u/Thepopethroway

How do you deal with this situation when it arises? What is your survival strategy?

Working on a substation right now and we're doing 7-10s+. The call was for 5-8s. I haven't had a single day off for two months and I'm starting to go a little haywire.

Two new guys showed up and after I told them about our schedule, proceeded to blow my ears up about how much $$$ they're going to be making. Followed by talk of upgrading their cars.

Other guys who've been working for months -- clearly worn down, talk in hushed whispers about

> "Y'know, maybe a day off every once in a while wouldn't be so bad..."

Like they're afraid to say it. They don't want the higher ups to notice and they get labeled as 'lazy'.

What the fuck happened to our union?

Why are we adopting the same live-to-work mindset as the rats? Why are we looking over our shoulders in fear of the boss man? Why have worker protections and QoL been replaced by love of the Almighty Dollar?

This is getting too ridiculous. We should be fighting for working less hours with more pay, not trying to overcompensate with insane hours. And if we are a Union as we say we are, we should be fighting for better conditions, not just more money.

I frequently hear shit like "Unions are just a racket to get your dues!!!" and "Unions are filled with thugs yada yada yada insert something about us being lazy" etc etc.

The stuff about the dues is the most bewildering to me. An IBEW electrician can make anywhere from 50%-200% more than a non-Union electrician in any given area. We get fantastic pensions and excellent healthcare. But people harp on the dues as if it's some massive sacrifice, even though it's literally about an hour of work in typical week.

Others seem to view us as if we're some sort of Al Capone/Tony Soprano-tier criminal organization who employs 'goons' to take out the competition. It's unreal how many people I've met think we're basically some form of mafia. It's literally just organized labor, bargaining for better pay, treatment, benefits, and a good retirement. How does wanting that make me a mafia hitman?

So many misconceptions about Unions and what they do in this country. How can we change this perception?

Or is it easy come easy go for you?

There is this one guy on the job site who is really starting to get to me. I know, I know, thick skin and all that. We started off cordial, but quickly became friends. He'd start cracking jokes here and there, ribbing me a bit, that was alright. I didn't quite get with it at first, but soon enough we were 'shooting the shit', and had an even number of jokes about one another.

> But now, he's constantly finding a gay connotation to everything I say. If I ask for a drill, he says "OP likes to get drilled by men." If I tell him to get serious for a moment, he'll double down and say "So you really are gay!!" I can't even say anything to him because he tries to turn it into a gay joke.

It stopped being funny a long time ago, now it's just offensive. I just let him say his shit and try to ignore him, but that has made him worse. I said, "One of these days..." And he says he's going to report me for making "death threats" and if I've shot up any schools recently. I was talking about my trips overseas to the guys and he jumps in to say it was to "Epstein's island."

Just yesterday, he decided it was a funny idea to write my phone number on all of our portajohns with shit like "Call for a good time" and "OP likes it up the ass". I went and scribbled it out out of anger. He walks up to me and says he's going to report me to HR for "vandalism".

I've just about had it with this fucking guy. I can't do my damn job with this constant abuse. Call me a snowflake or whatever but he's taken everything way too far. How should I deal with this situation?

I used to be very 'active' in a conventional way before I started doing this type of work. Going on walks, jogging, lifting weights, etc. Now I don't do any of that. I figure I get enough cardio in during work, so there's no real point to going on walks or jogs. Though I'm sure I'm missing out because I'm never consistently 'running' on the jobsite.

I want to do weight lifting. I try to lift heavy stuff at work to build some muscle, but when I get home... I'm fucking exhausted. Last thing I want to do is get out of my sweaty work clothes, put on gym clothes and sweat some more. Then have to cook a meal.

> I've still got a decent physique but I'm definitely developing a 'dadbod' and swapped my sixpack for a 6-pack.

Anyone else struggling to motivate themselves to exercising outside of work? Working long hours, how do you even find the time?

edit: if you guys can say what you do in construction it'll help

From what I've read the vesting period is 5 years. I like to take month-long vacations inbetween jobs though, so how does the math math with that? Does it have to be 5 straight years? Sporadically based on a 40 hour week?

Explain me.

Working as a GM at a substation. All the subtechs look at me cross eyed when I mention applying for the lineman apprenticeship and immediately start shit talking linemen. They all tell me it's too dangerous and too hard of work for similar pay. Has happened like 7 times already it's insane.

Seems every call out there is for work that's not an a line crew

Got a few questions for people who have seen and done it

> 1. Is this a good JATC? Would you recommend it?

> 2. What were the conditions like? How were you treated?

> 3. What were the hours like?

> 4. How long did it take you to complete your apprenticeship?

> 5. Is there anything you would've done different?

Some of the old guys I'm working with concern me... How do avoid becoming that?

• Get certs (tanker, hazmat, doubles/triples) MINIMUM
• Haul oversized
• Get into the Union and participate meaningfully
• LTL, fuel, cryogenics, foodservice, teamdriving
• Gov't jobs paying prevailing wage
• Find well-respected companies that aren't based around trucking but employ CDL drivers

And don't accept MEGAs that want to pay you 50k. Trucker pay since 1980 would be 150k if scaled for inflation. Don't devalue yourself. This is a money job, nobody has a passion for holding a steering wheel. Get the fucking money.

I've noticed a lot of shit talking going on behind each other's backs at this job site. Everyone is talking trash about each other literally non-stop here. Is this common? What do you think about it?

Surely it's not a healthy thing to be doing regularly.

Has anyone else noticed where other states have bad drivers Texans are completely unhinged?

These people are literally tailgating each other in a systemic fashion going 90 MPH down the interstate. Guys in lifted trucks with something to prove cutting between lanes risking the lives of everyone around them. Seeing a wreck every day...

Feeling too humble. Face too smooth. Gonna throw out my kleins for Milwaukees

thoughts?

This shit is killing me. We've only worked one day this last week and now it's projected to rain all next week too. Fuck my life

It seems a running theme is that the apprentice is nothing but a worm, fit only for writhing around in the dirt.