MRO Today - Schene refused to give in

Schene refused to give in

by Paul V. Arnold

What would you do for your family? This has nothing to do with vacations or presents.

Restated, if stuff hit the fan, how far would you go to ensure the physical, financial and emotional well-being of your spouse or kids?

Would you go as far as Cathy Schene did?

In 1982, Schene's assembly line job was eliminated at the Batesville Casket Company plant in Batesville, Ind. Schene, a six-year employee, had three options:
1) take a second-shift job (3 p.m. to 11 p.m.) at the same assembly building;
2) take a first-shift job at the plant's stamping and fabricating building;
3) leave the company.

Since Schene was supporting four young children, Options 1 and 3 were out of the question.

Schene chose Option 2 and the challenges that came with a job in the stamping building.

"At that time, there were no women in that building. There were more than 100 men, but no women. It was and always had been a male-dominated area," says Schene, MRO Today magazine's MRO Pro for October/November.

"Needless to say, I wasn't welcomed. They put me through hell."

Schene was given a stamping job on a 1,000-ton press, where she pulled, turned and flipped hefty sheets of steel.

"The men could turn and flip them, but I didn't have the strength. I had to lean the sheet against my leg to get it balanced so I could flip it," she says. "I did that for two weeks, and my legs were black and blue from my hip to my knee."

After each shift, she hobbled to her car, drove home and cried.

"But I kept telling myself, 'I'll do it. I've got to do it,'" she says.

A few co-workers supported her, but others tried to break her will.

After two weeks of pain and taunting, she learned she wasn't supposed to be assigned press work. She was moved to the building's small assembly area.

"I burned up that area. I put out parts faster than anyone," she says.

Schene's toughness and productivity earned her respect and acceptance.

"It came down to who was more stubborn and how much I could bear," she says. "I'm pretty damn stubborn, trust me, because I'm still here 18 years later."

Today, co-workers and managers around the building acknowledge Schene as a trailblazer and leader.

Seven women now work at the stamping and fabrication building. And Schene is a team leader for the cap (casket lid) production line.

"This is a totally different place than 18 years ago," she says.

Close-mindedness is gone. In its place are diversity and employee development and retention.

While not classified as a manager, Schene wields plenty of power as a team leader. Every day, she handles inventory, scheduling, quality and personnel issues for her area. She'll also weld, sand, grind and finish caps, when needed.

"I came to Batesville Casket 24 years ago for the money, but these days, it's more about me," she says. "I don't have a job now. I have a career."

This article appeared in the October/November 2000 issue of MRO Today magazine. Copyright, 2000.