NPUA

[HydroDave63]

On-topic: At this point, no amount of 'mechanical agitation' is going to sway anyone's opinion. Thread lock?

[Already Gone]

Mell -

I made no assumption.  I asked BC a couple of questions in an open forum about a statement he made in the same open forum.  If the questions go unanswered, then maybe I'll have to make an assumption.

We all know how easy it is to say we want a cause to succeed - save the whales - stop global warming - end the U.S. dependency on foreign oil - even the NPUA and their efforts to organize technicians.

We achieve nothing by simply saying we want these, or any cause, to succeed (or fail).  What makes a difference (and more sense) is actually doing something to help achieve what we publicly delare we support.

Actions speak much louder than words.

GEEEEZZZUUUZZZ!  How much more should I have to do?  Look, I have nothing to gain or lose if NPUA succeeds or fails.  I achieve nothing either way.  If any of you really want to know how to double your pay immediately I can tell you how, but I'm not going to do it for you.  I am simply offering some advice, perspective, opinion, and information.  NO!  I am NOT going to wrap it in velvet and hand-carry it on my knees to them.

Frankly, I really think that this union and their 14 active members are acting pretty high and mighty for a group of people with so little power and so little support.  I'm doing my best, but I don't have to do it by their rules -- ESPECIALLY if I think they have their heads way up their rectal passages.  If they need support, they will not get it by being arrogant and insular.  If they need members and need to spread their message, they have to spread it to the four winds and plaster it on every wall (especially this one) that they can find.  They need to be a little bit more amenable, get their noses out of the air and get on this site and answer the questions.

For the other side, if techs want this union, if they want what it offers, if they want it to prevail, they have to be a part of that process by joining it and standing by it.  You have no right to call yourself a member of NPUA if you submitted your resume to them when they waived $45/'hr at you and then backed out when you found out that they didn't have any other contracts.  Basically, if you want a gain, you have to take a risk.  You can't wait until the union succeeds before you join because the union will not succeed until you join.

But I am not here to help the NPUA.  I'm really here to help the members of NukeWorker.  I'm trying to get them some answers to important questions.  Yes, I have read the forum on the NPUA website.  But amazingly enough, I still don't know what I want to know.  I think that if someone wants to recruit any member of NW, then they owe the members of NW these answers.  I'm talking about things like: when is your next election (or did you appoint yourselves for life)?  Who will be eligible to run for office at the next election?  What companies have you successfully negotiated a contract with?  What happened to Spectrum?  How do you expect to get back your $30,000.00 that you personally invested in this venture?  Who will pay that?  What compensation do your officers and board members get?  What is the source of those funds?  Are your financial records open to inspection by prospective members?  Who is your independent auditor?  How can a board member of NPUA be "certified"by the NRRPT?  How can he have been "certified" by the NRRPT thirty years ago if he only has 13 years of nuclear experience?  How can a member expect you to get his pension correct if you can't even write two lines of biographical information about yourself without screwing that up? 

Yeah, yeah.  You won't dignify any of that with a response?  I know.  Good luck with that approach.  Call me in a year and let me know when it was that you realized that it was the wrong idea.

[Already Gone]

But they are reading this.  You can bet on that.  And don't be too sure that their "official" reps haven't been posting here.  They just don't want to admit to it because that would let the cat out of the bag that they got no game.

[Camella Black]

But they are reading this.  You can bet on that.  And don't be too sure that their "official" reps haven't been posting here.  They just don't want to admit to it because that would let the cat out of the bag that they got no game.

Amen to that brother (lord I miss Lost)... and thanks for asking the questions you did.

[Brett LaVigne]

This whole thread has become completely ridiculous. I am sure that NPUA reps spend hours pouring over this thread to see what someone says next!

If no one can look through this thread and figure out pretty quickly why the NPUA does not, and should not waste it's time in responding...Well, it just seems pretty obvious to me.

[Rennhack]

Just a little history from the guy that's seen this site from the beginning, before it was even called nukeworker.com.
The first three years "NukeWorker.com" existed, we had no sponsors, and accepted no advertising dollars.  The sites name is nukeWORKER because it is for the workers.  IT's not nuke jobs, or nuke recruiters, or nuke news, or nuke tourist, or nuke anything else.  It's about the workers.  The NUCLEAR workers.

