Any ex manufacturing workers?

I sure do. I have been working in the same papermill for 32 years now. 20 years driving a forklift and 12 as a millwright in maintenance.

 

Yep, sure do--I put in 8 years at GM/Delphi. It was the money that made me stay. I hated just about every minute of it. One steering column parked in front of me, on an assembly line, every fifteen seconds--about 1700 of 'em a day. It gets real boring and monotonous real quick. There were days where I'd have to look at my paycheck stub just to force myself to go to work.

Then came the spinoff... and the bankruptcy... and the buyout... and I was GONE--bye bye. Now I'm looking at getting back into a truck (I did about five years OTR before GM).

Back in Dec. 1997, I was a retard and got a DUI in my 4-wheeler. When I got my license back in '99, I never asked about the CDL because I figured I wasn't going to need it anyway--I had already started at GM by that time. Now ten years later, I need it and wish I'd have pursued the matter earlier.

I really enjoyed 48 state OTR, except for the grocery warehouses. After a few years of that though, I got a little homesick and wanted something more local. Hence my very short career at Yellow Freight. I thought I'd be driving but instead they had me working on an open dock in the freezing cold middle of winter... not for me not for any amount of money. I HATE being cold.

So then I worked in retail for about 6 minutes at minimum wage... also not for me. Back into the truck I went--driving shorthaul this time for NTB. They ran the livin' dog pee outta me and I (stupidly) ended up quitting over some crap that happened at KalKan in Columbus.

My new job, after NTB, was holding down the barstools at the local bar... drowning my sorrows in liquor. Not the smartest idea I'll say.

I had $50 left to my name and had been living in my car for the previous three weeks. My storage unit was $60 a month and I didn't have the money to pay it... so I went to the bar and drank $50 worth of liquor. Can you say RETARD? Sure, I knew ya could.

I knew I was going to jail that night, and truthfully, it was the slap in the face that I needed. I straightened up my act after that.

In looking back on it all, I should have just stuck with 48 state OTR. It was probably my favorite job and it made me enough money where I could buy any kind of toy I wanted. Above all though, I LIKED doing it... and in the end, that's what counts.

 

I've been working in shipping for 22 years now and i hate it every day. It's the same thing with the same people.. Then you get the co-worker that does absolutly nothing all day, and management gives him a raise. I bust my butt for this guy to be a bum. I hate it!!!! Your right though about the money. I make a VERY GOOD WAGE that I will not get anywhere starting over.. Plus throw in the 5 weeks vacation.. It's hard to leave all of that.
I'm really trying to turn my head and not pay attention to my co worker, buts it extremely hard not to. Whats fair should be fair!!
Thanks for listening..

 

from Anvil Knitwear here in the mountains of NC back in september 2007. I was an assistant shift supervisor for five years working 12 hour shifts. Those were long days but a good trade off for only having to work half the year basically with really above average pay with as much overtime as you wanted for a textile company. They closed down and moved all operations to Honduras leaving over 500 dedicated employees without a job.

Most everyone though was able to take advantage of TAA and TRA benefit programs for what the federal govt. calls "trade affected workers". I got lucky in that they are going to pay the $3400 to go to a Sage truck driving school at a local community college that's also PTDI certified. I think I have all the acronyms correct, LOL! I got the last of the paperwork approved yesterday and start the five week course january 28th.

This is the 3rd textile company that I have worked for over the past 18 years that has closed or moved it's operations offshore. All of the jobs were pretty good with decent pay for this state too. The unemployment office kept trying to put me in another "factory" job but I want to do this just to keep from getting laid off again on down the road after working my way back up the seniority ladder a 4th time.

Anyone reading this that may be about to be or have been laid off from a factory job and considering the costs of a CDL school, make sure you check the federal programs. DO YOUR HOMEWORK!!! There is usually some kind of assistance out there. The bright side to losing my job to a person that will do it for 18 cents an hour American, is that I can go to school for this and have it paid for without becoming a slave to one of the companies out there that take in people and you have to pay the money back under contract or whatever. I truly believe the posts I've read throughout this board that it's better to get through school on your own whenever possible. I'm really lucky the help was there when I needed it most.

 

I've been a manufacturing welder by day and full time college student by night since I graduated high school in 2005. I enjoy welding and i'm really good at it but i'm tired of working somewhere that when I go home and blow my nose i'm blowing out black stuff from all the smoke. I'm tired of 12 hour days and still not making more than $25,000 a year. My dad just asked me a couple of weeks ago if I wanted to be his partner and start trucking business, so now i'm looking to get on with a company and get some experience before I take the plunge and live on the road.

 

If you're blowing black stuff out of your nose, you need to wear a respirator. Welding fumes can cause PERMANENT and irreversible nervous system damage. I'm sure if you've had any training at all in metallurgy, you're familiar with the toxic properties of manganese.

Get yourself a low profile paint respirator to wear under your helmet. Maybe the company you work for doesn't care about your health, but you should.

 

I know exactly what you're talking about. I retired from GM this past July with 30.5 years. Worked 20 years in a GM/ Fisher Body/Delphi parts plant, that plant closed, and I took a transfer to an assembly plant here in Delaware. Got my 30 and got the heck out with a pretty nice pension. Doing seasonal work at a state forest right now, but after a move to upstate PA later this year, I plan on getting my cdl after my wife and I are settled in. Would like to drive otr for about 10 years...i'm still 50...take the money I make from driving, and stuff it all into a 401k and use my pension for house bills. That's the plan.

 

To be honest its American Railcar Industries and what they do is take any joe schmo and put him through a week long basic welding course they only put you through hands on training no classroom stuff so honestly i don't know about the specifics of welding just how to do it lol we used to have respirators but they are pieces of junk so they do no good our supervisor tries to get new ones but the management doesn'nt come through so were stuck but i'm getting of that so hopefully I my health won't suffer.