Women of Delta: Renita’s Story
I grew up with a lot of boys, I never thought I was different from them, I could do whatever they can. I think that is why I had more male friends than female. I never thought I cannot do something, I just thought I can, maybe I just wanted to prove that it is true.
Renita grew up in Lithuania believing that what all the other boys and girls could do, she could as well. As a young woman of 18, she was inspired by this spirit to leave behind all her familiarity and move to the UK. As a young adult with her first taste of independence, she has gained numerous promotions and is unwavering in the belief that anyone can do anything they put their mind to. Man or woman. Truly an inspiration to us all. Here is her story in her own words.
What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
International Woman’s Day is similar to Mother’s Day, it’s to show women respect.
Growing up in Lithuania, what were your career aspirations? Do you remember thinking about work and what you wanted to be?
I grew up with a lot of boys, I never thought I was different from them, I could do whatever they can. I think that is why I had more male friends than female. I never thought I cannot do something, I just thought I can, maybe I just wanted to prove that it is true.
I was studying politics, international politics, but it was a little bit too boring for me. I think because of my age at the time was why the course wasn’t really for me. I wanted to get involved a bit more, experience more in the world. So, I started working part time in print alongside studying. Once I started in print I realised, this is for me, this is what I want to do.
And how did you get into it, into print?
First of all, I was just an agency worker, part time. As I said, I was working for an agency because I was studying. But the agency sent me to the work for a company in London and that’s how it all started. I really enjoyed it and wated to stay – that was 15 years ago.
Would you say growing up anyone influenced your career path? Did anyone push you in a certain direction?
It was just me; I was making the decisions for myself. It was a scary and good feeling all at the same time. I left home at 18 and went to a different country (the UK) to study on my own, just with a couple of friends. It exciting because it was something new, something different, I do not regret anything, I would say I made good choices.
Do you think that moving at such a young age had any impact on how you go about the world?
Yes, that was a major impact, back home it was Mum, Dad and support all the time. If I needed any advice I went to them, any issues, problems, I had people to go to – very close people and here I had to make decisions on my own. You need to do everything on your own, I grew up very quickly. I left a child and within a year I became a grown woman.
What did doing something like that teach you about yourself?
You can do whatever you want, if you trust yourself, it doesn’t matter if you are a man or a woman, it makes no difference at all.
Ten years ago, you joined Delta what has your experience of working at Delta been like?
It has been very good, I joined at the same time as my manager joined Delta, I am very loyal, we came together. He helped me out a lot at the beginning, he saw my potential. I started as a team leader on the benches. When I was due to return from maternity leave, Delta created a weekend /night shift to accommodate me, it fitted in with my home life. I was promoted at the same time to Supervisor. After five years, in 2021, I became Senior Supervisor. I feel that was a big achievement.
How did it feel coming back to the office from maternity leave?
I kept in contact with my manager throughout and they did all that could for me, it made me feel good. It was great.
In in your career in general, have you ever felt your gender has been a barrier?
Personally no, I never felt that, as I said before there isn’t anything I can’t do that a man can. I proved that to everyone and myself, I can drive forklift and I can work all the machinery. I think it’s completely up to women themselves; where they put themselves. I feel that sometimes they say “no, I’m not doing that” because they are a woman. I think that’s absolutely up to them, how they present themselves. But I always think I’m equal, I’m the same, I’m no different.
Have you ever felt like people make assumptions based on your gender?
Not really no, maybe years ago, but things have changed drastically. For example, in our department on the day shift out of six supervisors, eight years ago, all of them were men. Now we have five women and one man, so it’s changed a lot. Women have started to understand that they can do exactly the same as what men can – there is the proof downstairs!
How do you think we can encourage those women to go after leadership roles?
We are always laughing that we have womanpower downstairs in the finishing department because there are a lot of women and only a couple of men. We all get along with each other and we don’t feel there is any difference between men and women – there are no roles where men can feel better than us! We encourage one another to believe that we can do anything.
What would you say to the younger generation of women who want to plan their career?
Follow your dreams. You can do anything, you have everything in your power, everything. I think now is the time when there are no differences between men and women. All over the world there are female presidents, woman in power, not like hundreds of years ago. Now it is completely normal for a woman to be in power. So, I would say just follow your dreams, don’t ever think that you can’t do it because you’re a woman. Men and women need to respect one another.
