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life of a service tech
Mitch_4
Member Posts: 955
Last employer was like that. Been there, done that, threw the friggin T-shirt at the boss as I walked out the door.
New place much better. Not perfect, but they use common sense before asking me to work tons. There are days I still do 16-18 hrs, I feel I should cuz I have kids too and don't want them freezing either, but whenI say "no" my boss knows that I have given my all.
Get a new place to work. 29 straight hours should be illegal, and its definitely dangerous.
and for god's sake, GET SOME SLEEP! Don't forget to hug the wife and kids.
New place much better. Not perfect, but they use common sense before asking me to work tons. There are days I still do 16-18 hrs, I feel I should cuz I have kids too and don't want them freezing either, but whenI say "no" my boss knows that I have given my all.
Get a new place to work. 29 straight hours should be illegal, and its definitely dangerous.
and for god's sake, GET SOME SLEEP! Don't forget to hug the wife and kids.
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Comments
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life of a service tech
let me start by saying I,ve been a service/installation tech. for 15years.I have a master plumbing license,universal refrigerant recovery&nate certified.Ihave worked for the same company the entire time.As i am writing this post it is my first day off since???? I think new years.It all started monday.I left for a typical day at work which consists of driving 200+ miles a day&4 to 6 service calls.Returning home at 7pm I thought my pager was going to explode.I ended up running calls straight thru the night into morning,with my last call ending near the company office. I stopped in to drop off paperwork.[what a mistake].After working 24hrs I WAS HANDED A CALL TO CHANGE A HEAT EXCHANGER ON A RHEEM OIL FURNACE.WHAT ARE YOU #$*@#!~ KIDDING ME.After having a powwow with the service manager where he basically begged & pleaded with me to do it.I agreed that i would[another mistake].Approx. 5hrs later i finished the heat exchanger.You would think thats it.Right? they actually tried to send me on a gas leak.I told them that i would quit before i did anymore calls.The dispather responded with those famous words "CAN'T YOU DO JUST ONE MORE" at which point I said NO and shut my radio off.I drove home, ate,took a quick shower&talked with the wife&kids for ten minutes.I slept 2hrs before the pager was going off again.with all that said.I'm tired of the company i work for not appreciating my efforts.I'm tired of being taken advantage of. I'm tired of not being able to tell my family when i will be home.I'm tired of customer complaints.I'm tired of oil buckets dumping in my van.I'm tired of cleaning sooty boilers@ midnight.I'm tired of crawlspaces.I'm tired of the cat litter box in the boiler room.I'm tired of moving laundry to access a furnace.I'm tired of being on call. I'M JUST PLAIN TIRED.0 -
I agree....
....and I am an owner. Find yourself a new place to work. There are many firms out there that are SCREAMING for good service techs. Where are you located (city and state)?
I personally would never expect a tech to work 29 hours, and might consider firing the dispatcher who insisted he do so. It is unsafe, unhealthy, and detrimental to your family.
Good luck, and let us know how you make out!
Starch0 -
Hey Buddy.What language is \"Day Off\"?
Hmmm...? Get back in line ....slave on...do not get Outta Line...slave on...So many people are depending on you...Youd be suprised at how much more Good you can do Today..(Not that you might actually KNOW what day it is mind you)The BS of service work can drive a guy around the GD bend.I am here to support you .Put your rough side to the weather,eat your vitamins keep your mind on God and dont listen to them.Your in a type of Boot camp...The man upstairs is about to bring things into your life and its going to take every Bit of the strength you are developing Today. may the blessings be.0 -
Can't you just picture...
Moses dragging himself across the desert sand, "beaten into the clay for the master's final plan" - makes for great movie narration, but really blows in real life!0 -
Aint it the Truth. Welcome to the club.
dont say it like your the only ones whos ever been there. *~/:)0 -
I agree with the other folk here...
... get some sleep and then go and get a new job. The company that is employing you presently evidently does not seem to care about your health and safety. Putting someone to work for 29 hours straight is plain dangerous.
People can wait a few hours while you recharge your batteries. It may not be pleasant to watch a thermometer plummet, but risking a fire, explosion, whatever because the tech overlooked something due to extreme fatigue is playing Russian Roulette. Your techs will burn out, customer satisfaction will plummet, and then you can close your business.
