A férfi, aki 21 mérföldet gyalogol a munkahelyére

Is this the hardest working man in America? Factory worker who can’t afford a car walks 21 miles to work and back every day – whatever the weather

For ten years James Robertson hasn’t missed a single day of work. What’s even more remarkable is that Robertson walks a round trip of 21 miles a day just to get there.

For five days a week, Robertson, 56, trudges from his home in Detroit to his job at the factory where he works in Rochester Hills, Michigan. He’s walked the walk ever since his 1988 Honda Accord quit on him more than 10 years ago.

His job pays him $10.55 an hour, which he claims is not enough for him to buy his own car, but that may well change after well-wishers managed to raise almost $42,000 for him in an online campaign in just hours.

In the city that made the motor car famous, he is without his own four-wheels and there’s no decent bus service to get him to where he wants to go, either. 

‘I set our attendance standard by this man,’ said his boss Todd Wilson to the Detroit Free Press. ‘I say, if this man can get here, walking all those miles through snow and rain, well, I’ll tell you, I have people in Pontiac 10 minutes away and they say they can’t get here — bull! He’s never missed. I’ve seen him come in here wringing wet,’ said Wilson, 53.

Robertson claims he powers his marathon-like commutes by drinking two litres of Mountain Dew and countless cans of Coke each day. 

‘I sleep a lot on the weekend, yes I do,’ he said, ‘but I can’t imagine not working,’

Although the commute getting into work is gruelling, things are worse on the way back as Robertson has to walk the streets alone, in the dark and freezing cold.  

None of his co-workers lives anywhere near him, so catching a ride almost never happens.  The walk takes him through some shady neighbourhoods including Highland Park and the infamous 8 Mile area. Robertson says he was mugged once but doesn’t like to talk about the incident. 

He says that it’s not just the $1,700 monthly pay check that lures him back to work each day but the idea of being around his friendly co-workers whom he calls ‘family’.

The boss’s wife has also taken a shine to him and prepares him home-cooked meals each evening too. 

On several occasions, a banker driving the exact same route has given Robertson a ride.  ‘Knowing what I know, I can’t drive past him now. I’m in my car with the heat blasting and even then my feet are cold,’ Blake Pollock, 47, said.

Of course, all that may now be about to change after tens of thousands of dollars were raised for him in an online campaign. 

Robertson said he was flattered by the attention he’d gotten for his tenacious treks after he made front page news in a local newspaper. 

He said he was amazed that complete strangers would respond so generously with some even offering to buy him a brand new car.

A local car dealership even offered to give him a 2014 Chevrolet Cruz or Sonic. 

‘He gets to choose,’ said Angela Osborne, customer service specialist at Rodgers Chevrolet in Woodhaven.

‘We were just impressed with his determination,’ Ms. Osborne said.

As of Monday morning, the total was close to $42,000 and still rising.