I created this site, as I said, because roadwhore banned my IP address, disallowing me to even visit their website because I asked a question about one of the companies that paid them to post jobs.  I had been a computer enthusiast since I was 12 years old, and had experience in old school BBS's, electronic communities.   There was no place we could go and speak our minds.  I believe that if a company is doing wrong, we need to let our fellow nuke workers know about it.  WE are the only people WE can rely on. WE are the only people that understand what it's like to be out there.

At the 3 year mark, our server bills were over $650/mo.  That was hard for me to pay for out of my own pocket, when I wasn't making that in a week.  So we started allowing companies to pay for job postings and Banner Advertising.  Bartlett was the 19th company to sign up as a company on our site to post jobs.  Babcock/Isolve was 11th, and EDI was the first.  You always remember your first.

The first company to get the "Co-Branding" button ad was SEC, who had it for several years, they used it to advertise their instrument lab.  The advertising did well for the lab, but one year they decided to not renew.  I sent out an email to all of the companies that sponsor the site, and offered them the spot.  The only company to respond was Bartlett.  (Sad, I know... you would have thought that more companies would be interested... but they were not.)  When SEC had the button ad on the site, people thought SEC owned the site, and with Bartlett's logo up there, they think Bartlett has some special sway.  No advertiser has sway over me, or this site.  The sites income generated from Bartlett accounts for less than 5% of the sites total revenue.  So I'm not going to jeopardize 95% of our revenue to satisfy 5%.  That's just silly. 

The only companies that have ever asked me to remove something, and I complied with,  was just about every nuclear plant post 911, they asked me to remove pictures of their plant, until everything could be reviewed by security.

Additionally, I've dropped an advertiser because they tried to get me to change something that was said on our site.  (A company advertising OSHA training) They said it was hurting their revenue, and that the information on the site was inaccurate.  (Our site said you couldn't get OSHA training online) I dropped them as an advertiser for even asking me to change something.  And you know what?  They were correct about the information being wrong.  It wasn't about them being right or wrong, it was them threatening to change their advertising spending if I didn't change what the site said.  I saved them the trouble.

I view the website not so much as mine, but ours.  It belongs to every nuke worker, I'm just managing it for us the best I can.

I don't want any censoring on this site at all, and I only want the least amount of corralling as possible.

NPUA won't be treated any differently than any other company or organization.  No better, no worse.

I'd like to see NPUA buy a job posting agreement, and a banner ad... And that button ad... Then people could say I was a puppet for the NPUA.

Later, when I have time, I'll write a nice bit about how Bartlett isn't my main employer.  As Troy mentioned, 3 of my last 5 jobs were with Shaw, one of Bartlett's competitors (The other 2 with Bartlett ... after-all, I AM a rad guy,and they are the biggest rad company out there... If I want to work rad, why exclude them?) 

[RAD-GHOST]

Mike,

What's the TOPIC again......

I couldn't help myself.....RG!

[Dave Warren]

I must be the most black-hearted SOB in the business,......heheheheheh,....

Tongue-in-cheek

[Rennhack]

Personally, while I have only the word of people who say their posts have been deleted to rely on, I too believe this site may be a little biased towards a certain co-sponsor.

Third, Bartlett is a co-sponsor.  You work for Bartlett.  As I understand it, you went from deconner to Rad Engineer, a pretty meteoric rise, considering it's hard to get an ALARA tech spot with any company unless you know somebody.  The appearance of a conflict of interest is quite high.

Later, when I have time, I'll write a nice bit about how Bartlett isn't my main employer. 

Ok, It's later...

Bartlett has been a great employer, but they are not my universe.  They are one of 12 employers I have had, and account for only 37% of my employment over the last 20 years.  They have only given me one career advancement out of seven, and that was a Jr HP Job (Gasp). 

As I understand it, you went from deconner to Rad Engineer, a pretty meteoric rise, considering it's hard to get an ALARA tech spot with any company unless you know somebody.  The appearance of a conflict of interest is quite high.

NOTHING meteoric, just a lot of hard work.  And obviously all of my really good 'breaks' were given to me by companies other than Bartlett.  First Job was with Westinghouse; First Sr HP was with GTS, First real Supervisor and Engineer jobs were with SEC, First ALARA Engineer & Safety Engineer jobs were with Shaw.

