Family feeling in practice: three generations at Vebego
The best stories don't start at the office, but at home around the kitchen table. This is also true of Vebego's story. Vebego has been a true family business since 1943. And even though the company has since grown into a major international player, it still revolves around that family feeling. In this series, brothers, sisters, parents and children, who also happen to be colleagues, share their experiences of working together within the same company.
Mariyana works as a forewoman at Vebego. But she is not the only one in her Bulgarian family. Her mother, sister and nephew all work for Vebego in cleaning. One family with three generations of colleagues.
The entire family at Vebego
‘In 2017, I was the first member of our family to start working at Vebego,’ says Mariyana. ‘At the time, I was working as a forewoman at the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital. As a forewoman, you assign cleaning tasks, supervise and do some cleaning yourself.’ In addition to her extensive work experience, Mariyana also brought a large part of her Bulgarian family with her. ‘My sister also helped me find a job at Vebego. First in cleaning at the hospital and later in the office,’ says her sister Kremena. Mariyana adds: ‘The same thing happened with my mother. Through me, she started cleaning in the evenings. And when I needed holiday workers later on, I asked my nephew Rumen.’
The power of language
‘What’s so great about Vebego is that they always think along with their employees,’ Mariyana continues. ‘For example, at the beginning they asked us what we needed in terms of our work. We really just wanted to learn to speak better Dutch. So my mother, my sister and I were allowed to take a Dutch course.’ Kremena adds: ‘Before, we could barely say our names. Now we can talk to anyone. I’m really proud of that. And when necessary, we just help each other out.’
Look out for each other
Grandmother Silviya looks proud and visibly enjoys listening to her daughters and grandson talk about their work at Vebego. Then she says something in Bulgarian and points to her arm. Grandson Rumen comes to her aid: ‘Grandma says she had surgery on her shoulder last year. It’s actually worn out, which makes her cleaning work difficult. She can't bend her arm properly anymore.“ Rumen looks at his grandmother and continues: 'She misses her work, but she still goes for coffee with her colleagues from time to time. And luckily, they call her regularly to ask how she is doing.” Kremena adds: 'People here look out for each other, which is nice.'
Two worlds, shared values
‘Grandma always says that we are colleagues at work and family outside of work,’ says Rumen. ‘We don't want people to think that we favour each other. So we just call each other by our first names at work. For example, I don't say that I came with my mother, but with Kremena.’ Mariyana bursts out laughing: 'Recently, a colleague asked me how Silviya was doing and how her shoulder was healing. I said, ‘Well, it's not going so well yet. I still have to help her a little with showering.’ ' The colleague looked at me strangely and exclaimed, “Stop! Why are you helping her shower?!” Apparently, she didn't know that Silviya is my mother, haha!'
Despite their age difference, grandmother, daughters and grandson all share the values of working together, growing and caring for each other. Just like Vebego. Mariyana explains: ‘Our parents taught us that work is very important. Without work, there is no money, and without money, there is no good life. It's as simple as that.’ Mariyana concludes: ‘At home, it's just like at Vebego: look, think, do. If something isn't right, we tell each other. We work hard, build on each other and are proud of what we do!’
