Reference, Questions and Help > Polls
Benefits of Direct Hire
UncaBuffalo:
Have heard that a couple of utilities are currently examining the pros & cons of bypassing the contract companies and hiring us directly.
This system has worked well at Diablo Canyon and I'd like to see it elsewhere, so...if anyone can think of additional benefits to the utility, let's let them know. :)
RAD-GHOST:
Uncabuffalo,
That's a tuff choice! I have to go with the Economics Perspective! After all, what isn't influenced by a budget today? Every facility promotes the same issues, Safety, Quality and Regulatory Compliance. The common thread between them all is COST! The equation seems pretty simple, the customer accepts the additional costs of the middle man, the worker makes a decision on the anti-quated compensation package supplied by the contract companies and the middle laughs all the way to the bank!
Diablo Canyon:
I communicate with several techs currently working the facility and I hear nothing but flattery for the RP program and the site. Strangely enough they seem to be doing the same old stuff that every other facility does, but the atmosphere and attitudes seem well above the norm! I assume that suppling an adequate compensation package, (minus the middle man), has it's merits! Of course some Industry Icons, (with a self serving agenda), promote DC's hiring practice as a negative perspective for staffing. I would really hate to be in a position where I get to choose the talent that arrives at my site, vs. accepting what show's up at the gate!
Must be nice not hearing that same old line of bull, "We only pay what the Contract Allows"! You know the one I'm talking about, the contract you can't see with 1001 disclaimers!
Diablo Canyon T-Shirt........ ;)
"DCHP, We have the Best, You got the Rest"! 8)
I hope that ain't to tacky........Taker Easy, RG!
Brett LaVigne:
I am almost at the point of not liking to talk about the Diablo experience because it ends up sounding like bragging...Ieeeee work at Diablo Canyon, and don't you wish you were me...
Truth is, I wish all of my buddy HP's that are stellar techs could have this, and there are a ton of stellar techs that have not had the pleasure and would fit right in here. With that said, here is my opinion on the positives of hiring direct for outages. I didn't vote because it would only allow me to pick one.
Hiring direct allows the tech to see a bit more in their paycheck and makes them feel like they are appreciated and getting a fair deal. This makes it so most everyone wants to work that plant in turn flooding the utility with resumes. Now the ball is in the utilities court. Here at Diablo you don't get in without at least a couple of people referring you so the utility gets only techs that have someone sticking their neck out for them. It creates an environment of teamwork and people that are more than willing to do the small and large things that make the outage safe and successfull.
When I receive turnover from another tech, I almost don't even have to question whether or not I was set up to succeed, it's just expected.
Most of us have worked a plant or two that was in the situation of being on INPO's hit list with a 3 rating or maybe on the verge of getting the keys taken away. What do you remember about the HP and Decon staffing quality there? What do you remember about the hourly rate there? All of these things are related in my opinion, you get what you pay for generally speaking. 6 good techs in a crew of 50 can not carry the weight of 44 to make the outage a success.
We are one of the smallest groups on site during an outage, tasked with a great deal of responsibility. Seems like cheap insurance to ensure the utility gets a quality group of Rad safety Techs. How much does it cost to have unposted high radiation areas, VHRA's, lost realestate due to contamination spread out of control, radioactive tools outside of the RCA, INPO 3 ratings, slowed outages because your so afraid to make another mistake and get the keys taken away? All rhetorical questions.
So the question is this. Is it really more expensive to do direct hire? Does the utility really take on another level of responsibility by not using a contract company? I believe that the answer to both of these questions is a great big NO!
When you compare the cost of low quality service v.s. the alternative, the answer is very clear. I don't even think that having a middle man like Bartlett is the total problem either, money is the problem. Bartlett could do the same thing by selling the idea to the utilities, bill higher and require higher level of employee. When I sold advertising I had the most expensive product in the market, also the highest quality product in the market. That was always the first thing out of my mouth when giving the pitch. The name of the game is ROI (return on investment) That is the approach to take. Give $20 for a radio ad and they will give you $15 back or, give me $25 for my ad and I will give you $40 back every time. Which sounds like a more expensive deal? You want radioactive material released to the public, high rad violations, INPO 3 ratings...continue to pay $23/hour and you will get techs that aren't worth $15/hour. It's business 101. I do not understand why otherwise intelligent people do not get this.
tonynuke:
I totally agree the plant places itself in the best position if they can direct hire the best possible talent. Most plants seem to have a core group they can count on coming in to every outage and can trust to do a good job. But are there enough good quality techs out there for every plant to fully staff an outage. The key words being "Good Quality." Without some type of tech rating system, how does any plant know a good quality tech, unless they have worked there before? Maybe the next step is for plants is to direct hire part of their workforce, the part they can be sure will do the job they are paid to do, and deserve the extra bennies. Then if they have leftover spots to fill, fill them from the usual contract tech pool.
Just some more fodder for the debate, which should be a good one.
Have a nice day! ;D
desertdog:
[quote author=Brett LaVigne link=topic=13628.msg74894#msg74894 date=1203244501]
Hiring direct allows the tech to see a bit more in their paycheck and makes them feel like they are appreciated and getting a fair deal. It creates an environment of teamwork and people that are more than willing to do the small and large things that make the outage safe and successfull.
When I receive turnover from another tech, I almost don't even have to question whether or not I was set up to succeed, it's just expected.
Most of us have worked a plant or two that was in the situation of being on INPO's hit list with a 3 rating or maybe on the verge of getting the keys taken away. What do you remember about the HP and Decon staffing quality there? What do you remember about the hourly rate there? All of these things are related in my opinion, you get what you pay for generally speaking. 6 good techs in a crew of 50 can not carry the weight of 44 to make the outage a success.
[/quote]
I couldn't agree with you more. Having worked both of the currently operating CA plants, it's AMAZING the difference a couple of hundred miles and a different management perspective makes.
To come into a plant and to be shown the respect that we have earned over the years is refreshing to say the least. It starts with finally being paid on par with the other groups of technicians in the nuclear world. It continues with a high level of responsibility to do your job correctly and with your best effort possible. When everyone is pulling in the same direction it is the best work environment imagineable.
I don't know if we will ever see a majority of the plants accept this philosophy but it looks as if a few more are going to try it. All I can say is if they have half of the success Diablo has had, I can't see them going backwards to the current situation.
Here's to getting paid what we deserve on a consistent basis. Let's not forget the value we provide to these utilities in keeping them out of increased regulatory surveillance and lawsuit nightmares. For too long too many of us have accepted our wages as being OK because they were better than our buddy's back home. That is not the model to compare ourselves against! We live and work in the world of nuclear professionals. That is who we are. That is the group we should be looking at for pay comparisons.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
Go to full version