Changing Employers ???

[stickstomper]

Is there anybody here who has quit a company after 25 years ? I have had it and am ready to tell the REA Coop I work for to kiss my ass. Just curious if any of you guys have done this and am curious how it worked out for you. There has to be life after putting up with all the Bull shit I can stand at the chicken shit outfit I work for. Mental health has to be worth something also.

Thanks, STick

[thrasher]

I spent one month short of 14 years at my first Coop before I decided it was time to leave. Then spent six months looking for another place to go. I left fifteen years ago and haven't regretted it for one day. There are lots of things to consider. If your present Coop has you enrolled in either the NRECA pension or 401k program then check at the company you are interviewing at, many other coops use the same plans and you can transfer your years of service and money with no hassle. If the plans are different you will have some hassle with the paperwork. Personally I only interviewed Safety accreditated Coops. I know this doesn't mean accidents won't happen but at least they are getting an outside review every three years and they tend to pay more attention. Also check out Call-out policy, vacation policy (do they bump you for someone more senior), what tools do they supply versus what you supply, etc. etc.
Overall sit down and make a list of things that you consider a minimum to have, things you would like, and things you can't stand; then go looking. A final piece of advice don't quit till you find a job, if you made it 25 years you can stand a couple of months.

[stickstomper]

Can anyone else offer any advice on quiting a REA CO-OP after 25 years and going to an IOU ?

[Trampbag]

You know what Stomper ruining your health isn’t worth keeping any job. I have no experience at staying anyplace longer than 5 years but I have left the area I grew up in, which had everything I ever wanted in life, because I couldn’t go to work every day and have my guts in a spin ‘cause the company sucked and so did every bozo that worked for them. Lord I tried but one day I put the wife and 6 month old baby in the car and just drove away. I have only recently been back to the area after nearly 30 years.

Did I make a mistake?? Hell no.

There is life after any job. Whether you quit it or it quits you.

[BigClive]

If you get a job lined up and are ready to move then do so with dignity. Don't tell your existing employer to stick their job up their arse. You may find out the grass isn't greener on the other side of the hill and want to come back.

The slight downside to changing employers is that once you've done it once you might find it so hassle free that your tolerance of management assholes goes down. :)

Maybe a spell of tramping might be useful.

[Pootnaigle]

I had enough BS and left a Investor owned company after 34 yrs of service.
Went to the union hall 6 months later and went out the same day.While I enjoyed the time off I also enjoyed gettin in a little linework as a contractor. Its somewhat different on the working condition side But I have never had a cross word with anyone. Many apprentices out there and so far only one thinks he knows it all. Equipment is good Pay is about the same Benefits are excellant. all it takes is some balls and a through knowledge of linework

[hillbilly]

I left after 12 years at a co-op,and man what a great decision me and the lord made.Okay I suppose he knew all along,any way bud roll over your retirement into an I.R.A. and go see the local hall and get rid of your BA ticket for an A.I suppose your union, and if not you ought to think about it.After that smooch your wife and young-uns,and come make some real money.Dont worry about the politics or the back stabbing just pure clean line work,and I made more in my retirement in 18 months than NRECA had for me in 12 years.Its a little different but with an open mind your gona really feel sorry for them ol boy's workin on them c2-2x,and regulator banks,and Christmas stand-by,and annual board cryin party's cause we just poor country people crapp,and hey if you dont want to climb them d*** green poles,hey man drag up to the next job.Good luck and look up,your answer is there

[INDUSTRY INSIDER]

Ever work in Wisconsin? You sound awful familiar.

[49pan]

Got 24 years with the same Co. Fixin to drag up and move 3000 miles,already got a job just waiting for the wife to retire (march). can't wait, see ya on the line. Good luck

[hillbilly]

Nope,I worked out of nine a couple times for Par.I like the area,just to dang cold.I checked on workin out of twenty one fifty about six mo back,not enough per diem or hours.See ya round

[bambam]

I'm not trying to tell you how to run your life, but man 25 yrs is a long time to pack up and leave. That should be 6 years away from retirement. You put up with it this long six more years aint nothing. NO coop will hire you because they wont want to pay your retirement and if you leave the bigwigs will get together and boycott you.

Union Halls arent always full of work ( I am a #369 member) and contractors are going to send you as far away as they can, which is usually a hell hole. I was at Davis Elliot for 8 years and had 3 crews ten minutes from my house and had to drive 3 hours one way every week. Your wife and kids are surely more important, I know mine are.

Then think of the health insurance, contractors sometimes dont offer much and when they do its not very good and expensive.

