Trying To Get Into Outage Work - No Experience

[jstorm1140]

Hi all,

My friend has been talking to me about outage work for awhile, and its always sounded like a good opportunity. Im 24 and have only done factory work since I was 18. Neither of us has real experience in this field, but we are trying to get our foot in the door and do the traveling roadtech thing. Is this possible with no real experience? And how do we go about getting the jobs? Ive found the websites for some of the companies but they can be a little difficult to navigate.

Any help is appreciated

[Already Gone]

Well, lets see.  No experience.  Not able to navigate the websites.  Just what the nuclear industry is looking for.  You are "FRESH MEAT".  That means that you can be trained.  You need to be trained, but at least you may be trainable.

Nobody is going to put up an ad or job posting for entry-level outage work.  Too many applicants already, so why bother paying to attract more?

What you need to do is CALL those companies directly.  You want to be a decontamination technician, but you can't say that because it is a dead giveaway that you have never done it.  You want to say "deconner".  That is where you start.

To get that relatively simple job with no prior training or experience, (you don't really need to be trained for the bulk of it, and the rest of it requires training that they will give you even if you have already had it, so it isn't a problem) you need to have a clean police record and be able to provide a drug-free urine sample that is your own and still inside your body up until donation time.  Meaning --- you can't fool this drug test at all, and you will not pass if you have used drugs any time in the past year.
If any of that is a problem for you, or even if it is "iffy", don't bother.

[jstorm1140]

The drug test is no problem, never used never will.

From what else Ive read around here, Ive gathered that you call the companies and ask for the recruiter?

What do I tell them then? Just that I am looking for any deconner positions they have available? Should I not mention that Ive never done it before?

Sorry for all of the questions, my friend made it seem like he knew this process but it turns out he really doesnt have any kind of clue besides finding the websites of the companies that hire for outages....

[Already Gone]

Yep.  Call and ask for a recruiter.  It doesn't matter which one.  Tell the recruiter that you will go to any outage that they can't staff.
There is your foot in the door.  The easily staffed outages are easily staffed for a reason.  They won't go to the expense of your initial background investigation when they don't have to.  But, they gladly will if it means getting your body to a site where all the previously badged people are not wanting to go.
A lot of decon jobs pay per diem if you must travel to get there.  A lot do not.
If they are paying per diem for decon, paying even modestly well, and will accept you -- take it.  Take it and don't bitch even once, even if you hate it.  After the outage, decide if you can stomach it again.  If so, welcome to the club.  If not, thanks for trying.  But, DO NOT be the newbie who gets into something new and complains about it.  Nuclear power plant deconner has been rated as one of the best jobs in America.  It pays pretty well for the skills required.  There is lots of overtime when you are working, and lots of unemployment checks to add to it so you can have a nice summer.  There is only as much stress as you put on yourself.  After all, every job is temporary.
It is physical, but not like, say, firefighting or crab fishing.  It is a little more technical than being a janitor but not as gross, because that is what it is with a little added clothing and no clogged toilets to clean.
Try it.  Have fun.  Learn something whenever you can.

[Ksheed]

Im 24 and have only done factory work since I was 18.

If that 6 years of factory work included maintenance on equipment you have some experience worth mentioning on your resume. You may want to look into applying for a helper position for the maintenance side of things. It is usually broke down to mechanical, electrical, or instrument and controls. Every plant brings in "bucket toters" to help their maintenance shops. The pay is good, and you will gain experience. Most of the companies that supply the HP/RP techs also supply these workers to the plants. Make sure to list any mechanical/electrical experience you have on your resume. Of course, if you have your heart set on being a Rad Tech, deconner is the way to get started. There are other jobs in the nuclear industry that pay as well. It helps if you are doing something that you will enjoy. If there is a plant close to you and you know someone that works there, that can help you out a lot. Ask to use them as a reference. If you know them well, they may be willing to speak to the on-site recruiter on your behalf. Good luck.

[jstorm1140]

Thanks for that information, I was kind of under the impression that a deconner position was the main "foot in the door" job.

I appreciate the replies and the help from both of you, thank you very much

[wlrun3@aol.com]

http://www.nei.org/

Retirements Among Existing Work Force 
About half the nuclear industry's work force will be eligible to retire during the next 10 years. Along with plans for industry growth, the expected attrition of a large portion of the industry's total work force has prompted an unprecedented recruitment effort throughout the industry.

