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Rules For Being an Employee

excavator

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2006
Messages
1,445
Location
Pacific North West
Wow, a lot of rules. ;) Probably why I only worked for other companies for 7 years and then went on my own. #2 was always a problem for me, because if I didn't do it, it usually didn't get done. #3 was the big one and now at almost 63 I am paying for it big time. We always did what ever it took to get it done which I now look back and say it was stupid but now the pendulum has swung way to far the other way and kids can't do anything because of what might happen. And #8, I never had a job that offered benefits other than the opportunity to work and make a bit of a living. Around here back in the late 70's-early 80's most mechanics made around $4 to $5.00 an hour and no benefits.
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
Out of high school in 72 I made a little over $3 and hour on the bull gang in a saw mill. When I started as a mechanic in 79, I worked for a good equipment dealer. Floor sweeper and tool room made about $3.50. Second year apprentice wages were about $7.00 and hour. GI Bill supplemented that to about about $10.00.
 

old-iron-habit

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 22, 2012
Messages
4,233
Location
Moose Lake, MN
Occupation
Retired Cons't. Supt./Hospitals
Good rules but I struggle with #2. I always did more than the job I was hired to do. I was qualified to do it and it paid off very well. I always wanted to see my employer make money and we are all hired to help them do so. I was paid well over scale for my job and got great bonuses to boot. Its a lot easier to get money out of a company that's making a fair, decent, profit than one that is struggling to survive. Now having said that, the company I worked for sold out to the management employees after I retired. Many of the good hands and project managers have since left and the remaining ones are grumbling and not producing like in the past. The new "owners" got real greedy all of a sudden. Watching to see how it all shakes out.
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
Rule #2 doesn't say anything about doing extra for your employer. It says don't spend "your" money to do it. I've had employers ask me to use my own pickup to go get parts and they wouldn't even offer to pay the gas money. I've seen mechanics put air compressors in company trucks because the company wouldn't do it. Sure it made the job easier for the mechanic, but it made a lot more money for the company of which they didn't reciprocate with payments to the wrench.
 

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,531
Location
WWW.
My rules.
#1 No matter how much you hate the job your on at the moment don't do sloppy work or take short cuts-It your reputation, have self respect.
#2 If the boss is a person who can't admit when he is wrong-your working for the wrong person. He's a jackass.
#3 When your right about a issue-stick to your guns. When you are wrong admit it and holster your guns. People will see and have respect for you.
#4 It's not all about the money, yes money is nice but having a sane life is more important.
#5 You can't always please the boss, understand he's probably married too.
#6 Ride your own horse never pattern after another at work or anywhere else.
#7 Don't listen to other disgruntled employees, misery loves company.
#8 Stay the hell away from company parties, dinners and get to gathers.
#9 Build a skill level that others only dream about-It will help keep you employed.
#10 I don't have a number 10.
 

petepilot

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2018
Messages
2,167
Location
central shenandoah valley va,
My rules.
#1 No matter how much you hate the job your on at the moment don't do sloppy work or take short cuts-It your reputation, have self respect.
#2 If the boss is a person who can't admit when he is wrong-your working for the wrong person. He's a jackass.
#3 When your right about a issue-stick to your guns. When you are wrong admit it and holster your guns. People will see and have respect for you.
#4 It's not all about the money, yes money is nice but having a sane life is more important.
#5 You can't always please the boss, understand he's probably married too.
#6 Ride your own horse never pattern after another at work or anywhere else.
#7 Don't listen to other disgruntled employees, misery loves company.
#8 Stay the hell away from company parties, dinners and get to gathers.
#9 Build a skill level that others only dream about-It will help keep you employed.
#10 I don't have a number 10.
#10 don`t worry be happy:p
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
I was bored and surfing through LinkedIn and caught this set of requirements for a shop mechanic. My point is that I only know a handful of people who could fulfill all those bullet points, most of them on this board. I guess they aren't proud of what they pay either. Any other interpretations of comments?

HEAVY EQUIPMENT SHOP MECHANIC

Qualified Applicants Must Have The Following
  • Minimum 7 years experience
  • Knowledge in hydraulics, electrical, engines, transmissions, differentials, suspensions, air brakes
  • Air brake repair certification
  • A clean DOL record - must have a valid driver’s license
  • Able to read and understand service manuals
  • Tools to perform minor and major repairs on heavy equipment and class 8 trucks
  • Self-motivated
  • Team oriented and a hard worker that takes pride in his/her work
Competitive Pay And Benefits
  • Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance.
  • Employer match 401k program
  • Paid time-off.
  • Advancement opportunities for driven individuals.
We are looking for individuals who are safe, skilled, productive, and take pride in their work.

Pay range unavailable
Salary information is not available at the moment.
 

Shimmy1

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 14, 2014
Messages
4,257
Location
North Dakota
What's the issue? They want someone capable of handling whatever comes through the door, and don't want every swinging *ick in the state asking for an application and wasting their time. Seven years experience with that skill set pretty much weeds out riffraff, and not posting what it pays prevents the nosy, crybaby employees from seeing what a real mechanic can make. Perfect ad IMO.
 

BigWrench55

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2018
Messages
1,176
Location
Somewhere
Those bullet points don't mean anything. They will hire the first person that will lie good enough and pass a drug test. And if the bullshitter doesn't know what a mechanic with all of those qualities actually gets paid. Then he is likely going to ask for a dollar or two more than he's making as a entry-level mechanic. That's the reason for not putting a number on the pay per hour. They are gambling on hiring someone for a lesser wage. Ads like that I generally ignore unless I know the company and what they are paying already. Competitive wages in my experience means the lower end of the scale.
 

