After a career spanning eight decades, the oldest worker in Britain, at the ripe age of 96, says he still has no plans to retire.
At the sawmill he started 42 years ago, Bill Parton continues to work five days a week and has no intention of retiring.
‘You need to remain mentally active. The secret is to keep going. You have to keep working; you cannot just sit back and do nothing.
In 1942, during World War II, the great-grandad started working as an apprentice plumber at the age of 14. He later founded the prosperous family-run business.
Although Mr. Parton now primarily assists in the office, he is not above getting his hands filthy and mending instruments when needed on the manufacturing floor.
Twelve months ago, he only stopped working his sixth day; he still puts in 40 hours a week. What’s even more impressive is that he has never skipped a workweek in his life.
‘In my entire life, I have never skipped a week of work.’ However, I did have a hip procedure that kept me out of commission for a few days.
Even though Hales Sawmill in Shropshire, England, is being run by three of his grandchildren, the gregarious elder still manages to ‘keep his mind active” at the company he founded from the ground up in 1982.
‘I’m actually the go-fer now; I was the gaffer once. Parton joked that you have to give the kids a chance.
The youngsters and my son are operating it fairly well. Seeing it continue into the third generation is fantastic.
He typically arrives at 9 a.m. and departs at 5 p.m. He frequently strolls around to observe the operations of the machines.
‘These days, I don’t do as much, but I’m always available if they need me.’ ‘Even a squeak indicates a problem with a machine; I can hear it over all other noise.’
From its founding, the sawmill employed just two people; today, it employs over sixty people at two locations.
Even though he cannot read or write, his exceptional work ethic has helped him since he dropped out of school as a teenager, although he acknowledges that ‘you have to be lucky in a way.’
He also gives tribute to his 60-year marriage to his late wife, Joan.The true boss was her. She was always aware of what we were doing and had the intelligence. She gave us a fantastic name.
‘It’s simple to earn a bad reputation; it’s challenging to establish and maintain a good one over time.’