As we all go through years and years in this great business, I think we see alot of good people in that 3rd pile. Unfortunately, they are not in the big barrel of desirables that is maintained for any certain company. This results in the same "core group" of people going to all the best assignments first. That group may consist of all the best staff, all the worst staff, or a mixture of the two. A high percentage of the time, you are going to be considered AFTER that group is resting comfortably in those positions. Unfortunately, you do all you can to help the last project you were on and it just isn't enough to make the grade, and the responsible, competent technician is left wondering why they didn't get called for one of those "cush" positions. This is a major reason why people opt for getting out of this industry, taking a long-term gig in the DOE, or just being content by never calling that company again. Many technicians have had to make that decision in the last 10 years and many have stated their happiness on getting away from this industry. It is the work we chose many years ago, or it chose us.....