Bethlehem, Tauranga man with 'job wanted' sign to become full-time job seeker

Rihari Joseph used to sit at a Bethlehem roundabout everyday looking jobs for himself and others. Photo / File

Kitted out in hi-vis, a hat and holding a big sign saying "job wanted" - this used to be Rihari Joseph's daily grind. Eight hours every day, Joseph could be spotted by Tauranga commuters parked up at a Bethlehem roundabout with his sign and always a big smile on his face. Before long, people were stopping and calling him with employment opportunities and he began setting unemployed people in his community up with work. Reporter Caroline Fleming caught up with him a month on to see how he was going.

The Bethlehem man who became a community icon for his method of finding work has decided to turn his passion into a business.

Rihari Joseph used to sit at Bethlehem roundabouts holding a rainbow-coloured flashing light and a sign saying "job wanted", quickly becoming a staple for Tauranga commuters.

Joseph was looking for odd jobs for himself as he cared for his terminally ill wife, but quickly found himself helping a number of people in the community find work too.

A few weeks ago, his wife died. Her death put him back in a position to take up full-time employment himself, he said.

However, the 64-year-old got such joy out of his time picking up jobs for those in the community who needed it that he wanted to take it further with his new-found free time.

Rihari Joseph used to sit at a Bethlehem roundabout everyday looking jobs for himself and others. Photo / File

Using his personable nature and the connections he had made in the community, Joseph planned to start his own fulltime business helping unemployed people into work. He registered a business name and has been offered some CBD office space.

Joseph said starting his own support service business was a good way for him to use something he was good at to help others and get back into the mainstream after his loss.

He would set up and drive prospective employees to job interviews, as well as mentoring and working with them in goal-setting and work dress and ethic.

Just this week, Joseph helped two people start full-time positions at a local supermarket.

When the Bay of Plenty Times dropped by, Joseph and two men he was helping were sipping on coffee, sharing a packet of shortbread biscuits and filling out worksheets with their goals.

One of the men, Nathan Miru, said he had met Joseph at a time when he was struggling with employment and he had taken him "under his wing".

Rihari Joseph (centre) was helping both Nathan Miru (left) and Zederiah Campbell with finding full-time employment. Photo / George Novak

Joseph started off by getting him to help out in the garden part-time to build his work ethic. This boosted his confidence and gave him that little bit of income he needed, he said.

They were now working together to get him into a more secure and stable role.

Another man, Zederiah Campbell, said the pair had met at a time when he was desperately seeking employment and it was somewhat a "miracle" for him.

Life Unlimited manager Mandy Dhaliwal said she offered Joseph some office space out of their store, as she thought what he was doing was "wonderful".

Over time, she built a good relationship with him as he would often come in to hire things from her store and she learned a bit about his story and plans, she said.

Dhaliwal's husband worked in the kiwifruit industry and was planning to bring Campbell and Miru out to see if kiwifruit winter pruning work might be right for them.

Joseph planned to create posters saying "thank you Tauranga" to tape onto poles in the Bethlehem area, as he said he would not be where he was without the support he had received from the community.