Burgers to chips

If you had said to Douglas Barrett as a schoolboy that he would be making a living as a maintenance technician, he probably wouldn't have believed you; but not only does he make a comfortable living, he likes what he does.

The former pupil of St Kevin's in Finglas, Dublin, now works at 3COMM in Blanchardstown, Co Dublin, where he repairs and maintains surface-mount and wave solders, equipment vital for the production of communication cards and Internet links. His first job was about as far a cry as you could get from the intricate and high-tech world of the electronics industry. He was, in fact, a butcher, although not for too long as it turned out because he " hated it".

Not really knowing what he wanted to do, he enrolled himself into an information-technology course at ANCO (now FAS), where he began to realise that he liked this kind of thing. On completion of the course he secured a job at EG&G, which sent him to DIT Kevin Street to spend two years studying at night for a certificate in electronic equipment maintenance (parts 1 and 2).

After a number of years he moved on to 3COMM, where he has been for the past two years. Barrett is the first to admit, and indeed espouse, the need for study. He has already finished the third part of the electronic equipment maintenance certificate at Kevin Street, which was paid for by 3COMM, and as a result he is now earning more.

Working at 3COMM, he says, has its advantages, which include sick benefits and an option to buy company shares. Recently, he was approached by another company which wanted him to work there, offering him £7,000 more than he was earning at 3COMM. He turned the offer down.

Some would have thought him mad, but the package at 3COMM was one he was happy with and the drive to work from his new home in Kells, Co Meath, is infinitely preferable to the nightmare of commuting around Dublin. Besides, he didn't want to give up shift work. "Because I do shift work, I get some time off during the week which means I can spend proper time with my two kids. That's very important."