Sounds as though you have successfully reintegrated yourself as a cog in the great capitalist industrial machine.      Kudos on being able to still use your skills and knowledge to keep a good supply of Dent Notes of Infinite Duration moving in your direction.  How many hours/week of wage slavery are you doing?

RE

Quote from: RE on Mar 24, 2024, 04:54 AMSounds as though you have successfully reintegrated yourself as a cog in the great capitalist industrial machine.      Kudos on being able to still use your skills and knowledge to keep a good supply of Dent Notes of Infinite Duration moving in your direction.  How many hours/week of wage slavery are you doing?

RE

To many slave hours for a old man to do, a hour drive (a little over) then it is 9 hours because they take a hours lunch, then a hours drive home so right now it is a minimum 11 hour days, still going through company "training" so will likely be more hours when done that and in the field, is what it is.
 From what I gather this local division was a previous Canadian company bought out by this American conglomerate to both gain market share and reduce competition. Only one employee left from the original company a 30 year employee ready to retire soon.
 He tells me he hates the company, loved the old one. I am sure they would have let him go but he has some legacy knowledge of systems they need so it is like a old married couple that fight all the time but stay together cause it is all they know.
It has a depressingly corporate monotonous smell about the place. Everyone seems to cc 50 or more people in their both ass covering, and attention seeking emails, makes me want to puke. I have been warned that birthday cakes are given and everyone is expected to attend and sing happy birthday, For fucks sake I am a grown man I don't need to be part of a dog and pony show. If a company wants to acknowledge a employees birthday then reward them properly with the day off with pay so they can see the faces of their family on their birthday not a couple dozen faces likely half of which wont even be around next year. Somebody is risking a cake in the face if they pull that shit on me.   

I suspect I am already frowned upon, as I have not attended the Friday pizza supplied lunch. I told them and was not kidding that I don't eat shit, I really don't. If it was once a year, sure to be social I will choke down a couple oily artery clogging slices but every Friday? They can see the lunches I have brought, lean deer meat sandwiches , assortment of nuts, homemade muffins, and such.
One of the administrative staff, I believe she just started there a week before me and she is telling me  how upset her stomach was after lunch on Friday and to my surprise she said she was a vegetarian and wouldn't normally eat such food, I was going to ask her why she did then, but I know why, new job, social pressure, doesn't want to rock the boat. She is going to have to learn to stand up for herself.

Ouch.  If that is how you feel while still in training, after a couple of months you'll probably be ready to pull your hair out.

Remember. it's always easier to find a new job while you are still employed, rather than after you recently quit or got fired.  I suggest you be proactive and start sending out the resumes now.  Take this as advice from an expert at quitting jobs and being fired.  I think I held at least 15 different jobs over a 40 year working career.  The best time to start looking is the day after you get hired.

RE

Quote from: RE on Mar 25, 2024, 12:34 AMOuch. I think I held at least 15 different jobs over a 40 year working career.  The best time to start looking is the day after you get hired.

RE

Ouch indeed.  I've had 3 different jobs....each one a new career....in my 40+ working years. I think I'll retire from the 3rd one, don't have enough time left for a 4th career.

Quote from: 18hammers:I suspect I am already frowned upon, as I have not attended the Friday pizza supplied lunch. I told them and was not kidding that I don't eat shit, I really don't. If it was once a year, sure to be social I will choke down a couple oily artery clogging slices but every Friday? They can see the lunches I have brought, lean deer meat sandwiches , assortment of nuts, homemade muffins, and such.

Screw'im. They didn't hire you for your social skills anymore than anyone ever hired me for mine. Sounds like you are in the same game I am...we get paid to deliver results. In different arenas perhaps, but it is the same game. We weren't hired to talk about social media influencers, drink on Friday nights yacking about the boss, commiserate over someone's personal problems....nope. Once skills are recognized, results delivered, they tend to be appreciated, and it becomes terribly difficult to ever get rid of someone like that over not going out with the boss for drinks and that type of nonsense.

There are some fringe benefits. A manufacturer of a type of lithium battery packs had a bad run of production and the BMS in the pack's failed after a couple cycles so these defective batteries found there way to my house. I am ripping the BMS's out and can use the cells individually or install a after market BMS.
I am acquiring some heavy duty DC traction motors, some from junked equipment, some from upgraded equipment. All of it will be useful to me when I get time to play around with this stuff.
 The company is a meat grinder though, I don't know if I will last or for how long. Turn  over is high, very high. The company has been missing both a job coordinator and service manager for months now. I was told the service manager had a heart attack and had to take some time off work to recover then when he came back they fired him cause his numbers were down. We are all tracked for productivity and have numbers to meat.

Have you sent out any resumes yet?  Maybe contact a headhunter?