My advice to tired: If possible, start your own business. That way, you get to watch the apprentices do a lot of the work that you describe of being tired of. You should have plenty of experience to teach them, plenty of good habits to form, etc. Then, run the company as you see fit, with an eye on preserving the sanity in your employees' work/life relationship that you seem to lack now.0 -
Good Man...Today Constantin is the Chosen messenger.
You must have been taking lessons in interpeting the deeper meanings of things
the word is like a seed,that needs some work to grow.*~/:) 0 -
tired...
I a true beliver in making you're own conditions in life, If you are so miserable it may be your fault. Tell the boss you would rather alternate on call days/nights or not be on call for emergencies period! Maybe you could just do installs?? This probably will go over like a fart in church, so be ready for the consequences. I'd line up another job first or look into going it alone. My post may seem harsh but one must realize whats most important, family, church, job, friends, ect.. only you can say which is most important as far as priority's concearn. Get some sleep, do some sole searching, then talk it over with the Mrs.. All good posts above & below, just remember YOU started doing this work of your own free will and knew there would be overtime especially now that the weather has peaked, depending on your relationship with the boss you may be able to curtail some or all of the OT just keep to mind, YOUR A LONG TIME DEAD enjoy the life you have and good luck. Let us know how you make out..Robert O'Connor/NJ0 -
Tired
Every one has made some great points.
You have worked some long hours and have taken time from your family.
Walk into the office and sit down with the boss. Explain what has happened.
Tell him you would like a raise and a performance bonus.
The performance bonus should be something like a week in Disney Land for you and the family.
If he says no. Toss him the keys to the van and tell him you will be in Friday to pick up your pay.
If they can not respect you.. Then you have no business being there as it will never get better
David0 -
Been there
Been there,done that, but I had to give the T-shirt back when I left.
The work is not the issue, it is driving the van. You can not stay awake that long and be safe and effective. They torture people by depriving them from sleep.
I could burn the midnight oil in my 20's & 30 's but not any more.
They don't care about you, they just want the customer taken care of. You could get a plane ticket and get to FLA. pretty cheap these days.0 -
Ha !!!
Sometimes being the owner means you work more. After a full day running calls, I'm in the office pushing paper and running heat loads and writing propsals. Don't blame the company you work for. You have to say no and mean it. I used to work for a company that worked me 2 80 hour weeks in a row. When I quit, they said, "all you had to do is tell us." Maybe they meant it. Come work for me. All we do is party and wear funny hats. Honest. WW
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The human body
is a strange thing. When you least expect it, an over tired body will decide to go to sleep, and you won't know.
How did I learn that? Worked 15 weeks straight, 12 to 15 hours a day on a new system startup.
On my son's birthday, I said screw this, I am going home to take a nap. Didn't make it. Body said nite nite and I drove the E350 off the road into a ditch, rolled up the concrete pipe that was cut at the angle typical where the pipe comes out from under the road. Went airborne over 2 lanes of shopping plaza entrance and landed again.
Broke my back.
Helicopter flight, major surgury, many months of recovery and I can still walk, a bit crooked but at least upright. Hurts a lot, every minute of the day.
I was stupid to do that, it was a crime for the company to not have enough help that we had asked for.
So don't be stupid, stop driving yourself to the point where you may not return. I will dig up one of my Xrays for you to post on the fridge to remind you. You WILL fall asleep!0 -
Wayne
Where do I send my application? -DF
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hole on there DF ithin the WW persons a leeetal beet ...
tricker that the computer monitors sayin *~/:)0 -
Very well said. it is against the Law to fall asleep while
driving in Tennessee.0 -
Dan I was hopeing
You would let me ride in with you and we could start with Wayne tomorrow. Can I get ice cream with the cake Wayne? Best wishes J.Lockard0 -
.