My dad also went through the same ordeal. The guy he bailed out everyday became the boss and stabbed him in the back. But he stuck it out and retired this year.

Just remember the old saying "KILL WITH KINDNESS" if they dont like you either that will just piss em off even more.


GOOD LUCK in your decision.

ps. im not bad mouthing unions or contractors I AM and HAVE BEEN BOTH.

[CenterPointEX]

The things going on in your REA are not unique to it. It is all turning on the deregulation pinwheel. In the old days Utilities did their bussiness, went to the governing commission, PUC etc. Explained thier expenses, asked for a five to ten percent return to thier investors. If the public was happy they get what they ask for, if not they got less. Under this system the goal for a utility was a reliable power system no matter the cost. Companies kept sufficient staff on hand to man most of what mother nature threw at them. Much in the same manor as a fire dept keeps sufficient staff on hand even though there are no fires. Long outages made the public unhappy and thus made it hard to get a good return. Post Deregulation a reliable power system is no longer the goal. The goal now is to maxamise profit at any cost. Much like the savings and loan scandal of the eighties, the Nations Utilities are being milked and rape of public trust is the order of the day. What we have here is a goverment backed privite enterprise. Just like the savings and loans were insured by the goverment and thus could fail without recourse, so are todays Utilities. Because the Goverment simply can not let a Utility go under. Somebody will have to keep the lights on. So, etrapamanuers are buying up Utilities, selling off assets, ceasing maint. and sticking the dollars in their pockets. This is legal theft. Check the article on the front page of last months New York Times titled, "Powerplants become bluechips underderegulation." At this time ther are no laws against this sanctioned stealing from the rate payers who footed the bill for the construction of these powerplants and utilities. So anyhow, Companies are putting thier lineman in a vise to keep the ball rolling. Also they are laying off and running them off in droves. Knowing the these linemen will go in to a nation wide labor pool which can be moved around the country chasing work... storms... etc. We are almost to the point where contractors can write their own check when the chips are down. Thats how thin the Utilities have become. I enjoyed showing up at the same place for most of my career, working with the same people. I would give my left nut to be back there. I have been tramping for about three years now. There are things I enjoy about it... but working conditions is something you dont really understand until you no longer have them... Which is the case in most of the contract world.

[Orgnizdlbr]

The things going on in your REA are not unique to it. It is all turning on the deregulation pinwheel. In the old days Utilities did their bussiness, went to the governing commission, PUC etc. Explained thier expenses, asked for a five to ten percent return to thier investors. If the public was happy they get what they ask for, if not they got less. Under this system the goal for a utility was a reliable power system no matter the cost. Companies kept sufficient staff on hand to man most of what mother nature threw at them. Much in the same manor as a fire dept keeps sufficient staff on hand even though there are no fires. Long outages made the public unhappy and thus made it hard to get a good return. Post Deregulation a reliable power system is no longer the goal. The goal now is to maxamise profit at any cost. Much like the savings and loan scandal of the eighties, the Nations Utilities are being milked and rape of public trust is the order of the day. What we have here is a goverment backed privite enterprise. Just like the savings and loans were insured by the goverment and thus could fail without recourse, so are todays Utilities. Because the Goverment simply can not let a Utility go under. Somebody will have to keep the lights on. So, etrapamanuers are buying up Utilities, selling off assets, ceasing maint. and sticking the dollars in their pockets. This is legal theft. Check the article on the front page of last months New York Times titled, "Powerplants become bluechips underderegulation." At this time ther are no laws against this sanctioned stealing from the rate payers who footed the bill for the construction of these powerplants and utilities. So anyhow, Companies are putting thier lineman in a vise to keep the ball rolling. Also they are laying off and running them off in droves. Knowing the these linemen will go in to a nation wide labor pool which can be moved around the country chasing work... storms... etc. We are almost to the point where contractors can write their own check when the chips are down. Thats how thin the Utilities have become. I enjoyed showing up at the same place for most of my career, working with the same people. I would give my left nut to be back there. I have been tramping for about three years now. There are things I enjoy about it... but working conditions is something you dont really understand until you no longer have them... Which is the case in most of the contract world.

Good post CP, you have a handle on what is going on in most IOU's across this country. Obviously there is much more to the story, but your post would have taken 10 pages had you covered it all.

[loadbreak55]

Man think about what you are considering here.25 years is a lifetime to just walk away from.There must have been "something"good about that REA that kept you there so long.Is it the first line job you ever had?If so ,believe me,the green grass on the next hillside can turn brown real fast!I understand haveing to put up with "politics"once and awhile,but it's usually a passing thing that you can tollerate.Whatever you decide brother,May god be with you,and good luck.:)