{"id":28012,"date":"2025-03-07T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-07T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/?p=28012"},"modified":"2026-03-04T13:08:59","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T13:08:59","slug":"revisiting-true-stories-scottie-breaking-barriers-as-ocss-first-female-contracts-manager","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/news\/revisiting-true-stories-scottie-breaking-barriers-as-ocss-first-female-contracts-manager\/","title":{"rendered":"Revisiting TRUE Stories: Scottie, Breaking Barriers as OCS\u2019s First Female Contracts Manager"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

This year\u2019s International Women\u2019s Day is particularly special for us at OCS as it coincides with our 125th anniversary<\/a>. To celebrate, we\u2019re shining a spotlight on three trailblazing women from our history\u2014Rita, Scottie, and Judy\u2014whose leadership and impact helped shape our legacy.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/section>\n\n\n

\n

In a world where leadership was traditionally a man\u2019s domain, Mrs Scott\u2014fondly known as “Scottie”\u2014defied expectations and carved her own path. As OCS\u2019s first female Contracts Manager, she not only shattered glass ceilings but also redefined what women could achieve in the industry.<\/p>\n

Scottie\u2019s journey with OCS began in the early 1950s when she applied for a part-time supervisor role to help pay for her daughter\u2019s school fees. Despite initial scepticism\u2014one manager even remarked that she was “above that sort of thing”\u2014Scottie was given a one-month trial. That trial turned into a remarkable 26-year career, proving that talent and tenacity triumph over bias.<\/p>\n <\/section>\n\n\n

\n \n \n \n \"A\n <\/picture>\n <\/section>\n\n\n
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Her rise was swift. Within a few years, she became an inspector and then a Contracts Manager, a role she held for over 18 years. At a time when OCS was still “very much a man\u2019s firm,” she faced the same challenges, took the same “kicks and knocks” as her male colleagues, and yet was once excluded from the company\u2019s bi-centenary celebrations simply because she was the only woman manager. But Scottie never let setbacks define her. Instead, they fueled her drive to fight for equal opportunities for women\u2014including successfully campaigning for the first OCS pension scheme for female clerical team.<\/p>\n

Her leadership wasn\u2019t just about breaking barriers\u2014it was about empowering others. She was deeply committed to her cleaning staff, many of whom stayed with her for 16 to 18 years, and she fiercely advocated for the recognition of cleaning as a respectable profession.<\/p>\n

Scottie\u2019s influence extended beyond OCS. A firm believer that women could do just as well as men, she admired Margaret Thatcher and once joked, “I’m looking forward to the time she’s prime minister and, who knows, what about me as a director of OCS?”<\/p>\n <\/section>\n\n\n

\n
\n \n \n \n \"A\n <\/picture>\n\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \n \n \"An\n <\/picture>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n
\n

Despite her demanding schedule\u2014starting work at 4 AM every day\u2014Scottie\u2019s energy was boundless. She balanced work with her passions for cooking, theatre, ballet, and family, proving that a woman\u2019s role wasn\u2019t confined to one space.<\/p>\n

On this International Women\u2019s Day, we celebrate Scottie\u2014not just for being the first, but for ensuring that she wouldn\u2019t be the last.<\/p>\n <\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meet Scottie, the first female contract manager at OCS. For IWD this year we are revisiting stories of trailblazing women from across OCS’s vast history to celebrate our 125th anniversary.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":10000021223,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[359,474,475,54,422],"tags":[358,53],"country":[237,267],"class_list":["post-28012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-heritage","category-international-days","category-international-womens-day","category-our-people","category-true-stories","tag-125th-anniversary","tag-our-people","country-ireland","country-uk"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nScottie: International Women's Day<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We're celebrating International Women\u2019s Day and our 125th anniversary by spotlighting on trailblazing women from our history.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/news\/revisiting-true-stories-scottie-breaking-barriers-as-ocss-first-female-contracts-manager\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Revisiting TRUE Stories: Scottie, Breaking Barriers as OCS\u2019s First Female Contracts Manager\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We're celebrating International Women\u2019s Day and our 125th anniversary by spotlighting on trailblazing women from our history.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/news\/revisiting-true-stories-scottie-breaking-barriers-as-ocss-first-female-contracts-manager\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"OCS - 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