its a wonderfull life working the early grave shift ---i've been running since last saturday (running the show --owner has a family emergency 1 guy out hurt another i told him to stay home --broke more than he fixed)--round the clock sleeping an hour or 2 at a time --in supers' maint shops,empty apartments,porters rooms and when i'm lucky at home ......--overtime,doubletime etc...i've been in the business for 18 years---its time for a change --when any of the customers are yelling or being just unreasonable -i've been walking out -i had a few who want you there after 8:00a.m. but before 11:00 and not later then 2:00--well i said that is do-able but i can't give you set day0 -
yeah I'M ALIVE
I'm not as miserable as I may have sounded,just a bad day.I've read all the respones and agree most of it is my own fault for not just saying no.I've tried many times to work things out.I could go back to install dept.but for a drastic cut in pay.The management feels as if other service techs found out I was making the same hourly wage and not be on call it would cause half the service dept.to jump ship.AS far as disney world. management personal are only eligible for trips.although i did receive a cash bonus for my nate cert.anyhow i just wanted some respones from my earlier post.like I said,I worked for the same company almost 15yrs,I dont know what a normal day would be like at another company.You are right mr.o'conner your life is what you make it.After 15yrs I think its time for a change.0 -
I gotta reply
I am an owner, I would never ask someone to work that much, let alone I know all of my guy's would say go stuff it. So move on, it sounds like you care about people and that's the #1 thing I think in this bus. Good luck. Tim0 -
Service Mechanic
Whereas I agree that it takes a commitment from the Mechanics during the season, it can get pretty ridiculous and dangerous. Unfortunately I have known a good many mechanics that have had heart attacks and quite a few that have died because they are so run down. I have worked 16 to 20 hours a day 7 days a week, drove hundreds of miles in a 16 or 20 hour period. Always sick from lack of sleep. I've had strep throat more times than I can remember. Driving in such a sleep deprived condition is extremely dangerous. You can get killed, not to mention who else you may kill if you get into an accident or make a dire mistake on the job. If something does happen to you, there will be someone else in your truck before you're cold. Life goes on and your family will have to get along without you. Think about yourself. You can bet the Boss thinks about himself.0 -
Service Life
I'am the manger of the service department. I will not ask any thing of any of the staff that I would not ask of myself. The service tech know this. The dispatcher is required to provide notafication of any staff member working past 10 hours in a day, missed lunch,or other time limit set by us. The notafication goes to the team leader. When a team leader has sevral[3 or more] personel working long, mangment and the other team leaders are informed. The team leaders will shift thier teams to assit the tech's getting slammed. This works queit well most of the time.
We have long had the service tech's report on the dispatchers preformance[serval shifts of over run and dispatch lose thier bounces]. The result is dispatch treats field personel as equals.
We have found that personel that work over 50 to 60 a week is not very profitable for the firm or the employee.
I have an open door policy with all persons working WITH me, they can talk any time they want. I should note we use an open book policy with the service staff. They will work toghier as a team for better proformance & profit. The openness of this management style results in thiem pushing themselves and each other for maxium gain. They know when somebody else is caring their load. They will say something about it long before I need to get involved.
Mike0 -
One Man Show
I sure do know what you mean. Here's how ridiculous the last company I worked for. They would call me when I was on an all day & some OT job & call me because Mrs so& so's water heater was out & there would be plumbers standing around at the shop looking for something to do. I'm thinking "Am I the only one that can change a thermocouple?"
You gotta be kidding me.0 -
burnout
No one profits when techs leave the service trades because they just get tired of all the late hours and BS. Best Wishes J.Lockard0 -
Doug
What a story. I'm sorry for your consequences. Hopefully techies reading this will adjust their perspective and take care of themselves after reading this. I've pushed myself and come close to making a driving mistake from being tired and just been lucky. I haven't done it in a while but I remember pulling into a supply house parking lot and falling immediately asleep in my truck, just to wake up in 15 minutes and get going again. Not very smart on my part. It's only money, and the customer can always call someone else. I'm not the only guy who knows how to do this stuff. I'm older and wiser now, fer sure. WW
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Yup...
... I learned that lesson in College... after an all-nighter prepping an essay, I had a meeting in town (slept through 1/2 of that), then got on the road to Providence, RI. Scariest ride of my life, found my eyelids shutting, etc.
Got into Providence. Having lunch really helped. Sugar is good! Drove 2 hours to New Haven, said my hellos, went to sleep. Everything was cool the next day... 13 hours later.
