Watts Bar

[foreverajr]

Oh, I'm not trying to stir up trouble.  Really, I'm not.  No matter who Bartlett turns in for a job, it's ultimately Watts Bar's decision which techs come in and at what time.  I've been in the buisiness for a while....long enough to realize that things aren't always fair.  Having said that, when I think back, I was always brought in early and kept way after the outage was over.  I'd like to think it was because I was a good tech, an added bonus that I was a local returnee.  I'm sure that was part of it, however I maintained good relationships with people at that plant.....even to this day. 

I know that there were newbies that were hired in before locals and returnees.....I know this because people close to me were pushed back.  I just hate to see it, thats all. 

[ageoldtech]

Foreverajr, where did you get your start? I too was a junior at one time. Newbie’s were brought in, a total of 3. At this time they are not being used as Junior Techs. They were brought in because we needed laborers to shake out over 200,000 lbs of shielding. Plant services did not have the resources. Newbie juniors also cost less than Senior Techs. I don’t know many Techs that want to come here just to hump lead, and as for family and friends, yes my son is now a laborer making junior pay and I’m very proud of him! 

[foreverajr]

In my previous posts, I don't think I was trying to make any job look like it wasn't difficult.  Even when I was a newbie....Junior Techs were not used to hump lead at any TVA site.  That was a job for plant services.  I have done it before at other sites, it's hard work.  My point was that brand new right off the street junior technicians were hired in while other junior technicians, that are local and returnees, were given a much later hire in date.  As far as cheaper pay....of course brand new junior techs are going to be cheaper than a seasoned senior tech.  However, two juniors, one local and one that requires diem......which one would cost less?  I could be wrong, but it would appear that a local would be a more appropriate choice.

[Dream Tarheel]

YEA YEA YEA!

Somedays you get the job, somedays the job gets you.

A junior is a junior. Everybody needs connections, sometimes you got them and sometimes you dont, another part of the Nuclear Business.

As far a the two before mentioned 'early entry draft pick' juniors, one is a senior now and the other is "priceless", (it's what I hear).

Seems like they were two good decisions to me. The wonderful thing is, we live in the United States of America, you have the right to not like decisions made not in your or your family favor. We all have been there at one time or another.

And that "Son of a Ageoldtech", some people might have a problem with it, and they are usually the ones who forget the people who help them when they were starting out, nothing wrong with it. More power to them. I'd hire my entire family if I was the site coordinator.

But he was correct, them MEN were brought in to move lead, alot of lead. Special picked? I would hope so, seeing how not everyone can handle lead. I cant, the blankets are taller than I am.

We all sometimes wish we had someone to take care of use from time to time, and kids espically are lucky to have a dad or uncle who can help them and steer them in the right direction.

Couple of Seniors out there who could still use some "Parental Guidence"!

But back to the Oak Ridge Tech thing, lets do keep it real. Just cause your 5 year vacation @ DOE is over dont mean WBN needs you.

Just a thought.

[HydroDave63]

Unit 1 just crapped out at 12:15 today, don't know the full extent of the damage yet or if it will affect our SGR, but assessment teams are on the way in.

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/2006/20060801en.html

AUTOMATIC REACTOR TRIP DUE TO MAIN GENERATOR TRIP

"At approximately 1213 hours on July 31, 2006, with Watts Bar Nuclear Plant Unit 1 operating normally at 100% power, the main generator tripped resulting in a reactor trip per design.

"All control rods inserted [fully] and the auxiliary feedwater system [AFW] automatically actuated per design and the reactor was stabilized in mode 3. This event is reportable under 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(iv)(B) for the reactor trip (4-hour report) and under 10 CFR 50.72(b)(3)(iv)(A ) for the RPS [reactor protection system] and AFW actuations (8-hour report).

"The cause of the generator trip is currently under investigation."

Steam is being released via steam dump to the condenser and all systems functioned as required.

The licensee notified the NRC Resident Inspector.

[RAD-GHOST]

This one should make for some interesting reading in the future!

[RadBastard]

Yeah and i heard that they cut the jrs from 72 to 60 hrs even before the start of the outage.
Man it sux to be them 6-10's.
I bet they wish they went some where else

[foreverajr]

At first they told the juniors that they would be working 7 10's - taking away their day off, but leaving them short of a 72 hour work week.  Now some juniors are on 6 8's and some are on 6 10's.  I'm sure that they wish that they had gone somewhere else.  However, my source says that there are a ton of new kids right off the street.  It's hard to get work when you are brand new, so you go where they will take you.  But I do hear that the workers aren't as happy as normal which means it will only be harder to get techs in the future.  (Maybe a reason for all the newbies?)  Watts Bar really is a great place to work, so I hate that for them.

