Last Friday - almost 54 years to the day - the 70-year-old walked out the freezing works door for the last time, having become the longest-serving employee in the Alliance plant's 101-year history.
In his first two years, he made, with overtime, about £1200 a year, about £100 more than his father made in his job.
''And I was only 16,'' Mr Tiddy said.
After working at stringing for two years, he moved on to the sticking pen and then dagging at the end of the chain.
A few years later he took a job as a meat grader.
''We were there for the farmers, we were grading lambs for the farmers and if we saw things that were wrong, I was never afraid to say something. I never, with the New Zealand Meat Board, hesitated in speaking my mind when I thought things were wrong.''
In 1967 he was made a salaried employee.
He soon moved his way up to second-in-command and eventually became supervising grader for the cooling floor, grading and chillers, a job he held until 2005.
In that time, he supervised several men who had gone on to bigger roles in the meat industry, including Alliance Pukeuri plant manager Geoff Proctor and Richard Thorp, a former plant manager.
He worked in the services store after that, and found it a change of pace after so long as a grader, but said he was ready for a change and enjoyed the transition.
For the past 10 years, he has spent his mornings unpacking everything that comes in by freight and recording receipts.
He then took on responsibility for distributing inward goods, such as items for tradesmen, or goods, such as knifes, gumboots, pouches and steels, for the various departments inside the plant. Despite half a century of early starts and long, hard days, Mr Tiddy said he enjoyed his time at the freezing works.
He had seen various changes at the plant in 54 years, most notably, new technology and stricter health and safety regulations.
On Friday, there was a morning tea for Mr Tiddy, a presentation and an opportunity for him to tour the plant with his wife Sally.
In retirement, he planned to spend more time fishing and catching up on jobs around the house.
Travel was also on the agenda.
The couple owned a home in the Philippines, where they would spend at least six weeks each year. Mr Proctor said Mr Tiddy would be ''well missed''.
He was one of Mr Proctor's first supervisors when he became a meat grader, at age 21.
''He was my boss originally ... he trained us all up.''
