Virgin Atlantic employee who recently volunteered to help colleagues in Tel Aviv is praised for work contribution
A Kent-based airline engineer has won a new global award which recognises the significant contribution made by frontline or ‘deskless’ workers worldwide.
Paul Deeks, from Rainham was put forward for the inaugural Frontline Hero Award – run by workforce management experts Quinyx – by his manager Wayne Issard, beating hundreds of other entries to take the title.
Paul has worked for Virgin Atlantic since 1999, when he joined as a teenage apprentice. He was described by Wayne as “100% a frontline hero”.
Responsible for a variety of maintenance tasks to ensure aircraft safety, Paul’s role involves worldwide travel to carry out repairs and repatriation.
When events in Israel resulted in reduced engineering support in the country, Paul volunteered to fly out to Tel Aviv, ensuring the airline could continue to operate and passengers could get home before all international flights were halted.
Additionally, Paul was recognised for his ongoing willingness to take on extra tasks and help enhance working conditions and processes for his team – including his recent implementation of a new radio system to improve internal communications and boost overall efficiency and productivity.
Paul’s passion for encouraging young people into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering) subjects was also commended, following his work in schools both in the UK and the US to help inspire students to consider aviation and STEM-related careers.
Father-of-two Paul, who enjoys paddleboarding and hiking, was awarded a $500 voucher in recognition of his achievements.
He said: “I’m blown away – I’ve never won anything before! Discovering I’d been named ‘Frontline Hero’ was truly unexpected. I love my job, and the most exhilarating aspect of it is working with a fantastic team of people across various departments. The camaraderie and diverse expertise of my colleagues make every day interesting. I’m really honoured by this recognition.”
Erik Fjellborg, CEO and founder, Quinyx said: “With the Frontline Hero Award, we wanted to recognise workers like Paul, the everyday heroes who tirelessly deliver outstanding service and make a huge difference in the workplace.
“We’re incredibly impressed by the hero nominations – they were all highly praised by their colleagues for being supportive, going that extra mile to help co-workers and customers, and generally helping to spread positivity all around.”
Quinyx has recognised four global winners as ‘Frontline Heroes’: Joakim Anundsson (Sweden); Gwen Barrow (The Netherlands); Paul Deeks (UK) and Taya Morin-Evans (Canada).