•   1989 1st Nuclear Plant Jr Decon Job - Westinghouse RS
•   1991 1st Time on Probation – Bartlett
•   1992 1st Per Diem Jr Decon Job - ARC
•   1995 1st Sr Decon Job – ARC
•   1997 1st First Jr HP Job - Bartlett
•   1997 1st "Sr" HP Job - Envirocare
•   1998 1st 18.1 Sr HP Job at Power Plant - GTS
->   1999 Started NukeWorker.com <--------------------------------------------
•   2000 1st Sr HP Job at DOE Site (Oral Boards) – GTS
•   2000 1st 3.1 Sr HP Job at Power Plant - Bartlett
•   2001 2nd Time on Probation – Bartlett
•   2001 1st REAL RP Supervisor job  - SEC
•   2003 1st FSS Engineer Job- SEC
•   2007 1st ALARA Engineer job at a Power Plant - Shaw Stone & Webster
•   2008 1st Safety Engineer Job at a power plant - Shaw Stone & Webster

I've been 'fired' twice while working for Bartlett, to include being placed on probation.

These are the facts.  "As I understand it" you are wrong. I have proven that Bartlett has given me no special breaks, and I have proved that they are not a significant overall source of revenue.  Now I would appreciate it if you stopped spreading lies about me, and mis-information.  An apology would be nice too.

[RADBASTARD]

Wow for someone who has nothing to lose or gain you really seem occupied with this npua thread?
I'm so glad the techs have you on their side to look out for them and their welfare.
As far as us doubling our money O wise and great one.You could tell us but you won't oooohhhh .
I guess if I could get a gig as a stand in or body double for the next Harry Potter Movie I could double my money LOL
As far a wraping it in velvet im kinda partial to velour if you would be so kind.


The npua is trying to help techs make as much money as they can giving them an option.
Out there you have laborers for example making almost as much as the techs with a way better beni's package and the don't have any responsiabilties that the techs have.

We can see your not here to help the NPUA and as far as them calling you in a year you got about as much chance of that happening as obama calling the glen beck show.

Im sure the techs are glad that you got their backs and are looking out for them with the Npua

GEEEEZZZUUUZZZ!  How much more should I have to do?  Look, I have nothing to gain or lose if NPUA succeeds or fails.  I achieve nothing either way.  If any of you really want to know how to double your pay immediately I can tell you how, but I'm not going to do it for you.  I am simply offering some advice, perspective, opinion, and information.  NO!  I am NOT going to wrap it in velvet and hand-carry it on my knees to them.

Frankly, I really think that this union and their 14 active members are acting pretty high and mighty for a group of people with so little power and so little support.  I'm doing my best, but I don't have to do it by their rules -- ESPECIALLY if I think they have their heads way up their rectal passages.  If they need support, they will not get it by being arrogant and insular.  If they need members and need to spread their message, they have to spread it to the four winds and plaster it on every wall (especially this one) that they can find.  They need to be a little bit more amenable, get their noses out of the air and get on this site and answer the questions.

For the other side, if techs want this union, if they want what it offers, if they want it to prevail, they have to be a part of that process by joining it and standing by it.  You have no right to call yourself a member of NPUA if you submitted your resume to them when they waived $45/'hr at you and then backed out when you found out that they didn't have any other contracts.  Basically, if you want a gain, you have to take a risk.  You can't wait until the union succeeds before you join because the union will not succeed until you join.

But I am not here to help the NPUA.  I'm really here to help the members of NukeWorker.  I'm trying to get them some answers to important questions.  Yes, I have read the forum on the NPUA website.  But amazingly enough, I still don't know what I want to know.  I think that if someone wants to recruit any member of NW, then they owe the members of NW these answers.  I'm talking about things like: when is your next election (or did you appoint yourselves for life)?  Who will be eligible to run for office at the next election?  What companies have you successfully negotiated a contract with?  What happened to Spectrum?  How do you expect to get back your $30,000.00 that you personally invested in this venture?  Who will pay that?  What compensation do your officers and board members get?  What is the source of those funds?  Are your financial records open to inspection by prospective members?  Who is your independent auditor?  How can a board member of NPUA be "certified"by the NRRPT?  How can he have been "certified" by the NRRPT thirty years ago if he only has 13 years of nuclear experience?  How can a member expect you to get his pension correct if you can't even write two lines of biographical information about yourself without screwing that up?  

