The Man's Message
Established 2003 | "Tetritus fortis sine gym"
Friday, December 12, 2025
Crew Of The Weeks
One measly paragraph simply isn't enough to describe the moving prowess of COTW crew Micah Worthington and Alex "King" Wong. Leaving a stunner of a review for a borderline perfect sounding moving experience, this customer wanted to ensure the team's hard work didn't go unnoticed.
"Micah and Alex from Man With A Van were absolutely outstanding from start to finish. They were friendly, professional and genuinely fun to be around, which made what is usually a stressful day feel surprisingly relaxed. They were really easy to communicate with clear, calm and always happy to answer questions or talk through the plan as we went.
Nothing was too hard or too much trouble. They were easy-going and very accommodating when we needed to make small changes on the fly, like shifting the order of what went in the truck or adjusting where things landed in the new place. Despite that flexibility, they were incredibly organised and efficient, it always felt like they were three steps ahead, working quickly but never rushing.
One of the things we appreciated most was how careful they were with our belongings. They were highly sensitive to fragile items, checking what needed extra care and taking the time to wrap, secure and position everything properly. It was clear they took pride in doing the job well and making sure our things arrived safely.
From the outset, they were organised, friendly, efficient and genuinely eager to help us move and get settled. They turned what could have been a stressful day into something smooth, calm and even enjoyable.
We couldn't recommend Micah, Alex, and Man With A Van enough.
P.S. Happy birthday, Micah!!"
Outstanding work you two, come catch Jack Tandy around the depot to collect your reward.
Your Gold Liftie Nominees
Your votes have been counted. Managers have had their say too. Customer feedback has been taken into account. The nominees for Man With A Van's highest award: The Gold Liftie™ - recognising their outstanding contribution throughout 2025 have been finalised.
The winner of The Gold Liftie™ will be announced along with other awards including but not limited to: Best Noob, Gold Headset, Best Trainer at the MWAV Christmas Party on Saturday, 20th December.
And the nominees are:
Gold Liftie Nominee
Alex Morris - “Along with Paul Deakin, Alex put the TWU and interested staff on his back and carried them to The Man’s bargaining table where he carried sway and got the new EBA agreed to and signed. Also put a great deal of time and effort into *indoctrinating* sorry, training new staff to get them up to scratch. Capable of lending a kind shoulder for senior management to cry their crocodile tears on, whilst simultaneously conference calling the TWU brass and MWAV staff caucus to negotiate another quarter percent tenure raise, Alex has shown an absurd ability to juggle every ball at Man With A Van with nary a crack to his genuine smile. No mean feat.”
Gold Liftie Nominee
Hayden Tapping - Back-to-back Gold Liftie noms. The mover’s mover. The Ferrero Rocher of removalists with the bulletproof exterior covering the heart of sweet gold that lies just beneath. He is best exemplified with the quote "If I could choose any partner to carry me up those stairs into moving hell, it would always be Doss." Whether it's countless flights of stairs, stressed out customers, or fools getting too close to the truck, Doss doesn't let anything stand in his way. Has over 2,100+ moves to his name so the question must be asked, has Doss’ time arrived? And if it hasn’t, would anyone be brave enough to say so?
Gold Liftie Nominee
Jake Joyce - “Former Gold Headset Winner, possibly the saltiest of the lot who cares the most. Demands high standards of himself and others in his care. Excellent and long time leader in the phone room, back out on the road this year and solves all problems thrown his way or not. It’s an open secret he has coveted the blue jacket for many years, and has never been adverse to putting his name forward for the big gong... and encouraging others to do the same. Would a win today seal his name in the Pantheon of moving GOATs?? Could the cat-calls of “JAKEJOYCE!" finally get some traction? Is it possible to snarl at the hand that feeds you whilst also carrying the body it’s attached to - just like the statue on the trophy in front of us? If anyone can, Jake can.”
Gold Liftie Nominee
Kenzie - “Former Best Trainer Winner, leader, all round great guy. He is known for being calm & thorough in every respect. He lead the “train the trainer” seminar for senior movers with gusto and aplomb. If there is a problem on the road, Kenzie can and has solved it. Don’t be distracted by his bi-weekly hair colour change, Kenzie is the go-to guy for every mover, manager and customer when a composed, capable and caring pair of hands - and a steel determination to succeed - is required to get the job done. Man With A Van, and everyone in it, is enhanced by his presence.”
Gold Liftie Nominee
Thom Lidgerwood - “Thom arrived at Man With A Van in Feb 2022 in a ferocious explosion of quiet perseverance, and has continued to pull himself serenely and carefully by his always-steel-toed bootstraps. Former Quiet Achiever Winner (2024), Health & Safety Rep (2023). D&I and OHS Committee member who developed the aptly titled “Abb+Cran Truck Issue Checklist” (2025) which has made Richie’s life & truck maintenance immeasurably easier. Ever dependable XL, Large, Medium and Tinks driver whose cacophony of contributions continues to be above and beyond his peers as well as his own already ear splitting achievements, Thom does it all. Just, ya know, quietly.”
