50 years and counting

Greg Hill, a Cable Jointer, has celebrated an impressive 50 years of service with the industry.

Greg, who lives in Stroud, started work with the Midlands Electricity Board in 1965 as a 16-year-old apprentice – following in the footsteps of his grandfather who also worked in the industry and encouraged him to apply.

Greg Hill with his certificate for his 50 years of service with Stroud Team Manager Paul Fawcett and Gloucester Distribution Manager Neil James.

“I was always interested in electricity as a youngster, so it seemed like an ideal opportunity,” said Greg who undertook a four year apprenticeship before he was allowed to work on the live electricity network.

“The work was much more physically demanding in those days – we had to do all the digging, cable laying and backfilling as well as the jointing – and we didn’t have company vehicles to get about in. If we were lucky a trailer would take us all to site and often we’d have to walk and carry our tools with us. You certainly didn’t need the gym to stay fit back then,” he explained.

Over the last five decades, Greg has worked on the electricity network across much of Gloucestershire, including a number of years in Cheltenham and Stroud. He said: “It’s a great job and I’ve never fancied changing to anything else.”