SRO Life Balance

[Jimbo32]

I'm thinking about putting my hat in the ring for instant SRO. I'm an engineer with about 9 years of experience, 7 at my plant. I was asked to go into ops a few years ago, and I turned it down because it wasn't what I wanted at the time.


Now I'm thinking about it again. I don't have any problems with the duties/responsibilities of SRO; my primary dilemma is the impact on my wife and kids (3 kids under 6). We have 5 crews, and the ops schedule is a 35 day rotation, 12 hour shifts switching between days and nights. Does this mess with your family? My wife is concerned about losing normalcy and being on a weird schedule that doesn't align with a 5 day work week. I think it will take some getting used to, but it seems like we might just have a new normal.


So what are your thoughts? Is SRO something you'd recommend for someone with a young family?

[TVA]

I did it and would do it all over again.

[tolstoy]

Every SRO I know has given their life to the company store. Not that that is always bad. But it's always true.

[GLW]

Every SRO I know has given their life to the company store. Not that that is always bad. But it's always true.

every former SRO (hell, even the ones with the "equivalency diploma") that I know in the DnD world is doing quite well for themselves, and their families,...

so, the conjecture would be that even after leaving the "company store", that SRO is worth the investment,...

[TVA]

Every SRO I know has given their life to the company store. Not that that is always bad. But it's always true.

Are you or have you ever been an SRO?

[tolstoy]

Are you or have you ever been an SRO?

No. Not for me.

[TVA]

No. Not for me.

So why are you commenting?

[Jimbo32]

I did it and would do it all over again.

Can I assume that you have/had kids and a family that would agree?

[TVA]

Absolutely

[TVA]

Raised two great kids and am still married after 30 years. I missed some stuff but not a whole lot

[Jimbo32]

Raised two great kids and am still married after 30 years. I missed some stuff but not a whole lot

Thanks!

[Bonds 25]

Just asking about shift work in general would have been enough. Doesn't matter if you're an SRO, CRS, RO, EO, HP or Chem Tech. Shift work is shift work....although, the control room is the last place I'd personally want to spend 12 hours locked up in every duty shift.

[Bonds 25]

You will be working less days a year due to shift work.....and making a lot more $$. However, being an SRO isn't your normal fancy pants desk job.

[TVA]

I have never been anywhere that an SRO only works a normal shift.

[Jimbo32]

Thanks everyone for your responses! I expect to be on shiftwork for the foreseeable future if I get into ops. We do have some older SROs that work in procedures, EP, engineering, etc., but that's normally after a lot of time on shift. It's not in my near future.

[MMM]

While the schedule doesn't align with a "normal" workweek, with your schedule, you'll probably have 7 consecutive days off every cycle, which means, with some planning, you get a short vacation every month, or take a couple extra days off and get two weeks off. I wouldn't plan on getting much done away from work on your work days though.

[TVA]

When I needed someone to cover me I never had an issue with someone swapping shifts with me.

[thenuttyneutron]

you'll probably have 7 consecutive days off every cycle

This all depends on how well the site staffs the Operations Department.  I would say "your rotation schedule will probably have 7 consecutive days off every cycle assuming the Ops crews are well staffed".  Towards the end of my time in Operations, I was only able to get the long offs by using vacation on the days before or after the long off.  If you did not take those days off, you were covering for someone else during your long off.  The summer time was horrible because the majority of people took their vacation during the nights and the off-shift people were not going to cover nights.

During the last few years of my time in Ops, I was also only averaging 54 hours a week because the 10CFR Part 26 requirements would not allow them to work me more.  The money is good but I will never go back to that kind of life style again.

[TVA]

Same here. I train operators now. Less money but I am not supervising anyone and I get weekends off.