Through snowstorms, earthquakes and a global pandemic, there’s not much that will stop Pay Clerk Janet Gebbie from making sure people get paid on time. However, in those almost 30 years, the payroll system has transformed quite a bit.

“Back then, there was a lot of manual entry. We would get the timesheets from cargo handlers, mechanics and general hands; every single person’s hours were all manually entered line by line,” says Janet.

Then, every Wednesday morning, we would go around the amenities and give out the payslips. Janet would travel around the Port, even out onto the wharves and vessels, to deliver payslips.

This helped her get to know everyone at LPC. “Each time, you would stop and talk to the guys and find out a bit about them. We often got invited to different morning teas because we had a lot of interact on with people.”

Getting to know everyone had other perks; as in her time here, Janet explored the many types of vessels we get at the Port, with highlights including having lunch on a cruise ship and boarding a submarine.

For the majority of her time at the Port, the payroll team was made up of the same people.

Janet worked alongside Gaynor, who worked at LPC for 48 years, and Pam, who worked for 28 years. This meant it was always a smooth operation, with the trio able to rely on each other.

“We were just a very settled area. We all worked well together, and we all got on.”

Janet has witnessed huge changes in technology with new systems in place now. “In some ways, it changed, as far as the systems have changed a lot. But it’s still the same principle of paying people accurately and on time; cause pay is the most important part of everybody’s week!”

In 1995 LPC had just over 250 staff; now, the payroll team looks after over 680 employees.

Janet is also a Lyttelton local through and through. “I was born at the hospital in Lyttelton and grew up in Governors Bay, so Lyttelton has been a big part of my background. Some people would say I haven’t got out of the harbour, but why would you want to be anywhere else.”

Janet would recommend a job at the Port to anyone. “It’s a great place to work and a great environment to be in.”

“I think sometimes, people looking from the outside just see the movement of the cargo, and you forget all the components that make that up. You’ve got plumbers, electricians, mechanics, marine, health and safety, and engineering.

“There are heaps of people that work here that pull the whole operation together.”