because of those thoughts that it is a job only for men, however, as time went by I got used to it. “
She remarried and came to live in Mazatlan, she wanted to change her environment and went to work at a place where meat mash was made, but the salary was very little, and after weeks of looking for a job without results, she went to a gas station. At the end of the day, she already knew how to do that job.
For a year she has been an employee of a Tesoro group gas station, located on Óscar Pérez Escobosa avenue, at the entrance to the Real del Valle subdivision, and works to help her husband with expenses.
Recognizes that, being a woman, there are clients, mainly men, who disrespect and insult them; There are those who arrive angry and yell and swear at them, mainly when they are given instructions on the safety regulations they have so that gasoline can be dispensed, or they ask if they want a revision of the vehicle.
The workers at this gas station receive training in customer service, handling the pumps, oils, and checking the tires, however, there are customers who prefer to be attended by a man.
She recalled that on one occasion when a customer approached the car, he got out to prevent her from opening the gas door of his car because she was “going to scratch” it with her nails.
The same thing dispenses gasoline that checks oil levels, the air in car tires and windshield wipers.
“ There are women who prefer to be served by men because we don’t know what we are doing they say, they come and tell us: ‘Will there be a man who will check my levels, and then they ask: and do you know how to do it? The same happens with the air of the tires. I have a client who comes and she asks a man to check her car, ”she commented.
” They disrespect us, mainly the men, there are occasions that they get upset because according to what we know nothing and even swear at us. There are also women who prefer to be treated by men. Although we are not mechanical, we know the basics “.
NOTORIETY
Viridiana recognizes that dispatchers have a very bad reputation, there are even those who think they are prostitutes and many clients who are splendid with tips ask for their cell phone number and even make indecent proposals.
” This job is very noble, because in addition to your salary, you will earn your daily tips, and the one who goes out with a client is because she wants to. Before it was more common, but we do have a very bad reputation .”
She says that she receives daily tips ranging from 50 to 300 pesos. And most importantly, that it is a decent way of working since they only hired from 18 to 55 years of age.
She explains that physically the work is not heavy, but mentally, because she has to keep the accounts of the money she handles, in addition to receiving different forms of payment, and is also exposed to assaults.
Their working hours vary, there are three shifts: the morning, 6:00 in the morning to 2:00 in the afternoon; the evening, from 2:00 in the afternoon to 8:00 at night; and the night, from 8:00 at night to 6:00 in the morning.
” I like work, it is very noble, there are many times we have to attend to very nice people and one feels comfortable and others that not, the schedule is comfortable, because it is long, and it gives me time to be at home, what I don’t like very much is the night shift, but we have a week every month and a half. “
Remember that recently, at night, a young man arrived in a very nice car, asked me to put 650 pesos of gasoline and once it was loaded, he left without paying.
” While I was filling him with gasoline, I asked him the form of payment and he replied that with a card, when I went to the terminal he asked me if I accepted dollars and I said yes, but we exchange it at 17 pesos and when we finished pumping and removed it, he started his car and he left at full speed, “she commented.
” When cases like this arise, you can’t do anything because your safety comes first, but you are left with fear, anger and helplessness .”
Women have gained ground, she says, but it has been difficult. At the station where she works, there are four women dispatchers, two supervisors, and six are men, also dispatchers.
Source: elsoldemazatlan.com.mx
