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Hard to find

cuttin edge

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2014
Messages
2,690
Location
NB Canada
Occupation
Finish grader operator
For the fourth year in a row, they have been unable to hire another grader operator. Last fall, I was off work sick for 5 days and they had to shut a job down. I was asked to attend a job fair today with some co-workers. There was no interest among the kids in grader work. I spoke to the manager in charge of a heavy equipment course, and they have no grader in their program. I told him that there is a province wide shortage of grader operators. Said they had a program, but there wasn't enough interest. I think my position just became worth a whole lot more money. But seriously, not sure what will happen when us older guys retire.
 

Fatgraderman

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 16, 2014
Messages
288
Location
Innisfail
Occupation
Crash test dummy
I wonder if it’s something else that one day will go autonomous like the large mining trucks. There’s no extra operators here either. On the interest side, might be a lot. I’ve noticed in the last 10 years or so here, lots of women operators (crawlers and everything else), truck drivers, welders, and everything else.
 

12h stoneman

Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2018
Messages
15
Location
North Carolina
Occupation
Stone base foreman/grader operator
Same problem here in North Carolina. We have 3 stone base crews and can never find enough qualified operators. It seems like we always have 1 crew with a substandard grader operator just so we can keep the crew running. I guess in a way it's job security because I always have to go finish their jobs, but that gets old after a while.
 

cuttin edge

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2014
Messages
2,690
Location
NB Canada
Occupation
Finish grader operator
Same problem here in North Carolina. We have 3 stone base crews and can never find enough qualified operators. It seems like we always have 1 crew with a substandard grader operator just so we can keep the crew running. I guess in a way it's job security because I always have to go finish their jobs, but that gets old after a while.
I did remark to the boss that it's better for me if you don't find anyone so I can be more independent and saucy
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
Automation will be the answer to not enough operators. Say hi to the robot next time you pass a grader.
 

catwelder

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2016
Messages
383
Location
north carolina
Occupation
welder
Same problem here in North Carolina. We have 3 stone base crews and can never find enough qualified operators. It seems like we always have 1 crew with a substandard grader operator just so we can keep the crew running. I guess in a way it's job security because I always have to go finish their jobs, but that gets old after a while.
we cant find qualified welders so I fell your pain north Carolina has a lot of talent its just hard to find
 

cuttin edge

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2014
Messages
2,690
Location
NB Canada
Occupation
Finish grader operator
I hope you aren’t getting flooded out where you are. I seen some nasty pictures earlier today on FB
The ice here left without too much fuss. Some people up river had flooding, and a few camps were taken by ice jambs. I closer to the coast so the river is almost a mile wide
I hope you aren’t getting flooded out where you are. I seen some nasty pictures earlier today on FB[/QUOTe That Is a couple of hours from me. We get some flooding, but mostly ice damage. I live closer to the Bay, so the river is about a mile wide. There was a fair amount of water damage about 15 miles up river. The river is narrow up there, and there are a lot of Americans with sport camps. Some spots were taken down river and destroyed by ice. Just to give you an idea of how high the ice can get up there, there is bridge there about 25 feet above the river and they thought the ice was going to take it.
 

Fatgraderman

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 16, 2014
Messages
288
Location
Innisfail
Occupation
Crash test dummy
Glad it’s all good. Somebody posted a picture of 2 small sharks beside escalators. I assumed it was photoshopped, but sounded like bad flooding just the same.
 

20/80

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
Messages
872
Location
nova scotia canada
Occupation
operator
For the fourth year in a row, they have been unable to hire another grader operator. Last fall, I was off work sick for 5 days and they had to shut a job down. I was asked to attend a job fair today with some co-workers. There was no interest among the kids in grader work. I spoke to the manager in charge of a heavy equipment course, and they have no grader in their program. I told him that there is a province wide shortage of grader operators. Said they had a program, but there wasn't enough interest. I think my position just became worth a whole lot more money. But seriously, not sure what will happen when us older guys retire.
Grader guy's are hard to find, I have been doing our roads in this area for over 15 years now which is about 60 roads, we have spares for your days off in our shop but you end up going and fixing the roads they did when you come off vacation, our spares just don't seem to care or have any pride in their work to busy talking on their cell phones I guess, i'm not sure if I could do fine finish grading or prep before laying pavement, i'm used to maintenance grading county roads, most of my roads are done by eye with a meter check for grade and crown every now and then, lots of ditching and culvert clean outs also which I really enjoy.
 