Schools in the Nuclear Uniform Curriculum Program
Arizona
Estrella Mountain Community College www.estrellamountain.edu
California
Miracosta College
www.miracosta.edu
Connecticut
Three Rivers Community College
www.trcc.commnet.edu
Florida
Indian River State College
www.ircc.edu
Miami Dade College
www.mdc.edu
Georgia
Augusta Technical College
www.augustatech.edu
Wallace Community College
www.wallace.edu
Idaho
ESTEC/Idaho State University
www.isu.edu
Kentucky
West Kentucky Community & Technical College www.westkentucky.kctcs.edu
Maryland
College of Southern Maryland
www.csmd.edu
Michigan
Lake Michigan Community College
www.lakemichigancollege.edu
Monroe County Community College www.monroeccc.edu
Minnesota
Dakota County Technical College
www.dctc.edu
St. Cloud Technical College
www.sctc.edu
Missouri
Linn State
www.linnstate.edu
Nebraska
Metropolitan Community College
www.mccneb.edu
Southeast Community College
www.southeast.edu
New Jersey
Salem Community College
www.salemcc.edu
New Mexico
New Mexico Jr. College
www.nmjc.edu
New York
Excelsior College
www.excelsior.edu
Onondaga Community College
www.sunyocc.edu
Westchester Community College
www.sunywcc.edu
North Carolina
Gaston College
http://www.gaston.edu/
North Dakota
Bismarck State College
www.bismarckstate.edu
Ohio
Lakeland Community College
www.Lakelandcc.edu
Pennsylvania
Delaware County Community College
www.dccc.edu
Luzerne County Community College
www.luzerne.edu
South Carolina
Aiken Technical College
www.atc.edu
Florence Darlington Technical College
http://www.fdtc.edu/
Midlands Technical College
www.mid.tec.sc.us
Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College
www.octech.edu
Spartanburg Technical College www.sccsc.edu
Texas
Brazosport College
www.brazosport.edu
Texas State Technical College
www.tstc.edu
Wharton County Junior College
www.wcjc.edu
Tennessee
Chattanooga State Community College www.chattanoogastate.edu
Washington
Columbia Basin College
www.columbiabasin.edu
Wisconsin
Lakeshore Technical College
www.gotoltc.edu

[jstorm1140]

Half of the workforce? wow, great time to get ready to get in then!

Ive been calling companies, the only companies I know of are Bartlett, Shaw Group, Babcock, and DZ Atlantic. Of those four, only Bartlett will let you speak directly to a recruiter about outage work, the rest only go through profiles online.

Are there any other companies that Im missing that I could perhaps call? I'm trying to get as many options as possible

[wlrun3@aol.com]

"Neither of us has real experience in this field, but we are trying to get our foot in the door and do the traveling roadtech thing."

I strongly suggest the college route unless you expand your search to contract craft/union postions.

[Ksheed]

Ive been calling companies, the only companies I know of are Bartlett, Shaw Group, Babcock, and DZ Atlantic. Of those four, only Bartlett will let you speak directly to a recruiter about outage work, the rest only go through profiles online.

Are there any other companies that I'm missing that I could perhaps call? I'm trying to get as many options as possible

DZ Atlantic has a recruiter for each site. If you want to work at a specific site you will have to get their site phone number. This is easier to do if you know someone who works at the plant. If you do not know anyone at the plant it makes getting in much harder. In my opinion, contacting the site recruiter and having someone onsite go to bat for you is the best way to get started. If you live near a nuke plant, chances are you know someone who works there. 

[UncaBuffalo]

wow, great time to get ready to get in then!

Maybe you aren't looking at wlrun3's whole post...  Didn't you see the huge list of schools that are churning out people to fight over the jobs that come open?

[btkeele]

Unfortunately there are so many interns/Jr's right now that it is going to take
some of them 5-6 years minimum to make Sr.  Every plant keeps bringing in interns, but, the interns from the previous outage are now finding nothing available...basically we are looking at hundreds of jr's with less than 1 year experience with limited spots available.. good luck...
DOE is pretty much full right now.
So, these schools need to take a 5 year break to let the backlog of jr's make Sr, then start again for 2 years then take 2 off... otherwise you are just going to make the matters worse.... but, what do I know...

