39 Years of Labor, Not a Day Missed

Forklift driver Robert Anderson, his friends say, is a tribute to the average Joe who goes to work every day and never attracts outside attention. He’s on time for work. He works hard. He’s well-liked by his co-workers. He volunteers for overtime. And he offers advice when asked.

Oh, and there’s this: Anderson, 60, hasn’t missed a day of work in 39 years.

That consists of 20 years with Kent H. Landsberg Co. at the packaging and distribution firm’s warehouse in Montebello and the 19 before that at Wilson Paper Co., which was absorbed by Landsberg.

“He’s a role model, and I look up to him,” said Bob Gonzales, Anderson’s boss, who has known him for 20 years.

Mark Johnson, the company’s director of distribution, said: “His work ethic is in his personality. He wants to be here on time and work every day.

“Robert’s a pretty unique guy, because he does the exact same job, the same function, day in and day out.”

So today , at the start of the Labor Day weekend, Anderson will be honored in a ceremony at the Montebello warehouse to mark his perfect attendance record. He will get a certificate and a $1,000 bonus check from appreciative bosses.

“I love what I do,” a smiling Anderson said Thursday.

The secret for his perfect working record is simple enough, he said.

“I don’t drink,” said Anderson. “I’m faithful to my wife of 34 years. I’m a deacon at my church. And I’ve never been sick. It’s a blessing from the Lord.”

Some might think Anderson would be tempted to skip a day here and there. But that wasn’t the way he was raised by his single mother in Milwaukee, who reared seven children.

“My mother taught us to work hard and be responsible,” he said. “So I cooked, cleaned, washed and ironed [clothes] myself.

“I’m employed by Landsberg, but I worked for myself.”

So he gladly gets up early at his home in Ladera Heights for his 7 a.m.-to-3:30 p.m. shift. “I leave home at 5:45,” he said, “get on the Santa Monica Freeway, get to the Santa Ana Freeway, and I’m here in Montebello in 20 minutes.”

Anderson, nicknamed “Mr. Bubble” for his job of storing and loading stacks of Bubble Wrap plastic packing material, gets needled by his co-workers, since they believe he doesn’t really have to come to work. He’s independently wealthy, they say.

Anderson, a member of the Teamsters union who earns about $40,000 a year as a forklift driver, admitted: “Well, I do own three apartment buildings and a home I rent out. I put two daughters through college . . . but I just love to work.”

And for his perfect work record, he routinely picks up a $250 check twice a year for unused sick days. “But that’s only $144 clear after taxes,” he pointed out.

That brought a chuckle from co-workers, and the ceremony helped lighten the mood of employees, who have been mourning the passing of Kent H. Landsberg, the company’s founder, who died Monday in Santa Monica.

“Robert gives us his all every day,” said warehouse manager Bruce Hippler.

So will he be tempted to skip out from work early after today’s ceremony with the $1,000 check in hand?

“No,” Anderson said. “As long as I have good health, I’ll be here working, doing my job.”