[tigger]

I am sorry to say, but the juniors that were last brought in, screwed themselves out of 10 hours. Someone had the bright idea to write up a petition..... And 26 out of 31 signed it. So the answer to the petition was 6- 10's, not 6- 12's like some would have liked. This was brought on themselves. Being a jr, and also liking money... well, I am quite ticked off that a few people who didn't like what was being given to them couldn't suck it up. Now those of us that were already inside the plant have lost out on hours. Sure no one was happy about it, but that is what we were being given for hours.
To be honest I am surprised the RPM's answer wasn't to send those that signed it down the road and hire in others.
No matter where you go, people will be unhappy about something. To those I say... please grow up and keep the nasties to yourself.

[RAD-GHOST]

Hum, Interesting Tigger.

Sounds like an excellent method for promoting open communications. 

Hey, if you got a problem, let us know, but not in writting and especially not that problem!

Yea, one could figure that the Juniors are expendable, but I think not!  I heard the number is around thirty.  I find it hard to believe any manager wants to cut 30 of their staff before an outage, especially as a result of addressing a problem of concern.  Maybe the site just found it in their heart to bring in a group of juniors and provide a training environment for some new techs!  In reality I believe they are a necessary portion of the staff augmentation and serve a very necessary function.  Of course you still have to deal with the junior jokes!

Seems that Health Physics Management has become so preoccupied with preserving their pedistool, they can't see the building falling down around them and the outage hasn't even started!

Rumor has it four seniors have bailed this week, more to come? I heard the other companies phone number is etch in just about every phone in the plant!  Actually just hit redial, odds are it will get you there!

Be Safe, RG

PS:  If you haven't lined up other opportunities for October and November, your looking at a lean Holiday season! 

[dilligaf]

               Tigger,
  I was wondering,what was the petition about???

[foreverajr]

In all honesty, when I heard about the petition I warned the juniors I knew not to sign it.  There are better ways to go about getting what you want without drawing a line in the sand.  That being said, those juniors that signed on to work this particular outage agreed and confirmed for 6 12's.  I know that during an outage, things change, hours change, and you need to be flexible (which usually means working additional hours).  But for management to want them to work on their "day off" while letting them accrue only 70 hours (what they could have made in a normal 6 day work week), well, it's enough to make anyone mad.  I thought it was against Watts Bars tech specs to work 7 days a week anyway.

I'm curious, Tigger, how long have you been in the biz?

[vikingfan]

not sure how things work at watts bar, but I know at other plants the refuel techs ect work a 7-10's schedule. maybe other craft workers do the same.

[PWHoppe]

not sure how things work at watts bar, but I know at other plants the refuel techs ect work a 7-10's schedule. maybe other craft workers do the same.

We have talked about this at length on another thread see this:

http://www.nukeworker.com/forum/index.php/topic,6448.0.html

[Dream Tarheel]

I thought it was against Watts Bars tech specs to work 7 days a week anyway.

Actually, it says you cant work >72 hours in any 7 consecutive days, hence they know exactly what they are doing.

[idrum4food]

Actually the NRC is holding TVA to the hours worked in a 7 day period. In the past TVA has gotten away with it as being emergent work. However the NRC argues that if it's a "planned" outage, then how can it be emergent work? As dream tarheel mentioned - ya can't work >72 hrs. in any consecutive 7 day period - unless it's emergent work such as a forced outage. Workers are allowed to work in excess of the above mentioned but not without exemption paperwork signed by the department head.

[tigger]

Someone asked how long I have been in the business.... since 2000. Not as long as most on here.
The petition was about working 7 days a week, 10 hours a day. I didn't see what was written on it, as I was already plant side.
As for being promised 6 12's, I think Jimmy Orr pointed out the small print, that all hours are subject to change.
We have a lot of first time Juniors here, that have an opportunity to learn a great deal and get in a lot of Jr time.
The point I was trying to get across in my last post was be happy you have a job. There are many people out there that would love to be able to make the kind of money that every one in this business make. Just think... you could be saying... would you like fries with that? and earning minimum wage.

