“Waste Pro has changed my life.” Anita Taylor is getting ready to celebrate her first year with Waste Pro, but the career transition into the garbage industry has, as she puts it, made her a “totally different person.” Anita joined Waste Pro in March of 2022 as a driver on automated side loader (ASL) trucks. Once she got comfortable, she switched over to residential rear loader trucks.
Before Waste Pro, she drove public buses in Miami-Dade County. She enjoys driving big vehicles, so this career path was easy for her. “I started driving probably when I wasn’t supposed to be, around 10 years old, but I’ve always loved it,” she said. “Driving can take you places you’ve never been or seen before.”
But the cost of living in Miami got to be too much for her and her two children – she couldn’t keep up with bills anymore. So, when an opportunity at Waste Pro’s Jacksonville Division became available, she went for it. “I didn’t know anything about the garbage industry, but during my interview, they told me what kind of vehicles I’d be driving and what kind of work I’d be doing, and I thought I’d try it,” she said. “It ended up working well because I like it here and I can afford to pay all my bills plus have a little extra to do things with my kids.”
During the first few months of Anita’s career at Waste Pro, the company’s division in Fort Pierce, FL needed some help catching up on routes. When Anita’s supervisor asked for volunteers, Anita didn’t hesitate to step in. “I said I’m going to give it my all and that’s what I did,” she said. “I’m the type of person who likes to finish what I start, and the supervisors said my helper and I were very valuable in helping them. I felt really good about what I accomplished.”
Back in Jacksonville, Anita says she loves driving along her routes and seeing different aspects of life. “Before, I was doing and seeing the same people all the time. I needed a change,” she said. “Now I get to see all the beautiful homes in the neighborhoods on my route and meet some really nice and genuine customers who have welcomed me with open arms. They even bring me water and snacks to help me get through the day.”
Anita credits her success on the job to the women of Waste Pro who came before her. One of her mentors, Samantha Fogle is a driver at the Jacksonville Division who taught her everything she knows about driving a garbage truck. “You’re automatically nervous driving such a large vehicle, but she helped me get used to the size and the weight, taught me how to not drop cans and how to do my backing…she made me get myself together.”
Another mentor she became close with is driver Rosalyn Sanders in Jacksonville whom she says taught Samantha and others in the division. Rosalind’s advice and wisdom, she says, has trickled down to those who taught Anita, and will help her teach the next driver. “This is a hard industry, and you have to be level-headed to make it. It’s very physical and challenging. But if you have just one good teacher, you’re going to have an outstanding crew,” Anita said.