Greg Higdon ChatterHigh Profile

Background

I grew up in Dartmouth and graduated high school in 2013. After high school, I took a year off and did a few different jobs working at a call centre and landscaping/construction. After my year off from school, I went to Nova Scotia Community College for Diesel Engine Mechanics, hoping it would take me to Alberta for work. Working on cars and trucks was always something I enjoyed and something I could see myself doing for a living until the price of oil dropped and most prospects for work in that field dried up for a few years. I continued to try out a few other jobs until I discovered the opportunity to drive trucks as a career!   

Career

I started working at Irving Oil in 2017 as a truck driver, delivering diesel to construction sites for five years and later becoming a peer coach for my colleagues. I decided I wanted more out of my career and, after looking at various options (both inside and outside of Irving), I decided I wanted to learn a trade and take an apprenticeship in gas fitting. With Irving’s support, I now split my week up between driving my truck for a few days a week and working towards my apprenticeship on the other days, while doing schoolwork on my own time in the evenings.  

I love that Irving is a diverse company with lots of career options and opportunities. Where I am a seasoned driver with an important role on our team, I get to mentor some days and on other days I get to be a student and learn new skills to further my own career.