Yeah, yeah.  You won't dignify any of that with a response?  I know.  Good luck with that approach.  Call me in a year and let me know when it was that you realized that it was the wrong idea.

[Already Gone]

Wow for someone who has nothing to lose or gain you really seem occupied with this npua thread?
I'm so glad the techs have you on their side to look out for them and their welfare.
As far as us doubling our money O wise and great one.You could tell us but you won't oooohhhh .
I guess if I could get a gig as a stand in or body double for the next Harry Potter Movie I could double my money LOL
As far a wraping it in velvet im kinda partial to velour if you would be so kind.


The npua is trying to help techs make as much money as they can giving them an option.
Out there you have laborers for example making almost as much as the techs with a way better beni's package and the don't have any responsiabilties that the techs have.

We can see your not here to help the NPUA and as far as them calling you in a year you got about as much chance of that happening as obama calling the glen beck show.

Im sure the techs are glad that you got their backs and are looking out for them with the Npua

It's simple enough.  I care about my friends and former co-workers.  I want them to get a fair deal.  I'd be happy for them to get ahead and sad to see them get disappointed.

I said I'd tell you how, but I wouldn't DO IT FOR YOU.  Read a little more carefully next time.  And the answer is simple.  If you want twice the money you make now, you can convince me to hire you.  The lowest paid employee at our shop makes twice as much as a Sr. RP at the end of the week.  The highest paid ones ... well, I don't want to make it hurt too much so I won't go into that.  They work the same outage season that you do.  That does not include the GSA per diem that they all get.  With that said; it isn't as easy as you think.  Crying and whining won't get you there.  You have to earn the job.  You have to stand out as a sharp, motivated, intelligent worker. 

If all NPUA is trying to do is get the techs more money, you're all screwed.  That is not what a union is for.  If that is what you think it is for, you will be pretty mad later.

Don't give me the crap about laborers not having the responsibility.  RP's usually get paid for a 72 hour week during an outage.  With OT after 40 that comes out to 88 hours of straight pay every week.  36 hours in the break room plus 30+ hours of sitting at a control point or CCTV monitor telling war stories, leaves <6 hours a week to do any real work.  88 for 6 is pretty good.  That laborer is getting a lot more done with his time.  Does it make him more important than you?  Not necessarily, but somebody seems pretty willing to hire lots of 'em even at a higher rate than yours.  You figure it out.

No, they won't be calling me next year.  I'm aware of that.  I also won't be sitting by the phone waiting.

[Old Dude]

WOW Beer Court,
I used to think you were a stand up guy, but your disdain for the hard working HP techs has opened my eyes.
You are truly a fat headed Jackass.
To think techs only work 6 hours in a 72 hour week is insulting to the techs and the utility.
Maybe your safety techs work that way, but in this day and age the utilities do not give us breaks like the old days especially in a BWR.
You talk a lot of crap about the NPUA !
You do not know jack about why we are trying so hard to establish a Tech union. You think it is just for the money? Yes that is a large part after all we all have to eat and pay our bills. Your Safety techs make $35 plus GSA pd. WHY SHOULD THE HP'S NOT MAKE THE SAME. We are as qualified; hell more qualified then safety techs.  I know two HP techs that are in safety (one works for you) they say that there safety job is 10 times easier with less responsibility.
Back to the NPUA!
We have worked for years to gain some respect from the utilities.  Thing are just starting to happen you will see. I am not at liberty to go in to all of our plans except to say the union is expanding every day.
To my fellow techs reading this post, JOIN US!
Go to NPUA.org read the by- laws, the news, call our number and ask questions, fill out an authorization card. It is all confidential no need to fear retaliation from the nuclear employers.  There are less than a thousand Hp techs working commercial plants. If half of us have the nerve and will to unionize then we can make it better for all techs.
I just read about another fallen tech. It saddens me to think that after 31 years in this business I do not have a company pension, affordable health care, or the respect of employers like Beer Court.
BTW Bartlett and Atlantic need us as much as we need them.

[Camella Black]

It's simple enough.  I care about my friends and former co-workers.  I want them to get a fair deal.  I'd be happy for them to get ahead and sad to see them get disappointed.