Sleep deprivation is a lot like hypothermia. By the time you're aware of the symptoms, it's usually too late.0 -
thats true
an entrepneur is someone willing to work 16 hour days to avois working 8 hours for someone else.
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Safety First
Take a look at on-the-job accident statistics and how they are influenced by extra hours and working odd hours. You know your own body best and it is in everyone's best interests that you don't get hurt on the job. Next time you're tired and the dispatcher tries to give you another service call, just tell him that you would, but it wouldn't be safe.0 -
One of my neighbors, in your business, was found last month, at 6 a.m., slumped over the wheel of his van, in the company lot. Foot on the gas, luckily (for others) van was in park. He had a massive coronary, 52 years old. Worked day and night. What for?0 -
A body
can only take so much. It's taken me 37 years in the trade to actually learn that!! Now sitting at home, bruised and broken. Push, push, push, now what. The rest of the guys are run even more ragged and I sit here logging as many hours answering stupid phone calls about even more stooopid mistakes. Put my foot down today!!(not the broken one) Feb 1 -- BIG CHANGES IT just HAS TO stop smewhere.0 -
That must be the secret to your success!
No wonder that you never show any pictures of your installs, you're too busy clearing the party streamers! ;-)
But seriously, if you don't get enjoyment out of your work, then why do it at all? I see too many people in business chasing the low bid for no other reason that they think it will improve their bottom line, which, as a low bid, it cannot.
Work to live, not the other way around.0 -
Just Wait
And Just Wait! When it warms up you"ll hear we didn't make any money this year. You guys costs us plenty in overtime. The price of oil was so high we didn't do so well. And my favorite, we will most likely have to lay off some people & Your lucky you have a job.0 -
Just Wait
And Just Wait! When it warms up you"ll hear we didn't make any money this year. You guys costs us plenty in overtime. The price of oil was so high we didn't do so well. And my favorite, we will most likely have to lay off some people & Your lucky you have a job.0 -
.
i just got a great bonus for the past 2 weeks of covering a boatload of emergencies -w/minimal help --too bad i told the owner thanks for the bonus but i'm leaving --not sure where but i will not be doing this next year----overtime,double-time missing -appointments etc..its been 18 years i'm done might be a maintenance monkey---stationary engineer or a different side of the heating business0 -
My hands hurt, elbows,
my knees and back. Ive done my share of double vision 24 hr days. JUst hope I can relax enough to quit pushing it. Sounds like a personal problem to me. I dont know?0 -
If I have found one basic trait..........
In nearly all the folks in this occupation, it's this. We enjoy and just plain do this line of work because we like to help people. We tend to put other people ahead of our own needs and wants more often than not. It's like a birth defect or something. I am just as guilty as anyone else. I have on more than one occasion, driven myself til I literally could not function anymore.
I don't do it anymore. If someone calls at 2:30AM and says they have no heat I kindly suggest that they find something to get by with til morning. The simple fact of the matter is that a customer doesn't want me, (or anyone else) in their house, working on something that can blow them up or burn down their property, when I'm half awake.
The last straw was a couple years ago at about 3:00AM when I neglected to tighten a pilot line and rearranged all my hair into a nice kinky mess. Made my face look like I had been in the Sahara all day besides. That was it. I don't do it any more, I don't ask any of my guys to do it either. Until we get large enough to warrant a night shift, we just can't do it. Period!0 -
That story brought a smile to my face...
... I was doing indoor lab testing on the new outdoor gas water heater we were developing. After weeks of undoing and re-doing gas valve connections, etc. I thought I had it down pat.
Well, I didn't pay enough attention one time and soon had flames shooting out the underside of the water heater because I hadn't tightened the connection between the burner and the valve enough.
Polyurethane burns quite nicely and this was their first lab fire. All things considered, I reacted quite well, turning off the gas first, then getting a chemical fire extinguisher and using it for the first time in my life. The fire was out in 10 seconds or less. Cleaning up the dust from the chemical fire extinguisher took three hours, however.
But I had learned my lesson. From then on, we never had a loose connection again! It's funny how many of our behaviors are shaped by bad experiences in the past...0 -
Yep
you are ready for a new job. They are taking advantage of you at this point. Mad Dog
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