What do you do for a living

Brothers of Briar

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Railroad Traffic Controller (Train Dispatcher) for Metrolink in Los Angeles.
15 years on the job, 15 to go.
 
I am a physicist by training and do scientific research in water resources for a Federal agency. Sometimes I teach related courses at the university.
 
Retired forester/natural resource specialist including environmental compliance. Also worked as a park ranger and chief park ranger at several large federal projects. Did a lot of public education and interpretation in natural resources use/conservation, and water safety.

Jim
 
puros_bran":lpyg8hpk said:
According to Federal Classification I am unskilled Labor.
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Yep.

Especially amazing---and insulting---when the skills required are put directly to a test.

I found a show on Hulu called "Toughest Jobs" that ran a bunch of reality show types through their paces doing stuff like commercial crab fishing. There was a several-day training session for each job, then they were turned loose to do their best for the cameras. The one that was so difficult the episode didn't even get off the ground was driving a big rig. All they had to do was make a one way, 100 mile trip on an empty private road up north somewhere (might have been Alaska). The producers weren't allowed by law to take the contestants on a public highway.

Man, oh man, how they tried. Brought to tears with frustration because Reality Show Fame and Fortune was the prize, but they couldn't do it. Full load (80K lbs) and a series of steep, short hills stopped 'em in their tracks.

They didn't attempt to back the trucks at all, never mind park them or maneuver into a loading bay.

Then take the fact that driving a big truck is only a small part of the job---things like HAZMAT regs, load securement, DOT compliance, and so forth are where the gotchas lie. Loading and unloading is entirely the responsibility of the driver, btw. (Ever handled high pressure molten sulphur? 400+ degrees, and a single slip up can kill you most unpleasant way.)

The US Dept of Labor insists on calling "driving a truck" an unskilled job, though. Why? So it is exempt from overtime regulations. 14 hours a day is LEGAL, and several more than that is the reality. (The Teamsters faded away in general freight trucking when the industry was deregulated in the early 80's, so no protection there. Today's drivers are monitored every second by computer, and must follow computer-optimized and calculated schedules that flog them like sled dogs. The real world never matches the ideal conditions they assume.)

Truly, and without exaggeration, this country depends more on, and owes more to truck drivers than probably any other work group. Modern Life would not be possible without them.

Did I mention that it is statistically far more dangerous than being a cop or fireman?
 
LL":2kd04ljx said:
... exempt from overtime regulations. 14 hours a day is LEGAL...The Teamsters faded away in general freight trucking when the industry was deregulated in the early 80's, so no protection there.
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That's why, where the unions can legally operate, the Teamsters are again gaining strength. Slowly for sure, but growing once again (at least in my particular area and industry). If I wasn't getting paid hourly overtime and premium shift pay I'd walk away in a heartbeat and do something else.
 
LL":q6rvhjof said:
Truly, and without exaggeration, this country depends more on, and owes more to truck drivers than probably any other work group. Modern Life would not be possible without them.

Did I mention that it is statistically far more dangerous than being a cop or fireman?
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Yep, I had a neighbor that went to a trucker school out in Wythe county, went all the way through the classroom instruction but couldnt handle the "on the road" stuff, he quit. I remember him going into it with an "anybody can drive a truck" attitude. Came out with an attitude adjustment. I know I couldnt do it, I have no patience for other drivers, & almost fall asleep driving to Va Beach (5 hr trip from here).
I wonder how much of our baccy & pipes are hauled on big rigs, not to mention FOOD.
I saw something just the other day on PBS about refrigeration & how unhealthy folks in big cities were until refrigerated trucks could haul fresh foods there. Something to think about.
 
I've hauled stuff that turns solid when below 275 degrees.. Stuff that boils when it hits oxygen, cryogenic controlled crap, countless poisens,flamables,explosives and acids... Basically if it can go into a tank, any kind of tank, I have pulled it.

As for the walking away part: easier said than done, I've tried. I can make money doing other things but I'm totally miserable doing it.
 
EJinVA":lsr7qsnq said:
I wonder how much of our baccy & pipes are hauled on big rigs, not to mention FOOD.
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Over 70% of everything the American public consumes travels exclusively by truck, and virtually 100% of it has one or more trucks in the supply chain.

If the trucks stop, the country stops. Literally. If a magic spell suddenly made them disappear overnight it would be as destructive as a nuclear war.
 
I'm a shift Lieutenant for the Oak Ridge Police Department. Thirty-six years on the job.

As for truck drivers, they're a hard working bunch of folks in a job that would absolutely drive me crazy. Thank God for them. And, like cops, they all take a lot of criticism for what a small number of bad ones do. In thirty-six years on the job I've never written a truck driver a ticket. The few (and I do mean few) times I've had to stop one, a warning was quite sufficient.
 
I'm a Teamster! Kind of odd how that happened for my job title. I work for state Gooberment in IL. Storekeeper. What I really do is order all the license plates for the state. I stock warehouses and facilities. Deal with factories. Solve untold numbers of problems.
 
Senior Facility Manager/Account Manager for a very large integrated management services company in their facility services LOB. Right now I am managing an account for a county government where we primarily manage the county detention facility. I must say after managing facilities in the private sector for several years, managing a detention facility has been an interesting ride.
 
Wow -- what a great post, and what a diverse bunch we have here! Me? I live in Gunnison, Colorado but work in a fly fishing shop up in Crested Butte (30 miles away) during the winter, and am a fishing guide in the summer. I also work part-time at the local newspaper here in Gunnison as a photographer/freelance writer. In about 2 months, my good friend and I are opening a full service fly shop here in Gunnison. We've got a silent partner putting up the cash, and we're going to run it. I am stoked! It's only about four blocks from my house, so now I can ride my bike to work. We are also going to offer guided trips, so I will get to guide through the summer.

It's so freakin' cool, I can barely believe it.
 
I'm an officiant/celebrant at funeral services and a "kept man" as long as my wife continues to work.
 
Facility Operator...though more specifically I drive a zamboni at a sports/rec complex.
 
Mud logger, or basicly a on site geologist on oil and gas rigs.
 
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