BigWrench55

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2018
Messages
1,176
Location
Somewhere
I know what I speak of about lying to get your foot in the door. I spent the first few years of my career of faking it until I made it. What kept me from being ran off. Is that I showed up everyday and on time. I worked hard and have a passion for the job so learning wasn't a problem. The problem that I had later in my career was the better I got the worse my attitude was. I was nearly 40 years old before I got humble enough for people to tolerate me. I still have the attitude and ego to match. I only now know when and where it's time to use it.
 

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,531
Location
WWW.
A bunch of something for nothing. Handle whatever comes through the door [a chief cook and bottle washer} and isn't good at either one.
When the qualifications are narrowed down to {Mechanic wanted, experienced in engine and transmission work} then it's probably legit on
wages. One of my favorites is shop that wants a mechanic that does everything including alignments. To be good at alignments takes years
of knowing the different characteristics of all the different suspensions, tire tread types and brands, weight of vehicle and or how it's loaded.
And any known issues with certain vehicles. It's very tough to find a alignment shop worth a sh!t these days. Why? because they have loaded
that bay with anybody and everybody just to fill the spot. The guy doing your alignment just quit at Burger Stink the day before.
 
Last edited:

CM1995

Administrator
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Messages
13,246
Location
Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
I was bored and surfing through LinkedIn and caught this set of requirements for a shop mechanic. My point is that I only know a handful of people who could fulfill all those bullet points, most of them on this board. I guess they aren't proud of what they pay either. Any other interpretations of comments?

HEAVY EQUIPMENT SHOP MECHANIC

Qualified Applicants Must Have The Following
  • Minimum 7 years experience
  • Knowledge in hydraulics, electrical, engines, transmissions, differentials, suspensions, air brakes
  • Air brake repair certification
  • A clean DOL record - must have a valid driver’s license
  • Able to read and understand service manuals
  • Tools to perform minor and major repairs on heavy equipment and class 8 trucks
  • Self-motivated
  • Team oriented and a hard worker that takes pride in his/her work
Competitive Pay And Benefits
  • Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance.
  • Employer match 401k program
  • Paid time-off.
  • Advancement opportunities for driven individuals.
We are looking for individuals who are safe, skilled, productive, and take pride in their work.

Pay range unavailable
Salary information is not available at the moment.

If someone was looking for a job or job change what's the harm in contacting the company about the pay rate?

We've been running ads on Indeed and it's rather easy to communicate through the Indeed platform via PM, I am not familiar with the PM communication for job postings on Linkedin other than being a member.

Over the last 1.5 years what we have ran into with ads on Indeed is there would be many people who would contact us, set up a time to meet and never show up. After 6-7 of these "candidates" we realized after talking to other business owners they were just setting up an interview they never intended on showing up to in order to keep the unemployment going. Now this is an entry level position with no experience necessary just show up on you get OJT. Might just be the younger crowd but it's frustrating.
 

Shimmy1

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 14, 2014
Messages
4,257
Location
North Dakota
A bunch of something for nothing. Handle whatever comes through the door [a chief cook and bottle washer} and isn't good at either one.
When the qualifications are narrowed down to {Mechanic wanted, experienced in engine and transmission work} then it's probably legit on
wages. .

So, why can't the ad be legit on wages?? I can think of at least 5 big contractors in this state that could be looking for a shop mechanic with an ad like that, and look to pay the right guy $30 per. All you clock-punchers seem to always be eternal pessimists, the boss is out to get you, blah, blah, blah. Maybe some of the super big ones are. But, there are a hell of a lot of small business owners who are looking for employees that don't have a chip on their shoulder.
 

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,531
Location
WWW.
I don't punch a clock. There looking for a guy to do everything-$30per hour?}. They want a welder/fabricator, a engine mechanic, transmission mechanic, suspension specialist, hydraulic expert, electrical expert, hvac expert, computer expert, body work experience and so on. For each of those skills add $5 to
each one. So $75 per hour ought to be a real wage after all if they were to pay the dealer they would be spending $125 per hour.
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
The thing I see in the ad is that they want a person who probably doesn’t exist in this day and age. Seven years experience, full set of tools, be able to fix everything from any type of truck to excavators, wheel loaders and dozers. I’m thinking they are going to have to find a genie who can grant at least one wish. They might catch a fish from out of state but twenty minutes of a news cast here showing this cesspool would discourage any wrench of the caliber they are looking for.
 

BigWrench55

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2018
Messages
1,176
Location
Somewhere
Maybe some of the super big ones are. But, there are a hell of a lot of small business owners who are looking for employees that don't have a chip on their shoulder

It's a dog eat dog world. There very well be some small business owners paying a decent wage for the right guy. But my experience is and matches what John posted on rules for being a employee. Companies this day and age don't give a damn about their employees. It's about making money and if you are effecting their profits because you make to much. Then you are gone! Dosen't matter how good at your job you are. I don't fault any of them for that. I just fault the let's make money at all costs philosophy. The scorched earth approach. Some of you guys had the blessing of working in a time when companies cared for their employees. It's not like that anymore. And I tire of hearing you guys complain that there isn't any loyal or good employees. The employer's created this so called lack of loyalty and chip on the shoulder attitude. Like I said it's a dog eat dog world out there. I work for me and my family. I know what I bring to the table. You gotta show me what you are willing to give for my skills. If you don't have what I want I move on. If you can't give me what I need anymore then I am gone. It's not personal it's business. I am a damn good employee and I will make any company money. But don't think for one second that I owe you anything. You are paying for my services is all. And if I don't like your attitude or I don't see myself making more money then I am gone. I quit making this personal and started looking at it as a business venture. When I changed my attitude ( chip on my shoulder). I became a mutch better employee and I keep the attitude to myself. I am not loyal and won't ever be. It's all about what you can do for me. But that doesn't mean that we can't get along while we are making money together.
 
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