Tahnee Sumner never imagined she’d end up working in the rail industry.
With a background in finance, she fell into a job in the accounts department at Swietelsky Rail Australia (SRA), a leading provider of mechanised services for railway maintenance and construction.
Nine years later, she’s hasn’t looked back – and she’s now thriving as the company’s manager of Human Resources.
“Rail was an industry I never really thought about, until I was in it,” she said.
“What first drew me in was the work SRA does, the way they connect communities is really impressive to see.
“Then when I started the job, I really enjoyed meeting so many people from different walks of life and everything just fell into place.”
Sumner said “no two days are ever the same” working at Swietelsky, and she loves the culture.
“It’s a collaborative environment, with plenty of opportunities for professional development,” she said. “You’re always encouraged to speak up, you feel heard and you feel valued.”
The 35-year-old has fully embraced her Human Resources role and was even awarded Young Workplace Health and Safety Leader of the Year at the Hunter Safety Awards in 2025.
“Winning that award was probably the highlight of my career so far,” she said.
“I never set out to get recognition – I’m not one to chase accolades or anything like that. But unbeknownst to me, the Managing Director of SRA, Anne Connors had nominated me for the award, and winning it was such a big moment for me.”
Sumner is passionate about workplace health, safety and wellbeing, which she said is particularly important in a high-risk industry.
“I believe that if you look after your people in and out of work, they’re going to perform at their best,” she said.
“Especially in the mental health space, traditionally men have struggled more than women when it comes to asking for support.”
One of Sumner’s biggest achievements in her role at SRA has been the introduction of the C-5 Wellbeing Program, an initiative that takes a proactive and holistic approach to employee safety by addressing mental, physical, financial, relationship, and work wellbeing.
“C-5 is really cool,” she said. “It was started by Dean Noonan, who was one of the performance coaches for the [Australian professional rugby team] Newcastle Knights.
“His approach was, if you look after your players off the field, then they’re going to perform better on the field, and he tailored that to the workforce and made it applicable to any industry.”
Sumner said things such as financial or relationship stress can really take a toll on people in work.
“Bi-monthly, we send out a text message to our employees and if they want to, they can anonymously be connected to a network of support services in any of those categories.”
She said C-5 isn’t about ticking boxes, but about making sure every team member is supported long before they hit breaking point.
“The results speak for themselves,” she added. “More than 37 per cent of our staff have used some form of support the program offers, and it has proven successful in tackling many issues, from psychological safety to lifestyle changes, before they became a major concern.
“Over 87 per cent of the staff who’ve reached out for help have followed through with positive change, and that’s what matters most to me.”
Sumner has also played a key role in introducing one day of paid volunteer leave per year for employees.
“It’s just a way to encourage our staff to give back to their communities,” she said.
“It’s been really successful, and we’ve had quite a few staff members who signed up to volunteer who had never done it before.”
The Hunter Valley native is also a passionate volunteer herself, having worked with charities that support animals and elderly people.
“I’ve been a volunteer with Hunter Animal Rescue for the past six years,” she said. “I attend the adoption days and help out where I can.
“I’ve also volunteered with a program called ‘In Great Company’, spending time with elderly people who have no family – just having a chat and a coffee, playing cards or going to the shops with them.”
In addition, Sumner has helped to redesign SRA’s renumeration structures in 2023 to better support overtime work.
“Previously, our employees were on a set base salary with a set annual overtime allowance,” she said.
“This overtime allowance was the same no matter how little or how much overtime they had done – whether that was 10 hours or 10,000 hours.”
Sumner saw that this wasn’t fair on employees who had done more overtime, and it wasn’t contributing to growth for the business.
“We went through quite a long process to reevaluate this structure,” she explained. “We employed external consultants to help us with the legalities around our award rates and the conversion.
“After many consultations with our employees and different proposals, we narrowed the options down to three.
“The employees themselves were able to anonymously ask questions about each option and then we went to a vote to choose the current pay structure, where employees are now incentivised for working overtime.”
SRA also introduced three months of paid parental leave, and Sumner has been pleased to see many parents benefitting from it.
“They can take the leave at any time until their child is three years old, and in whatever blocks they want – all at once, or spaced out,” she said.
“It’s been really positive for the employees, and we’ve had a lot of uptake, especially from dads.”
Sumner encourages anyone considering a career in the rail industry to go for it.
“Rail offers such diverse career paths and great long-term opportunities,” she said.
“You don’t have to fit a mold. I had no prior experience or knowledge about the rail industry.
“Your skills and experience are valuable, so find a company that believes in you and back yourself.”