RE

Yes, I should start looking. I heard, or more correctly overheard the office number crunchers talking and if I heard correctly the turn over rate is in the 60 to 62 % range, and from what I have seen and gathered, I would not dispute that figure.
I was talking with one of the new hires, a younger kid. He was going on about how wonderful it was that the company insists on supplying all the tools (corporate policy), and I don't disagree with that but as a old guy with years of experience in this world I told him straight up to stop and think for a moment, look at the turn over. It means nothing of yours is on site or in the company trucks. So when they can your ass, and it is likely they will,  you have no reason to go back on or in company property to retrieve your stuff as none of it is yours. He just looked like a deer in the headlights when I told him. I hope he doesn't  take out any loans, or runs  up his visa thinking he can count on this job. 

Why do you think the turnover is so high?  My experience is that turnover is high when hours burn people out and the employer tries to pay for as few of the extra hours as possible.

There are all kinds of businesses. A good one will value your skill and reliability and will try and make you happy and keep you because the combination is worth something.  But there are businesses built on a model of squeeze the employee, and get what you can because another waits outside the door.  Managers come in both flavors.

Currently my skill and reliability is appreciated.  The financial exploitation does not bother me because I have other income.  If I had to work forty hours and only live on the wage, things would not be so good for me.  I hope your situation works out or that you find one that does.

Quote from: 18hammers on Apr 05, 2024, 09:52 PMYes, I should start looking. I heard, or more correctly overheard the office number crunchers talking and if I heard correctly the turn over rate is in the 60 to 62 % range, and from what I have seen and gathered, I would not dispute that figure.
I was talking with one of the new hires, a younger kid. He was going on about how wonderful it was that the company insists on supplying all the tools (corporate policy), and I don't disagree with that but as a old guy with years of experience in this world I told him straight up to stop and think for a moment, look at the turn over. It means nothing of yours is on site or in the company trucks. So when they can your ass, and it is likely they will,  you have no reason to go back on or in company property to retrieve your stuff as none of it is yours. He just looked like a deer in the headlights when I told him. I hope he doesn't  take out any loans, or runs  up his visa thinking he can count on this job. 

as a long time self employed person of the so called "gen X" grouping I have never expected anything but ham fisted exploitation from an employer. Loyalty from them or myself seemed to have been discarded before I joined the workforce. On the trades front it makes sense to provide tools to an employee as it assures your guys can do the work while cynically understanding most trades people are horrible with money. When I ran a crew I used to do a tool allowance where you paid $1 an hour dedicated to tool and consumables purchases and trusted them to have what they needed ... It rarely worked well. I was far from an exploiter of labour but the pulls of consumer society would have tradies driving shiny trucks with ATVs and sleds in garages while slinging a rounded hammer on a broken down tool belt. I gave up that practice for the onsite tool trailer and the seasonal home Depot gift card for personals. It's never a black and white situation. I gave up running a crew as it was professionally unrewarding and I have much more fun as a high skilled consultant and trouble shooter in solar and construction. I do miss having manpower though. If I was starting out I'm not sure how I would do it. If I was smart I would search out a high skilled specialist operation preferably that does a lot of different things and bust my hump to gain street cred. As a senior hire it would be harder of course since hump busting hurts more physically and the life commitments are more essential then they were at a younger age. I like Small personally even if there is a renumeration hit involved I think. That balances out with time though. I hope you can find a better niche. I know in my work competence and a broad skill set has never been as well rewarded or sought out as it is right now.
Cheers,
NF

Quote from: K-Dog on Apr 06, 2024, 12:33 AMWhy do you think the turnover is so high?  My experience is that turnover is high when hours burn people out and the employer tries to pay for as few of the extra hours as possible.

To many reasons to name but the largest single reason is the company does not understand the nature of the people in the position I am, the front line workers competent with electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic. I have found the good ones to largely be self motivated, self organizing, and would have what today would be called non neurotypical thinking. This often leads them to be great problem solvers. The company does not let such people run with the ball so to speak.
 I kid you not they have our entire days planned out 7 to 10 days ahead, and every one of us knows this wont work, they either don't have stock, or are using just in time inventory that results in jobs backing up. They have average time on site targets we are supposed to meet or beat but that results in mistakes being made because people are in a hurry.
 I am finishing up some jobs from as far back as last year. Then as things back up meetings are called where all the blame is on the front line workers. It is a cluster fuck. I suspect this division does not make money. Does not have to, it is being carried by the rest of the conglomerate.
Just in this last week, of the 5 of us on the tools 3 were off sick at least once this week. One guy off 2.5 days this week, and he was really sick, maybe 28 years, I could see he had not been handling the stress well. could not catch his breath, coughing, looking terrible, caught him holding his chest a couple times in pain. They still did not send him home he finally just said I have to leave and he did. That was midway through Wednesday. Maybe there will only be four of us Monday. I was riding shotgun on a job out of town to give a guy a hand replacing a transaxle and when we got there he had forgot to put the part in the van. I don't blame him, the company did though. Mistakes are always made when you are rushing to keep a arbitrary time schedule.