[ageoldtech]

You are correct, TIGGER

[jrad]

Just to add a few things that weren't mentioned.  I think it is wrong that when we confirmed for this job we were told 6 - 12's, and it was conveniently left out that there is a $250 cap on travel in, with no travel out.  Oh yeah, and there is no holiday pay for Labor Day and Thanksgiving.  So after finding out all of these things we were then informed that we would be working 7 - 10's.   Yes, a petition was made and signed.  The petition was not an ultimatum, it simply stated that we would appreciate it if TVA would honor what we had been told, which was 6-12's.  Most of us in this business depend on our work in the spring and fall for most of our income.  As far as Tigger saying we should be happy we have a job:  not all of us had to come here, we made the choice from what we had been told.  It sounds as if you are one of the few that have been here for quite some time, and have been making money a while.  Not all of us are of the chosen few to be brought in early.  I want to be clear in that I understand you have to be flexible, but I think we were all mislead when we confirmed for this job.

[Dream Tarheel]

Oh yeah, and there is no holiday pay for Labor Day and Thanksgiving. 

Yea Yea Yea!

It's been that way for sometime now, so if you are gonna stay in this business, and make your future outage selections of places you have never been before, maybe the lesson learned here is to ask questions before you commit.

Not Bartlett's fault if you didnt ask, that's how they do business, for sometime now.

And yes, they should honor what they did tell you when you confirmed. I agree with you there, just like if you signed that petition saying you would leave if you didnt get 6-12's, you didnt get it......................but your still there.

No wonder Bartlett and anyone else thinks they can do what they want when it comes to your money, their word doesnt have to be any better than yours.

[jrad]

Just to be clear, the petition was not an ultimatum.  It never stated that we would leave, it was actually a pretty polite request to honor what we had been told. 

I agree that it is a lesson learned in that questions must be asked.  As I am sure you know though answers aren't always forthcoming.

It all goes back to the age old saying "Live and Learn"

[RRhoads]

jeesh!
where is your site coordinator in all this hoo-ha???
i remember being a Jr in in the early 90's at the "beaver trap".....actually everyone but SG techs worked 7-10's for like 7 or 8 weeks then laid off.
Looking back it wasn't too bad but we always seemed to be fat w/ techs!
we actually had 3 overlapping shifts! WOW!
anyway that was then.....your outage will be over in soon & some folks will have had an education!
Get your time in & then you can be a little more choosy as to where you go.
you not loooking for Hrs worked..your looking for outage duration.

[Melrose]

Wow... 5hundy a month.  For one room that ya can't get laid in, and a bathroom full of stank from aother TVA worker, and I thought all the good deals were gone.

[CountryHeavenTN]

Vacany Filled - Thank you for your interest.

Some people enjoy the finer things in life.

www.countryheaventn.com

[RAD-GHOST]

Sure is Quiet!  Latest word is, Twelve Techs have bailed for bigger and better opportunities, about one a day!  It will be interesting to see what happens in the first week of October.  One can only guess?

RG     

[Dream Tarheel]

Gag Order in effect.

Rumor is that Atlantic is ready to come in and staff back to full capacity.

[RadBastard]

And TVA doen't pay travel out either.
The will be hurting for techs at that rate?
God their cheap

[nukedog]

Back in 1999 we wrote a similar letter to get us more money and the site coordinator blew a fuse, but two days later we got a $4/hr raise. All TVA knows is hard ball and if you can't play the game then stand on the sidelines and watch.

I have a buddy at Browns Ferry they also getting treated the same way. But they stay and put up with it. I say your own fault.

[Dream Tarheel]

And TVA doen't pay travel out either.
The will be hurting for techs at that rate?
God their cheap

How can you say they are "Cheap"?

They dont pay travel out and they still staff their outage, sounds like an awesome business decision. No Holidays, 10 hour shifts for jrs, no travel out and mix all that with lots of confusion for 1st timers..............and they still staff, people are still there!

"Brilliant I tell you, Brilliant!"

[foreverajr]

As far as their staffing goes.....I heard that too many techs had left and another group was coming in to do the backup staffing.  Just what I heard.  Also, Juniors aren't on 10 hour shifts anymore.  I believe that they are required to work their 10, but have been asked to work 12s and some have been asked to work their day off. 

Thats definitely brilliance.