I said I'd tell you how, but I wouldn't DO IT FOR YOU.  Read a little more carefully next time.  And the answer is simple.  If you want twice the money you make now, you can convince me to hire you.  The lowest paid employee at our shop makes twice as much as a Sr. RP at the end of the week.  The highest paid ones ... well, I don't want to make it hurt too much so I won't go into that.  They work the same outage season that you do.  That does not include the GSA per diem that they all get.  With that said; it isn't as easy as you think.  Crying and whining won't get you there.  You have to earn the job.  You have to stand out as a sharp, motivated, intelligent worker. 

If all NPUA is trying to do is get the techs more money, you're all screwed.  That is not what a union is for.  If that is what you think it is for, you will be pretty mad later.

Don't give me the crap about laborers not having the responsibility.  RP's usually get paid for a 72 hour week during an outage.  With OT after 40 that comes out to 88 hours of straight pay every week.  36 hours in the break room plus 30+ hours of sitting at a control point or CCTV monitor telling war stories, leaves <6 hours a week to do any real work.  88 for 6 is pretty good.  That laborer is getting a lot more done with his time.  Does it make him more important than you?  Not necessarily, but somebody seems pretty willing to hire lots of 'em even at a higher rate than yours.  You figure it out.

No, they won't be calling me next year.  I'm aware of that.  I also won't be sitting by the phone waiting.

Okay, I have to throw a flag here for this unreal, outdated and insulting  statement. As the wife of a hard workig road tech I can tell you this... gone are the days of "deal em" breakrooms -heck many plants don't even have breakrooms anymore. My husband works hard, sometimes in the cold, the heat and the in between. I know of a lot of other techs that do the same.

[Already Gone]

Camella, I truly believe that Henry works hard.  But, the lack of a breakroom doesn't mean that everybody else is working as hard as he is.  I'm guessing that he isn't paying much attention to what everyone else is or is not doing.

Old Dude,  I do not think that NPUA or any union is doing it just for the money.  In fact, I am specifically cautioning anyone to avoid that expectation.  What they are doing is fulfilling the mandate of any union -- that is, to give the workforce a single voice that is stronger than the sum of the individual voices in negotiating FAIRNESS in pay, conditions, opportunity, and rights.  It also provides a central repository and administration of benefits and pension funds.
Stop comparing yourselves to laborers or to the techs who have gone on to something else.  Focus on what you do, and the value it provides to employers.  That is what you have to sell.
As for our Safety Specialists, if you think that they are less qualified than you are, or have less responsibility, then someone is giving you bad information.  What they do have is less stress over the unimportant stuff.  A former RP who has gone into safety can not be less qualified than the RP.  How can that be?  A person who is qualified for one job and then becomes qualified for another can't be less qualified than if he had stayed with just the first job.  Again, stop worrying about what everyone else is getting.  It won't help you.

[Camella Black]

Camella, I truly believe that Henry works hard.  But, the lack of a breakroom doesn't mean that everybody else is working as hard as he is.  I'm guessing that he isn't paying much attention to what everyone else is or is not doing.

Old Dude,  I do not think that NPUA or any union is doing it just for the money.  In fact, I am specifically cautioning anyone to avoid that expectation.  What they are doing is fulfilling the mandate of any union -- that is, to give the workforce a single voice that is stronger than the sum of the individual voices in negotiating FAIRNESS in pay, conditions, opportunity, and rights.  It also provides a central repository and administration of benefits and pension funds.
Stop comparing yourselves to laborers or to the techs who have gone on to something else.  Focus on what you do, and the value it provides to employers.  That is what you have to sell.
As for our Safety Specialists, if you think that they are less qualified than you are, or have less responsibility, then someone is giving you bad information.  What they do have is less stress over the unimportant stuff.  A former RP who has gone into safety can not be less qualified than the RP.  How can that be?  A person who is qualified for one job and then becomes qualified for another can't be less qualified than if he had stayed with just the first job.  Again, stop worrying about what everyone else is getting.  It won't help you.

You are correct, Henry is too busy to pay attention to what others are or are not doing...   I didn't mean to come off as as such a witch.