Xmas Party RSVP
Man With A Van Lifties™ Christmas Party
We will celebrate Christmas this year! We will be slipping off the steel caps and stepping onto the green for a sophisticated evening of lawn bowls @ Fitzroy Bowls Club on Saturday, 20 December 5pm - 10pm.
As is tradition, the party will also incorporate the Lifties™ Awards Ceremony, which honours the best and not so best elements of the year at MWAV.
It's always a real hoot so please RSVP and roll the evening away.
Cranburners: Transport to and from the party will be organised for you to attend as we’d love to have as many of you there as possible.
Click >>here<< to RSVP to the Xmas Party by 6pm, Monday!
We have a new HSR
The people have spoken!
James Walshe is has been elected as the new Health & Safety Representative for the Abbotsford depot. It was a very tight race with only two votes splitting James and second place.
The Man extends a very big thank you to James Walshe, Maciej Radny, and Skyler Newton for putting themselves out there for the benefit of a safer workplace for all staff.
Skyler & Maciej have also joined the OHS committee which is great to see. Long live the safety.
Need Moar Moovers!
Summer is here and that means Jobs! Jobs! Jobs! The Man extends a big and sincere thank you to everyone who has nominated for extra shifts to get as many people into their new homes as humanly possible in time for Christmas.
If you are keen to spread the Christmas cheer, update your availability for an extra shift or two and get those extra dollar$$$ to enjoy the silly season to the fullest.
Doors Closing
There have been a couple of recent issues with movers blocking lift doors or holding them open too long causing malfunctions.
How long can you keep the doors open for a lift? The rule of thumb is that if the lift is not locked off and the doors want to close, please let them shut all the way but be quick to open them back up.
If you fight the doors, the elevator will eventually break which means you're taking the stairs, The Man foots a costly bill, and the residents are super salty.
Elevator doors are impatient but you are cool, calm, & collected. You let them close then reopen. Life is good. The move continues and everyone is happy.
The Container Report with Bill Cleveland
And now with the container report, here's Bill Cleveland:
"The container market backed off slightly since the last report with current total of 130 versus last weeks record result of 148 glass bottles slumped from 11 to 5 along with plastic bottles backing off from 36 last week to 19. Cans bounced slightly from 101 to a new can high of 106! There may be a weather factor in the measurable decline overall. It rained a lot in the report period.
Some negativity has crept in as there were 7 cans which had been crushed beyond recovery. These cannot be recycled in the CDS scheme. They are re-streamed to Inner City Metal Recycling nearby but yield very little value compared to the “lost” $.70.
The MWAV container market hit a new high of 176 over all. Cans responded to the generally better warm weather with a handy rise of 16 for a total 122 Glass bottles were steady at 5.
Plastic bottles bounced 20 from 19 to 39 in an unexpected market surge. The increasingly warm weather is likely to produce enhanced numbers. Drivers should be mindful of the need to stay well hydrated through the summer season. And that's recycling."
Thanks Bill. Coming up after the break, Tommy J reports on The Vibe.
The Vibe
The busy holiday season is well and truly underway and there's been a whole heap of resoundingly positive, festive feedback sent our way. With most complaints being levelled at MWAV's aging online infrastructure, Melbourne is almost universally stoked with your moving efforts, amazing work everyone!
Tommy's Tales
Squint or you'll miss it, this tiny broken plastic dryer leg was discovered during the unload as the team went to place the unit back on top of the washer in the new laundry. About as comprehensive a damage report as one could hope for was submitted by the team and after a quick chat with the customer the replacement leg was ordered, arriving earlier this week.
With the shipping costing more than the actual leg itself, it's not quite a new damage department record but likely the cheapest repair of 2025 coming in at about the cost of an average pub lunch.
Summer is officially here!
With summer comes sunshine. With sunshine comes heat. With heat comes dehydration. With dehydration comes death. Stay hydrated this summer and look out for the danger signs in yourself and in your lifting partner.
Also - Make sure you SLIP on a hat, SLOP on enough sunscreen, SLAP on a shirt, & WRAP your face in some shades.
Most importantly - Take 2 minutes to get your head around our
>>Heat Policy<<
& our
>>Temperature Extremes (Hot & Cold) Policy<<
Christmas has come early
This year, Santa took one look at the weather and said, “Wow, MWAV needs to stay hydrated this summer.” So he’s dropped off a personalised stainless-steel water bottle for every member of staff, because you’re all way too talented to be drinking from the communal mystery bottle in the corner.
Now you can stay hydrated, look fancy, and subtly flex your monogrammed magic all at once.
Merry Christmas, you Legends of the Logistical Lugg! 🎅🚛💦✨