cuttin edge

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2014
Messages
2,690
Location
NB Canada
Occupation
Finish grader operator
Grader guy's are hard to find, I have been doing our roads in this area for over 15 years now which is about 60 roads, we have spares for your days off in our shop but you end up going and fixing the roads they did when you come off vacation, our spares just don't seem to care or have any pride in their work to busy talking on their cell phones I guess, i'm not sure if I could do fine finish grading or prep before laying pavement, i'm used to maintenance grading county roads, most of my roads are done by eye with a meter check for grade and crown every now and then, lots of ditching and culvert clean outs also which I really enjoy.
They tried a guy a few years ago that worked out west. Once he found out my grader had no GPS, he wouldn't even try it. DOT here does not do GPS jobs, I mean they set their grades, and alignment with GPS, but they don't share the info, so stakes and string are still used for fine grade. If we were in Moncton, a GPS might be worth it, but not enough work here for it. My 940 is a 2011, and it doesn't have 3000 hours on it. My Maulden however gets about 2000 a year from the end of May till the middle of December. That reminds me, I better dig out my boots, and dust off my lunch can.
 

stars&bars44

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2015
Messages
142
Location
Trinity NC
Occupation
Earthmoving
There's a shortage of good help on anything here in NC. Anybody that can run equipment and take care of it has been scooped up. Not many good grader operators left, and good luck finding a pan operator.
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,128
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
I think one thing that needs to be done is to get rid of many of the so call "guidance counselors" in the high schools. At least around here they will only suggest going into the trades to the kids who are causing trouble in the regular schools. Trade schools are kind of a dumping ground to get the trouble makers out of their hair.

And this is nothing new as I was caught up in this the other way around fifty years ago. I was not "allowed" to enter the local trade school program because I was "college material" as the "miss-guidance counselor" said! The day after graduation I was wearing a hard hat and shoveling under a conveyor in a stone quarry! A couple years later when the company started their "Central Shop" I was given the chance to go into that. I just wish I had had the chance to get some formal basic training back in high school I'm sure I would have had a better time of it.

One has to think that those high school guidance counselors are getting a kick back from the people who run the college loan scams. So much per student they talk into going to college and get stuck with a loan that will take them halfway to retirement to pay off for the majority of the college kids!
 

Birken Vogt

Charter Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2003
Messages
5,305
Location
Grass Valley, Ca
Here in rural-ville most of the good tradesmen are their own boss. Vocational school is one thing but it feels like half the work is running the business in the office. I was never offered any business or financial classes but my partner took some (of his own initiative I think) and he has lots of good understanding that I wish I had gotten. I keep threatening to myself to go to night school but never get around to it.
 

catwelder

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2016
Messages
383
Location
north carolina
Occupation
welder
There's a shortage of good help on anything here in NC. Anybody that can run equipment and take care of it has been scooped up. Not many good grader operators left, and good luck finding a pan operator.
I think nc needs to start a college just for the trades and make it one of the best in the country to offer everything anyone could imagine and want
 

old-iron-habit

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 22, 2012
Messages
4,233
Location
Moose Lake, MN
Occupation
Retired Cons't. Supt./Hospitals
The biggest thing needed to find good talent is to raise the wage of the working man. Raise it enough and there will be multiples of folks to chose from.
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,128
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
The biggest thing needed to find good talent is to raise the wage of the working man. Raise it enough and there will be multiples of folks to chose from.
In many cases that is very true of any job classification. Seems to be worse for mechanics where they not only want you to have several years of experience but also thousands of dollars in tools! Then many places expect you to start working for only a few dollars more that if the hardest part of the job is to remember to ask: "Do you want fries with that?"
 
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