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The spring thaw is slowing down a couple rigs, but not bad. My next door neighbor has been home all week because the rig she works is inaccessable because of mud. However she's headed back up tomorrow.
My other neighbor hired on for one of those 8-5 truck driving jobs. The first week he worked Monday-Friday and averaged 10-12 hours a day. The second week they asked him if he could put in a couple hours on Saturday. So he worked Monday - Saturday and Saturday's couple hours worked out to 10 hours. By the end of the first month he was running 7 days a week. He takes (they don't give) every other Sunday off.
He doesn't need to work overtime, but there is real money in it. Secondly, if he doesn't want the extra hours, they'll be more then happy to give somebody else ALL the hours and send him home.
Thank you for the replies!
*ElkHunter* Are you saying that if he is hired for a Mon-Fri job he would be let go if he chose not to work more than that? Are certain companies just that way? He is fine with working 10-12 hour days. Just not 7 days a week, week after week (we have children that it is important to him to spend time with).
Do companies out there not follow DOT rules? Sorry to sound niave. We are new to all of this.
Thank you for the replies!
*ElkHunter* Are you saying that if he is hired for a Mon-Fri job he would be let go if he chose not to work more than that? Are certain companies just that way? He is fine with working 10-12 hour days. Just not 7 days a week, week after week (we have children that it is important to him to spend time with).
Do companies out there not follow DOT rules? Sorry to sound niave. We are new to all of this.
Yes, he was actually told that if he didn't take the hours, they'd find somebody different to take the truck. He doesn't mind, but he would like to get back down here from time to time. So far, since December, he's been home 3 times.
As for DOT rules, from what I've heard there have actually been a few times where the state has lifted DOT restrictions due to fuel shortages. And honestly, no... most companies here do not follow DOT rules and regulations.
I worked at a staffing agency here in Williston that did hire drivers as well as other employees, if you weren't willing to work overtime we couldn't give you a job. Most places up here are looking to have you work a minimum of 60 hours a week. I'm married and we have a daughter and step son, my husband works a LOT but we still find time for our family. Sometimes, especially during warmer months, it can be difficult because they'll be so busy but it's part of the lifestyle and you either learn to deal with it or wind up divorced. (A lot of people end up divorced.) I'm not trying to scare you, but some families can handle the oilfield lifestyle and some can't. I find that women who don't mind spending time by themselves do better, those who like to have their husband around a lot don't do so well.
My husband has still made it to school concerts, dance recitals, etc. We know in advance about these things so he's able to let his work know he'll need time off for them. But he's not here every night and I'm ok with that, he likes his job and is good at it. I'd rather have him working a job he enjoys than having him work a M-F job that he hates.
The part about wives wanting husbands home every night and all weekend is true. If you expect or want that, moving to ND will be a recipe for divorce. It just is not happening for anyone in the oil fields right now. I'm an engineer and I work from home on evenings and weekends but this is pretty normal for us. Our operators have to be available for call outs and emergency operations if necessary.
A decent rule of thumb is that if you are being paid well and not working for the government, don't expect an 8-5 and no weekends ever schedule. That's a 1960's dinosaur idea and doesn't exist anymore.
A decent rule of thumb is that if you are being paid well and not working for the government, don't expect an 8-5 and no weekends ever schedule. That's a 1960's dinosaur idea and doesn't exist anymore.
May be true for the oil fields, but I don't think mandating 100% of your waking hours to an employer applies elsewhere all that much. Labor laws and regulations came about during the era when even children were spending all their waking hours sweatshopping. These laws still apply to most employment situations. Running a worker to exhaustion is dangerous in any sort of industrial or labor-intensive setting. It used to get many people killed every year. Drowsy or fatigued workers are dangerous.
I have two jobs right now and one of them pays well (interestingly enough, the "government job" pays VERY poorly). Overtime is offered and expected at the other job occasionally. It's labor intensive, so most employees can't do it constantly anyway; but were they to require it constantly under threat of firing me, I could sue them to high heaven (and no, it's not a union job). It has something to do with labor laws around here. I work a job--give it my all, am very dependable, and do a good job--but I do expect to actually have time to live the life that the job finances. I'm a good worker, but I'm not a slave, regardless of salary.
Is all of North Dakota "loose" with labor laws? I hadn't considered that in my plans, which is my fault of course. But it does concern me after reading some of the comments here in the North Dakota forum. As I said, I'm not afraid of work--I can outwork most anyone my age. But my life is not going to revolve around it 24 hours a day. Life's too short.
