For 29 years of service to the Houses of Parliament as the senior Hansard writer, Sandra Clemmings will be conferred with a Badge of Honour for Long and Faithful Service, on National Heroes Day in October.
Born in Woodhall, Clarendon, the Edwin Allen High School past student pursued secretarial studies at Durham College of Commerce in Kingston.
She began working at the finance ministry as a secretary and in less than a year she was recommended to pursue the stenograph/court reporting course.
“I knew nothing about it. Coming out of commercial school, I was ready. I could do shorthand. I was young and open for anything, so I went,” she said.
“They gave me this little black machine and I said what is this? Then it was introduced and from that day I fell in love with it,” she said, of seeing a stenograph for the first time.
Clemmings said her training lasted for 15 months and to qualify for graduation, she had to be able to type at top speed.
“I was doing 200 words in some of the tests, but I graduated at 180 words per minute and then I was placed at the ministry of labour. I stayed there for a short time because the IDT (Industrial Disputes Tribunal) needed some writers and after being at IDT for a couple years, I started going back to school trying to get qualified in other areas,” she explained.
Shortly after, Parliament had a shortage of Hansard writers, and she went in to assist with committee meetings.
Clemmings then applied for a vacant post, and Gordon House has been her place of employment since June 1995.
“I love Hansard writing. It’s a profession where you gain a lot of knowledge, especially at the Parliament. I have learnt so much about legislation.
“Everything that happens in Jamaica begins in the Parliament or comes to the Parliament. I see the Parliament as a learning institution,” she shared.She has also been serving as the staff’s representative to the Jamaica Civil Service Association since 2009.
“It is a pleasure and also very rewarding to advocate for fellow employees and ensure an optimal work environment for all,” she said, noting that staff members can call on her whether she is at work or not.
Tuesdays are her busiest day at work, sharing that it begins with the Constituency Development Fund Committee meeting at 9:00am., which lasts for an hour, then another committee meeting from 10:00am to 1:00 pm, followed by the sitting of the House of Representatives at 2:00pm.
“After the House starts at 2:00pm. it goes up, depending on what is being debated or what is happening, and the House can sit very late,” she said.
Her work as a Hansard writer does not end when a sitting of Parliament or a committee meeting adjourns.
“If there is an urgent request, we stay back and finish the notes, so that they can get it for the following day. After all the year’s sittings have been completed, then it is done in a book form and disseminated to the libraries and different government agencies,” she noted.
A mother of two, she said the work and family life balance was made easier because of how supportive their father was.
She is proud of their accomplishments – her daughter is in her final year of marine biology studies at university, while her son is a member of the United States army.
Clemmings said she experiences a strong sense of patriotism when she carries out her duties, knowing that she is contributing to the verbatim records of Parliament that will be referred to for years to come.
“We don’t miss out anything; if there’s a chuckle, if there’s a laugh or if there’s side talk. When you pick up the Hansard it’s like you’re sitting in a live setting. It’s a very rewarding job, something I am proud to be a part of. It’s a fulfilling job, that’s why I’m here because I could’ve left for greener pastures,” she said.
Her passion for volunteering and helping people was the driving force behind pursuing an undergraduate degree in social work at the University of the West Indies, Mona.
She graduated in 2023 and volunteers on weekends at children’s homes, justice centres and with a parenting association.
Clemmings is eight years away from retirement and although she did not expect to receive a national honour, she is grateful. “I was humbled by it,” she said.
She is excited about the ceremony on October 21, noting that she will be accompanied by her daughter, while her son will watch online as he will be on deployment.