On a more positive note, I picked up another wonderful dc gear head motor with just the right rpm range to build a mid drive electric bike with. Best parts is the nameplate specs indicate this to be a 400 watt motor,  500 watt is the legal maximum  here in Canada, but.......here is the good part, this industrial quality motor is extremely conservatively rated, From my experience this thing could put out 1000 watts all day long with peaks even much greater. Bevel cut gears for quiet operation. ( was used in a hospital environment  where quiet operation was required)  A project for the future.

QuoteTo many reasons to name but the largest single reason is the company does not understand the nature of the people in the position I am, the front line workers competent with electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic. I have found the good ones to largely be self motivated, self organizing, and would have what today would be called non neurotypical thinking.

I'm working in retail part time.  The  company will schedule me for five hours a day, Sometimes four and a half, sometimes even four.  But I think they know that pisses me off, so not so much.  I just worked six days in a row to get 31 hours.  My proletarian undercover work tells me unions should be mandatory.  I hope your sick worker gets well.

When I am at work the young managers I work with who are actually great guys can get in the way of my self-motivated, self-organizing style.  The company just opened store number 1500 and to earn my McWage I have to follow recipes for everything.  Every day I have to do ten minutes of training video.  Cubicle workers in California figure out the 'best' way to do things and everybody learns over time how to do things the 'right' way.

No business ever succeeds without some workers just plain figuring out what their job is supposed to be and then just takes it upon themselves to do it.  But getting off script too much begs for trouble.  Not getting off script at all does not deal with the reality of every situation.

It is an ass-kissing pyramid, but I am lucky to work with a bunch of great guys.  We all work hard and look after each other. 

The company is huge and takes advantage of every opportunity to run the operation at low prices.  In WA State lunch is unpaid, but you have to take the time off.  And you must be given a half hour lunch if you work more than five hours.  This turns into pressure to cut my time.  On top of that there is heavy pressure to get things done and 'close early'.  Every pay pereiond the walls echo with 'too many hours'  'we have to cut hours'.  This does not reward good work but over a few months the company manages to screw me out of a couple of hundred.  Wage theft is part of low prices.

Some states have better employment laws, WA state is one of the states that is 'out to lunch'.  Telling an employer they must pay for all of an employees time is somehow construed to mean that an employee's civil rights are somehow being violated if you pay them by the rules of their own game.  Capitalism.  Capitalism pays for time.  WA is a 'right to work state'.

I wind up feeling like a full time worker and I currently bask in two days off in a row after working six days in a row.  For half the actual work, and of course half of full time pay.  But 100% of a full time commitment.  My social security is essentially subsidizing the company.  Without it I could not get by, and I could not be there.  I'd need more hours.  It is not would not, it is could not.  I have asked myself, 'you are doing this why' a few times in the last few days.

All power to the Soviets.  For the time being my undercover proletarian explorations will continue.  I have been undercover studying this companys' capitalism for going on three years now. 

* A "right to work" state is a state in the United States that has laws prohibiting contracts between employers and labor unions which require all employees in a unionized workplace to become union members and pay union dues.   In right-to-work states, employees are not required to join a union or pay union dues as a condition of employment, even if their workplace is unionized. These laws are intended to protect workers' freedom of association and choice regarding union membership.  In the old days even being hit up on the side of the head by a police baton was not enough to discourage union membership. Scabs had to be legalized and protected.  In 'right to work' states, workers have few rights, but scabs and exploiters do. 

I live in this greater west coast free trade zone.

Quote from: K-Dog on Apr 20, 2024, 11:35 AM

QuoteTo many reasons to name but the largest single reason is the company does not understand the nature of the people in the position I am, the front line workers competent with electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic. I have found the good ones to largely be self motivated, self organizing, and would have what today would be called non neurotypical thinking.

  I hope your sick worker gets well.

It turns out the kid had covid, just came back to today, the other worker that was off is mid 50's same thing, he has covid to but hitting him even harder. I don't think they had more than one or two shots at most.

Still plugging away as a wage slave, have not been fired yet but suspect it has come close, Close to quitting anyway. New service manager hired last week, can't say it was a good thing, better if the position was not filled.
 On a brighter note another great low voltage DC motor of industrial quality came home with me. I wish I could post pictures of some of these motors when I have them apart. Brushed DC motors are a mature technology being replaced by brushless but some of these DC brushed motors (the industrial quality ones) are just a pleasure to work on, and construction is first rate.
This last one was in service for 8 years until the bearings started going and caused the breaker to trip. The company just replaced the motor of course (4 figures) that's how I got it. The brush wear was so little I did not even have to replace them, just the bearings for about 25 bucks.
So I added another 0 to 48 ish volt DC motor to my collection. I was lacking low volt DC motors in my tickle trunk, had plenty of 90 volts to 200ish Dc volts motors from my previous working life but not so much low voltage DC motors of quality and power. More motors coming my way next week as the other guy's will start saving the motors they change out for me.

This week two more great motors came home with me, likely my last, notice given. I will be out of work.