[Old Dude]

To all ANSI 18.1 and 3.1 Techs.
You have gone to school, studied, taken tests,
You have worked hard long hours for many weeks, month, and years.
Sweating on the job. Training. Passing the NUF.
You have succeeded. You are an ANSI Tech.
You are mandated by the NRC /DOE to work at all nuclear facilities.
The commercial power plants need you. The DOE sites need you. The nuclear employers need you.
The union needs you.
Think about it!
Go to NPUA.org and sign the authorization cards.
Don't wait for the other guy to do it for you.
You have worked so hard for so long. The respect and financial compensation are within your grasp.
Go to NPUA.org and sign the authorization cards.
There is strength in numbers. We will speak with one voice.
At a minimum we will receive $35 an hour for ANSI 3.1 techs plus GSA pd.
I am so tired of utilities paying only $22 to $25 per hour for Senior Techs.
Laying off techs two weeks into a six week outage.  I could go on but you know the problems.
Go to NPUA.org and sign the authorization cards.
Join the brotherhood!

[fueldryer]

It's simple enough.  I care about my friends and former co-workers.  I want them to get a fair deal.  I'd be happy for them to get ahead and sad to see them get disappointed.

I said I'd tell you how, but I wouldn't DO IT FOR YOU.  Read a little more carefully next time.  And the answer is simple.  If you want twice the money you make now, you can convince me to hire you.  The lowest paid employee at our shop makes twice as much as a Sr. RP at the end of the week.  The highest paid ones ... well, I don't want to make it hurt too much so I won't go into that.  They work the same outage season that you do.  That does not include the GSA per diem that they all get.  With that said; it isn't as easy as you think.  Crying and whining won't get you there.  You have to earn the job.  You have to stand out as a sharp, motivated, intelligent worker. 

If all NPUA is trying to do is get the techs more money, you're all screwed.  That is not what a union is for.  If that is what you think it is for, you will be pretty mad later.

Don't give me the crap about laborers not having the responsibility.  RP's usually get paid for a 72 hour week during an outage.  With OT after 40 that comes out to 88 hours of straight pay every week.  36 hours in the break room plus 30+ hours of sitting at a control point or CCTV monitor telling war stories, leaves <6 hours a week to do any real work.  88 for 6 is pretty good.  That laborer is getting a lot more done with his time.  Does it make him more important than you?  Not necessarily, but somebody seems pretty willing to hire lots of 'em even at a higher rate than yours.  You figure it out.

No, they won't be calling me next year.  I'm aware of that.  I also won't be sitting by the phone waiting.

BC hit the nail right on the head! Sometimes the truth seems to hurt alittle, doesn't it OldDude..

[Already Gone]

To all ANSI 18.1 and 3.1 Techs.
You have gone to school, studied, taken tests,
You have worked hard long hours for many weeks, month, and years.
Sweating on the job. Training. Passing the NUF.
You have succeded. You are an ANSI Tech.
You are mandated by the NRC /DOE to work at all nuclear facilities.
The commercial power plants need you. The DOE sites need you. The nuclear employers need you.
The union needs you.
Think about it!
Go to NPUA.org and sign the authorization cards.
Don't wait for the other guy to do it for you.
You have worked so hard for so long. The respect and financial compensation are within your grasp.
Go to NPUA.org and sign the authorization cards.
There is strenth in numbers. We will speak with one voice.
At a minimum we will receive $35 an hour for ANSI 3.1 techs plus GSA pd.
I am so tired of utilities paying only $22 to $25 per hour for Senior Techs.
Laying off techs two weeks into a six week outage.  I could go on but you know the problems.
Go to NPUA.org and sign the authorization cards.
Join the brotherhood!

NPUA Steward

Man, you were so close.
Why do you promise what you CAN NOT deliver?
That is total bull$#!t about "at a minimum we will receive $35 an hour ..."

You will get what you bargain for when you and the employing companies reach a binding agreement.  The companies with most of the contracts have not bargained with you for a single minute.  What are you going to tell your members when they throw that statement back in your face?  How are you going to make good on that promise when you can't get them any higher than $30 and 100.
This is exactly why I have had so many problems with NPUA from the beginning.
You people do not know the first thing about being a union.  If you "succeed" you will at best get 30% of the work.  That is an optimistic estimate.  It is enough to make a difference, but you won't ever hold the industry hostage as you claim you will do.

ALL you will get if you are recognized is the right to bargain in good faith. 
You can not guarantee the outcome of those negotiations, yet you are doing just that in order to attract members.
For God's sake TELL THE TRUTH!!!
Yes, some small companies will bite early and sign the first thing you offer them.  Then Bartlett (with all the actual contracts) will negotiate a better deal and put them out of business.  If you are so naiive that you think Bartlett and Atlantic will be pushed aside by a tiny IT consulting "virtual" firm, there isn't much you won't believe in.

