by Gaazy » Fri Mar 20, 2009 10:50 pm
I got offered another job underground this week at a mine I deal with. Starting at 32 an hour. Hard to pass up lol, but i dont wanna go back underground right now. This particular mine works six 10 hour shifts a week (minimum, that usually turns into like 14 hour shifts a couple days a week if a machine goes down or a roof fall happens) and two sunday a month. Not including the production bonus of 1000 a month (if you run a certain amount of coal, bonus), the 1000 dollar a month safety bonus (if theres no operation shut down injuries, bonus. Injuries happen all the time, but this refers to major major injuries), and the 1000 dollar a month good attendance bonus (1 day allowed off for sick/personal situation) Good money, and no time to spend it. Theres just such a lack of miners right now >< the older generations are all retiring, and most of the younger gen is a bunch of drugged up idiots who dont pay attention to what they are doing and get people killed. And its NON-Union too (the ONLY kind of mine id work at) Miners are getting paid so good right now, but I just dont want to leave the company that me and dad have put so much heart into >< Money aint everything.
Ive finally got my shop guys down to the best of the best so far, and I swear I honestly believe we can turn this place into one of the biggest machinery suppliers in the industry with a little push and work and a little come around of the economy so these godamn coal companies will release some budget money for equipment. In the 6 years we've been open, we've already made our way into the top in our category. I place 3 categories for shops. Cat 1 is the multi billion dollar, worldwide, industry monsters, like Joy global and Bucyrus, who toss our 100 million dollar longwall systems like candy. Cat 2 is the medium sized operations with over 20 shop guys that put out dozens of machines a month, but still only make in the tens of millions or whatever. And cat 3 is the patch and repair cheap shops, basically the jacklegs for low budget companies that dont care about quality as long as its cheap. they piece together random machines to make a running one and shit like that. Make a few hundred thousand a year or something id say.
We fall into the top of category 2 now. Not bad for only being open for 6 years. Just need a little more oomph, and a salesmen. Godamn good sales guys are hard to find. Theyre worse than finding a fucking secretary worth a shit nowadays. coal equipment salesmen are kind of a weird breed. Coal miners dont want to talk to car lot salesmen that have all the fancy schmancy jewelry and nice slacks and shit, they want someone who will go underground and sit in the mud and shoot the shit with them. But still, you have to be halfway presentable, if you know what I mean. I wear jeans and a company collared shirt and boots when I go out, unless its a big corporate meeting, then you gotta look purty. But then you also gotta know the equipment...all the hydraulics, mechanical aspects, stress points, motor tensions, reducer sets, coupling standards, blah blah blah. So finding a good salesmen in this industry is a motherfucker
im really bored and cant sleep so im just kind of rambling on, dont mind me