Four days after being released, Trent was offered a job working the Reach truck at Trader Joe’s freezer warehouse in Lacey. What makes this accomplishment even more notable is that Trent was hired specifically for that role because of the Reach truck skills he gained through working for CI.
When Trent went into the hiring office to apply for a job at Trader Joe’s, he was expecting to apply for an entry role in inventory control, or something similar that paid minimum wage at $16.28 an hour. But as he was working with someone in the office on his application, they informed him that a Reach truck position, which paid $19 an hour, had just opened up. Previous to walking into the office, Trent had not seen any open Reach truck position, so he was thrilled. “It all worked out perfectly,” said Trent. “If someone with extensive criminal history like me is able to get certification like the forklift certification I got, it is so beneficial,” said Trent.
Trent started working first at the CI Commissary at Airway Heights Corrections Center (AHCC), then eventually winded up working in the commissary warehouse. “They knew I was a hard worker up front,” said Trent, referring to his supervisors at the commissary. While Trent was demonstrating a strong work ethic in the commissary, a lead warehouse incarcerated worker, who actively promotes additional training to fellow workers, encouraged him to learn forklift operation in the warehouse.
“I took the written test and passed with flying colors,” said Trent. The lead warehouse incarcerated worker who had encouraged him in the first place mentioned that Trent picked up the mechanics in just a few hours, much faster than most people who had spent more time on it, which boosted Trent’s confidence level. “I made it an obsession to get successful, to get what I needed no matter what,” said Trent, that, and to “constantly stay focused,” would be what he repeated to himself daily when he got up while inside prison.
“Everything that I did at commissary and the warehouse helps me with my work now,” said Trent. Ranging from specialized knowledge such as OSHA regulations surrounding moving items to certain heights, to something as seemingly inconsequential as picking up some Spanish, Trent was able to apply his knowledge and experience to his current job at Trader Joe’s. In the case of how he uses his learned Spanish, Trent operates the Reach truck in the freezers when there may be only Spanish speakers who are there working in the aisles so instead of just honking indiscriminately, he is able to speak to them in enough Spanish to let them know where he will be moving to, which cuts out frustration on everyone’s part, and reduces safety issues.
During a recent workday, Trent recalled that when the shift lead seemed like they weren’t going to show up, he had jokingly said to this supervisor that when he was done with his stuff he will just go over and do the lead’s stuff too. To Trent’s surprise, his supervisor was serious when responding back that some time they will start teaching him some of the lead’s tasks. With the confidence he had gained working at CI, Trent highly anticipates that they will pull him to get started on lead stuff soon.