{Edited by Rennhack}Sun Dog, If that is such a good deal, why do you need the NPUA?  Can it be that is is ONE position with no relocation allowance, no training provided, no per diem, and no overtime?  Can it be that the $35.35 is really $32 plus a $3.35 kick to the H&W fund that you will probably never collect from?  Can it be that the $500 bonus (huge $$$$$ to be sure) is a clue that many people don't stick it out for 90 days?  ( I wonder why.)  Or is it that you don't have a Q clearance, HAZWOPER, and Core card that they expect you to show up with at anyone's expense other than their own?  Can it be that it will take you a whole year to make $65-70k -- which is about what you make now?
Yeah, maybe you and I ought to have a foot race to see who gets that job, cause it's just that goooood a deal.
Really.  Why would you come here and rally the techs around the idea that they are all underpaid, don't get vacation and benefits, yaddda, yadda, yadda ... then come right back at me with what a great deal there is available to them at a NON-NPUA JOB at Oak Ridge?.
Which is it?  Are you underpaid or satisfied?  Pick one and stick with it.

[Already Gone]

Being dressed in PC's, sitting at a CP, is not work.
Sitting in the Video Gallery, waiting for something to happen, is not work.
Hiding out in tool decon is not work.
Having a smoke on the roof is not work.
Escorting an LSA box that is reading 0.1mR/hr on contact down the driveway is not work.

Yeah, you have to do these things.  You get paid to do most of them.  But you'd have to be the biggest crybaby on the planet to count any of it as work (as in "work hard" or "overworked").

Lots of techs are sweating buckets in nasty places with no help and too many jobs to cover at once.
Lots more techs are pressing butt cheeks against a chair.

The irony is which group makes the most noise about their work load.

[Already Gone]

Okay, I took the badge off.

So, what part of your latest post actually refutes anything I have said?

Now, that I am not a staff member anymore ( which bore no reward other than that it restrained me from saying the following)

I am now free to return your professional and respectful comments to me.  As far as I can see, I'm dealing with the biggest bunch of greedy, lazy, "fat-headed, jackasses" in the energy industry.

From what I have seen over the past few years, the vast majority of contract HP's in the business are being carried on the backs of an ever-shrinking minority of hard-working, knowlegeable techs with a good work ethic.  They are the ones who are underpaid, overworked, and ill-used.  They are the least likely to complain that they have to pass an exam to work.  To them, it is a matter of professional pride that they are proven to be competent before they are allowed to perform the work which they know is important.  They sweat on company time and don't care who knows it.  They ar the kind of workers who would have their jobs whether the NRC/DOE mandated it or not.  They don't need a government agency to make them necessary.  They make themselves necessary by giving a day's work for a day's pay.
They are leaving the road rapidly to take house or long-term jobs.  Some are leaving HP altogether.  Those who are leaving, are leaving because they can, because they have more going for them than the fact that they have logged enough hours carrying a meter.  What do they get in return for all their hard work and professionalism?  From management they get the same pay rate as the shirkers, the retired-on-payroll, and the incompetent.  From their co-workers, they get no help, they get no respect, and when one of them lands a better position, they get "he/she must know the right person" instead of an acknowlegement that they deserved it.
They do not happen to be members of the current leadership of NPUA.

What we seem to have here is a group of lazy malcontents who have devised yet another way to get more to do less.

The people who need and deserve a union are the ones who don't want a damned thing to do with it because they don't want the lazy majority to control their futures.  They don't want to join because they don't want to be associated with the selfish demands and unreasonable expectations of the greedy underperformers.

Any one of them who wants to join a union, can just take a house job and join a real union anyway.

[RADBASTARD]

Well Harry Potter I figured it out.I see that the 6 on 6 off must have been to stressful of a work load for you, so you went to the 1 on 11 off program with almost no dress out in the saftey dept. then you say hey bud put your saftey glass's on or i'll write you up!

I can't believe you slam you ex fellow hp's the way you did basically calling them lazy and they sit around doing nothing most of the time.

