HE MAY BE 67 YEARS OLD and retired, but Randolph Goodman’s love for tractors remains undimmed.
His years of expertise and dedicated service as a tractor operator at C.O. Williams Construction, where he began working in 1965, have not been forgotten by the company.
“I retired last year but when B’s [Bottle Depot] burned, I was asked to come back and help. I worked through the night covering the fire with mould. I would consider going back on a reduced basis,” he said.
In giving a brief history of his time at the construction company, Goodman, of Foster Hall, St Joseph, said he served under Micky Hutchinson and Roger Gooding, “two of the best general managers we ever had”.
“It’s a lot different today than when I started because there is more technology now but there are still some improvements that can be made.”
He said it had always been his dream to man a large tractor, even as a boy.
“I used to go on sites and watch the men working. I used to work as a gardener for Sir Charles’ [Williams] wife and she arranged for me to become a ‘tractor boy’ where I used to grease them. From there, the men taught me to drive and I started my career.”
Goodman said he started driving a D4 Caterpillar and kept going up until he was senior operator No. 1 driving the huge D9R1, one of the largest of its type available in Barbados.
“I have worked on Roberts Manufacturing, the Flour Mill, the Samuel Jackman Prescod Polytechnic, Courtesy Garage and the old BET, to name a few places. This job has taken me to Dominica, St Lucia and the Bahamas.
“All my earnings have come from C.O. Williams and I loved everything about working there. Once you got up in the morning, you had sure work,” he said.
Today, Goodman’s children are following in his footsteps. He said his oldest son is also driving a D9R1 while his other sons work at Williams Equipment and RTek.
He shares some advice to his sons and anyone looking for a career in construction.
“Always improve on your work every day; if you make a mistake today, don’t come back and make it again. You have to be a hard worker and have an open mind. Be on time and be dedicated – you will find good, honest work in construction and it is a high-paying job too but you got to be able to do the work, it ain’t easy.”
Goodman said working as a tractor operator could be dangerous. He has worked in quarries more than 100 feet deep but he never had an accident.
“Some quarries can be 150 feet deep but if you take the proper precautions you will be safe. I never had close calls,” he said, adding Barbados had some of the best operators in the Caribbean.
Today Goodman is enjoying his rest while willing to get back behind the wheel if needed. He said he has lived a good life and enjoyed his job, so he was content.
“I enjoyed my life in construction. It was exciting; it helped raise my family and now I’m retired, I don’t have any regrets.” (CA)