Sari, sports venue caretaker

I graduated as a physical education instructor from a three-year course at the Pajulahti Sports Institute in the spring of 1991. It was during a deep recession, but I still got a fixed-term job at sports services and started as a physical education instructor at Tapanilan Erä’s premises, which they were renting from the city. From there, I moved to the Vuosaari Sports Hall and landed a permanent position and the title of senior instructor. I worked as a physical education instructor for a little over thirty years with absolutely awesome teams. The co-workers, supervisors and customers were all absolutely wonderful. A lot changes in thirty years. Landlines and folders have changed to electronic systems. Cassette players no longer play the music. 

At some point, I started to want a little change and a calmer pace. I attended a year-long sports venue caretaker training course in 2022 at Vierumäki. The training took place as an apprenticeship, with one week every month at the academy for in-person classes. I got to know the various functions of sports services, from indoor sports facilities to harbours, the archipelago, grass fields and winter sports facilities. 

Currently, I work at the Itäkeskus Swimming Hall as a sports venue caretaker. I work both the day and evening shifts, including weekends. My workdays consist of washing the sauna and wet rooms, cleaning the gym and common areas, cashier work and customer service. The days can be hectic and full of surprises, and fun moments are never far away. The best thing about this job is teamwork, how physical the work is, and the fact that I can see the immediate results of my work while getting customer feedback.

Itäkeskus Swimming Hall provides residents of all ages with varied sports experiences every day. The hall has eight saunas, a 50-metre pool, jump towers, teaching and children’s pools, cold and hot pools, two gyms, a sports hall, and a café. On the busiest days, we get up to 1,800 customers, so it goes without saying that cleaning must also be done efficiently.  
 
I like working in a sporty environment. I’m pretty active myself and can therefore use our own services. There are even moments when you do handstands at work. I still do some physical education instruction in my free time, especially for children and those with special support needs.  In this way, I can maintain my professional skills and keep meeting familiar customers. I can also put the things I’ve experienced in my instructor career into practice and thus work with customers. This is made possible by my current supervisor through additional training for anyone in the personnel.  

The City of Helsinki has been a good and reliable employer. Having gone through many organisational reforms and taken maternity and care leave with four children, I’ve been able to take advantage of the benefits of a big employer. And despite all the changes, my work group has always had good team spirit. 

I would recommend the City of Helsinki’s sports services as a workplace to anyone who values the benefits and security of a major employer. For many young people, sports services is their first workplace, and they carry significant responsibility for introducing young people to work well. In addition to work, the city also encourages you to attend in-depth training in your field, which is reflected in your job as responsibilities and more variety. However, job rotation is also possible for people with long careers, and careers can be continued even after retirement.