We have a hell of alot more responsibilty than a laborer get real.
We have tests,nuf,procedures,worrying about being tech A,somebody getting an uptake,
air samples,survey's,meters,losing the bulding,if the workers get crapped up it you ass who gets fired.
So knock of the self rightous crap.
You act like your YODA trying to teach a bunch of dumb luke sky walkers.
Well we arn't as stupid as you think.

As far as the NPUA it's trying to better what we already have.None of the road techs have a pension,affordable health care when they are off.You see our brothers and sisters dieing everyday in this field that have been on the road and have no beni's to fall back on later on in life from these companies.You say hey if you want beni's get a house job.There isn't alot of hiring going on out there now with obama screwed up economy so there are very few options right now for that.
PEACE OUT HARRY

It's simple enough.  I care about my friends and former co-workers.  I want them to get a fair deal.  I'd be happy for them to get ahead and sad to see them get disappointed.

I said I'd tell you how, but I wouldn't DO IT FOR YOU.  Read a little more carefully next time.  And the answer is simple.  If you want twice the money you make now, you can convince me to hire you.  The lowest paid employee at our shop makes twice as much as a Sr. RP at the end of the week.  The highest paid ones ... well, I don't want to make it hurt too much so I won't go into that.  They work the same outage season that you do.  That does not include the GSA per diem that they all get.  With that said; it isn't as easy as you think.  Crying and whining won't get you there.  You have to earn the job.  You have to stand out as a sharp, motivated, intelligent worker.  

If all NPUA is trying to do is get the techs more money, you're all screwed.  That is not what a union is for.  If that is what you think it is for, you will be pretty mad later.

Don't give me the crap about laborers not having the responsibility.  RP's usually get paid for a 72 hour week during an outage.  With OT after 40 that comes out to 88 hours of straight pay every week.  36 hours in the break room plus 30+ hours of sitting at a control point or CCTV monitor telling war stories, leaves <6 hours a week to do any real work.  88 for 6 is pretty good.  That laborer is getting a lot more done with his time.  Does it make him more important than you?  Not necessarily, but somebody seems pretty willing to hire lots of 'em even at a higher rate than yours.  You figure it out.

No, they won't be calling me next year.  I'm aware of that.  I also won't be sitting by the phone waiting.

[RAD-GHOST]

I guess someone has to say it.......... !

I must admit I'm not completely aware of the NPUA standard for acceptance as a member, but.....

Troy probably wouldn't be eligable for membership in the union!        (Safety Geek)

Camella probably wouldn't either!        (House Wife)

Maybe there's some sort of Honorary Membership?     

Unions speak TO and FOR their membership and as rude as it sounds, I don't know of one that ISN'T a closed community!

As it's been stated many times on many threads, "Those who Can't, Bitch the Most"

I do have one question I wish Mike would clarify, "What Unions have Advertized on Nukeworker"?

My $0.02, RG!

[retired nuke]

Okay, I took the badge off.

So, what part of your latest post actually refutes anything I have said?

Now, that I am not a staff member anymore ( which bore no reward other than that it restrained me from saying the following)

I am now free to return your professional and respectful comments to me.  As far as I can see, I'm dealing with the biggest bunch of greedy, lazy, "fat-headed, jackasses" in the energy industry.

Hmmmm, the hot tub seems a bit more splashy now. 

I like it!

[retired nuke]

We have a hell of alot more responsibilty than a laborer get real.
We have tests,nuf,procedures,worrying about being tech A,somebody getting an uptake,
air samples,survey's,meters,losing the bulding,if the workers get crapped up it you ass who gets fired.

Oooh, you have to take a test.... and follow procedures, etc...

Laborers have to follow the same procedures.
They are usually qualified (and tested) on many skills, with many responsibilities above an RP tech. Most are also able to run a forklift (one of OSHA's big injury causing devices), rig  equipment, and other things that if something goes wrong, people get physically injured or killed.

RPs really aren't responsible for the RP crap anymore. They follow procedures, and ALARA plans, but if they "lose the floor", nobody gets fired. They just work their 7th day cleaning it up. About the only injury an RP can cause is by their equipment being a trip hazard because RP techs won't even string the extension cords overhead....

Man up Romo - Troy is right, and you know it.

Peace out youself
John  

sorry for continuing the veer off topic, I'll try to refrain in the future...

[JsonD13]

I'm just wondering, if you go to a plant where you pay the house union dues, is NPUA going to charge you dues on top of that?

Jason