Elena Silina enjoys her varied work as pharmacy support worker
"I believe that being a union member can also give me additional protection that I may need because I have an immigrant background, even though I already have Finnish citizenship", says Elena Silina.
Elena joined recently the union for the first time. With the pandemic and changes in the labour market, she felt that membership would provide security.
I am Elena Silina, 46.
I live in Vantaa.
I joined PAM on 17 April 2020.
I work as a pharmacy support worker in the logistics department of Yliopiston Apteekki in Helsinki.
My duties include processing, collecting and delivering online orders for customers. We handle the orders for companies, individuals and all pharmacies in Finland from our central pharmaceutical warehouse. My work involves both computer and warehouse work.
I work shifts. Our shift schedule has been changed because of corona. Now, the morning shift begins already at 6.20 and ends at 2pm. The second shift begins at 2pm and ends at 9.40pm. I’m used to morning shifts, so I wake up at 4am to be on time because I have to take two buses to get to work. The commute takes me more than two hours every day.
The pandemic has changed my work a great deal. I’ve had more online orders and other tasks than ever before. We’ve all had to do extra work and be flexible. I hope things go back to normal soon.
The best thing about my work is the varied tasks. That’s why I like my work so much. The logistics department is large, and my coworkers and friendly and supportive. We always find something to talk about.
I’ve been at the same job for over three years. I was born in Russia, but I moved to Finland in 2010. I studied Finnish at first, and then I went to vocational school to become a pharmacy technician. I was at home for a couple of months before landing my first job as a pharmacy assistant.
I joined PAM because I want to be protected in all areas of the world of work. When my work hours were changed because of corona, I thought that I should join the union. I’ve never been a union member before, so this is a completely new thing for me. I believe that being a union member can also give me additional protection that I may need because I have an immigrant background, even though I already have Finnish citizenship. I asked my coworker which union I should join and they recommended PAM.
In my free time I like to spend a lot of time outside, walking or biking with my husband. I have two dogs and a cat at home, and taking care of them also takes up some time.