[Ksheed]

Unfortunately there are so many interns/Jr's right now that it is going to take
some of them 5-6 years minimum to make Sr.  Every plant keeps bringing in interns, but, the interns from the previous outage are now finding nothing available...basically we are looking at hundreds of jr's with less than 1 year experience with limited spots available.. good luck...
DOE is pretty much full right now.
So, these schools need to take a 5 year break to let the backlog of jr's make Sr, then start again for 2 years then take 2 off... otherwise you are just going to make the matters worse.... but, what do I know...

This is relevant only if he is limiting himself to HP/RP.

[justatech]

Barry is right about the availability of Jr Deconner / Jr RP positions; I brought my brother into this a few years ago as a deconner and it has been tough for him. Although he has worked 4 plants; and a returnee at them it's still difficult getting solid work. Had I stayed on the road as a Sr RP Tech I might have been able to help him out more; I'm not sure.... It worked that way with husband / wife teams when I was on the road ~ when one was a Sr. RP Tech, of course..... 

[UncaBuffalo]

This is relevant only if he is limiting himself to HP/RP.

The specifics are relevant to HP/RP...

...the over-riding theme that there are too many graduates for the limited number of jobs is relevant across the spectrum.

[btkeele]

How it impacts other jobs, ie Decon, is that if you have recent interns/new Jr's that can't find work as an HP, they will (or should) take decon jobs...if you were hiring jr deconners, who would you take?  Someone off the street or someone who has been through an RP program and has
been badged?

[Ksheed]

Hi all,

My friend has been talking to me about outage work for awhile, and its always sounded like a good opportunity. Im 24 and have only done factory work since I was 18. Neither of us has real experience in this field, but we are trying to get our foot in the door and do the traveling roadtech thing. Is this possible with no real experience? And how do we go about getting the jobs? Ive found the websites for some of the companies but they can be a little difficult to navigate.

Any help is appreciated

Note the original post. Poster wants to work outages. Doesn't have nuclear experience, but has a vague reference to 6 consecutive years as a factory worker. We don't know for sure what he did in that factory. If it is similar to the factory work I did when I was younger, he has mechanical/electrical experience. There are many schools churning out kids with associate degrees for "Power Plant Technologies". To often these are kids straight out of high school with little or no real world experience. The way I read his original post is that he is ready for a career change and willing to start at the bottom. He is also willing to work outages. He is not asking for a high level position or even a full time position. He is not looking for one specific craft. He just wants a shot at working nuke outages. Dependent upon his resume, I would bring him in over a 20 year old with a 2 year associate degree. The problem I see for him is that most companies don't want to pay per diem for an entry level position. They usually fill that spot with the locals. That is why my advice to him was to find a way in at a local plant. Once he builds his nuclear experience and contacts it will be easier to find work on the road. If he worked 6 years at the same factory, he has a very strong work ethic. If he transfers that to the nuclear industry he will be a good hand. 

[jstorm1140]

^ thats what Im really trying to do, just find a way to get into the door to get the experience that will make it easier to get the jobs. I know that entry level is rough but i figure once i get the experience under my belt it will be much easier to get into more outages

[Nuclear Cowboy]

Don't forget Cape Fear Community College in North Carolina they have a Nuclear Maintenance Technology program Granite sponsors. They will pay you a salary, health benefits and 401K  while you are in school and you have a three year contract with them after you graduate. Granite is a subsidiary of GE so there is more than enough work. Hope this helps. I had no experience either now I have a degree in the field and have 4 years experience domesticly and abroad.

[Old HP]

Don't be too sure about the concept of once you get a couple of jobs behind you that it will get easier. There are a LOT of Jr. techs with more than 10 outages that are still having a hard time finding outage work this fall season and the spring is not looking much better. The outages are shorter and the plants are not intersted in looking beyond their present outage for their techs are coming from. It can be a very discouraging process of finding work in this busines, especially with no outage experience.

[jstorm1140]

I can see the discouragement, once I tell the companies I dont have experience they pretty much lose all interest ...

That school in North Carolina will pay you a salary while youre in college? How does that work? Id assume youd have to do more than just go to school and get paid....

[Content1]

My daughter, with years in the business, is having trouble getting on in the fall.  It is true they do not like to pay per diem to train new people, with the flood of workers applying.  It is not like the old days; this horrible economy is depressing the job market, and I have not seen raises in years.  Like the guy in the movie "Airpane" who chose the wrong time to give up smoking, you have chosen the wrong time to change careers.

[jstorm1140]

Seems like no career change is a good career change these days honestly