North Dakota is a "Right to Work" state. This means that there are no closed shops in the state and union negotiation powers are curtailed as employers are free to attempt to break the unions by bringing in non-union workers (ie. no lock outs). Workers cannot be forced in to a union nor may you discriminate based on pro-union or anti-union sentiments by the worker. Teachers are given the option of being in the union or not.
May be true for the oil fields, but I don't think mandating 100% of your waking hours to an employer applies elsewhere all that much. Labor laws and regulations came about during the era when even children were spending all their waking hours sweatshopping. These laws still apply to most employment situations. Running a worker to exhaustion is dangerous in any sort of industrial or labor-intensive setting. It used to get many people killed every year. Drowsy or fatigued workers are dangerous.
I have two jobs right now and one of them pays well (interestingly enough, the "government job" pays VERY poorly). Overtime is offered and expected at the other job occasionally. It's labor intensive, so most employees can't do it constantly anyway; but were they to require it constantly under threat of firing me, I could sue them to high heaven (and no, it's not a union job). It has something to do with labor laws around here. I work a job--give it my all, am very dependable, and do a good job--but I do expect to actually have time to live the life that the job finances. I'm a good worker, but I'm not a slave, regardless of salary.
Is all of North Dakota "loose" with labor laws? I hadn't considered that in my plans, which is my fault of course. But it does concern me after reading some of the comments here in the North Dakota forum. As I said, I'm not afraid of work--I can outwork most anyone my age. But my life is not going to revolve around it 24 hours a day. Life's too short.
Hmmm, maybe laws have changed in Utah over the last few years, but when I lived there my husbands employer had mandatory overtime that you HAD to work. You could lose your job if you said no, and it was completely legal. He was working for Qwest, they had union there too. Last I heard, Qwest still does this.
Both Utah and North Dakota are at will states. I don't think laws in Utah have changed and you couldn't sue in Utah for losing your job for not working overtime as needed.
According to the FLSA, which is the only Federal law that really addresses overtime, mandatory overtime is NOT illegal.
Sorry, but you couldn't sue in Utah or ND unless it's in violation of a contractual agreement you made with the company or made with a union.
Hmmm, maybe laws have changed in Utah over the last few years, but when I lived there my husbands employer had mandatory overtime that you HAD to work. You could lose your job if you said no, and it was completely legal. He was working for Qwest, they had union there too. Last I heard, Qwest still does this.
Both Utah and North Dakota are at will states. I don't think laws in Utah have changed and you couldn't sue in Utah for losing your job for not working overtime as needed.
According to the FLSA, which is the only Federal law that really addresses overtime, mandatory overtime is NOT illegal.
Sorry, but you couldn't sue in Utah or ND unless it's in violation of a contractual agreement you made with the company or made with a union.
What I was talking about is requiring constant, daily, slavish overtime under threat of firing. That's a sweatshop and it was ended around the turn of the last century under labor laws. As I mentioned before, running your employees to the point of exhaustion is not healthy for the company or the employee. Granted, it depends on the nature of the job to an extent as well. Sitting at the steering wheel for 12 hours is not exactly an intense physical job, although it can be exhausting in other ways. I think the DOT rules are to keep the roads safe more than to look out for the driver's health anyway. Anyone wants to kill themselves off, it doesn't matter to me. I'm working a lot of hours right now as well. But there is no way I'm going to do it until I'm old and broken down.
The nature of my job (one of my jobs) is dumping (by hand) anywhere for 25 to 75 kilo barrels/boxes of chemicals/food product in prescribed amounts and mixed. It's a very controlled, sterile environment and stupid mistakes due to fatigue or drowsiness could affect customer's health (causing lawsuits--we have to actually sign a legal document every time we mix a product) and waste tens of thousands of dollars for the company in raw product. It's not worth it for the company to work their employees like slaves. Very few are mentally and physically capable (including me!) of doing any more than occasional OT and keep their errors to a minimum. The company knows that, so that's why they don't require 20 hour shifts seven days a week. They realize we are not all superman types. So the issue won't come up anyway.
Last edited by ChrisC; 04-27-2011 at 02:22 PM..
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I hadn't considered that in my plans, which is my fault of course. But it does concern me after reading some of the comments here in the North Dakota forum. As I said, I'm not afraid of work--I can outwork most anyone my age. But my life is not going to revolve around it 24 hours a day. Life's too short.
