Decisions, Decisions...

[Rob (MN M357's)]

Pretty quiet round here, so i figured id throw somethin at everyone, maybe just getting it off my chest, and maybe even some input on something that has been happening at my work the last 2-3 months, and i will be posed with a decision in the next week or so that will determine alot of things in my life.

First off, I work with Sara Lee Bakery, been there 10 yrs now. We are a Teamsters Union and when it comes to moving to other jobs, seniority takes precedent, among the 40 or so inside employees im about half way down on the seniority list. With it being a very slow time (and losing big contracts) we have gone from 4 shifts (3 fulltime and 1 parttime) to what looks to be only 1 shift being considered full time and 1 shift being part time.

With my seniority, there should be no way i get a full time job, even tho being on the part time list, im very certain i would get 40 hrs+ (less in the winter time). But being part time is rather scary.

With our current "Bidding" process going on now, there is a VERY good chance i do get a full time job!!! There are perks and there are downsides to this job however. All of you here are likely in different stages of life, but i wanted to pose this question to you all and see which direction you would chose? (I kinda got my mind made, but...input always helps)

Job 1- Full Time, guaranteed 40 hrs/wk, out of all the jobs, its my #2 favorite. The hours as of now are 4am til Noon (very well could move up to 2am to 10am). Terrible hours for any kind of a social life, but my kids are moved out and just me and my wife. Also with this job, id be able to see just about ALL the NFL games, and be able to set my lineups in all my FF lgs w/o worry.

Job 2- Part time, No guarantee on hrs (nothing less than 32 hrs/wk tho IMO) This job is IMO the #1 job. The hours would be 9:30am to 5:30pm (could move up to 7:30am to 3:30pm). With this job, id miss the majority of football, and would struggle to set my lineups for FF. And would be working same hrs as my wife.

Side note: With job 1, id have more bidding seniority than all the part timers (which some have worked there longer than i have). And the ability to move around should something else come up.

What would you do?

[Chris (RI Irish)]

I guess it depends on your money situation. If you go part time,can you afford losing 8hrs pay per week? Would you lose your benefits?
I guess you have to do what would make you the most happy...as long as if that is what you can afford.

[Rob (MN M357's)]

Jul 17, 2010 14:45:22 GMT -6 Chris (RI Irish) said:

I guess it depends on your money situation. If you go part time,can you afford losing 8hrs pay per week? Would you lose your benefits?
I guess you have to do what would make you the most happy...as long as if that is what you can afford.

It would be tight on 32 hrs a wk, and the benefits are there as long as a person averages 32 hrs/wk as well.

I think maybe the hardest part would be going to sleep around 7pm each nite YUCK....but the guaranteed hrs are the key

[Chris (RI Irish)]

I would have to say that the 40hrs a week would be the way I would go. If you go part time,you would be giving up over 400hrs of work a year. That equals a lot of money lost!

[Deleted]

FF and football in general shouldn't come into the decision, unless they are a substantial source of income (like working for a site, or playing high stakes). Go for the better income, if your money is tight. You could always change it around in a year or two, from what I understand. Think of it as doing shitty hours and going through a hell schedule to build a better savings account, or to invest in more mutual funds. You could be very happy you went through it after you are able to return to a more normal schedule in a year or two.

[Bill (Fog City Force)]

Rob, sorry you are having to deal with that uncertainty, that licks donkey nuts! What about breaking out into a new venture? Sounds like a bit of instability going on, is there a possibility of the plant moving to a new location and all the jobs going away altogether?

The other option may be to do the part time gig, in your free time there may be something you could find (also part time) to supplement your income, maybe even something you enjoy more that could eventually become full time. The one thing I'm noticing where I am is that part time work seems easier to find than full time work?

Just a thought, hope whatever you decide works out for you!

[Brad (Texas Hellfire)]

I think the key to this whole situation is your age and the fact that you are unionized through the teamsters. If it is anything like the IBEW that my dad is a part of then a lot of the retirement accruement (sp?) and bidding for future jobs and benefit availability have to do with seniority, current position (lateral moves are generally easier in unions than upwards ones) and you generate that additional benefits by working hours. At 40 you have start thinking about how you are going to spend your years after working and more hours worked in unions means better retirement packages. Also, usually, they are based on yearly salary over the last few years of working or perhaps over the entire time under the union.

That all being said, this is how I see it:

If you take the part-time position with the good hours you are going to be voluntarily cutting back your own hours and your own yearly income which could affect retirement and long-term benefit concerns. Additionally, and this is the most important point, the NEXT time this happens you are considered with the other part-timers on the list rather than on the full-time list and isn't that a drop from where you are being considered now?

If you take the full-time position you are essentially locking in your status as full-time and keeping your pay and hours up (good things in the eyes of the union) for the sacrifice of poorer hours. Most importantly, you will be higher on the list for NEXT time when there is another change and you will better be able to control your own situation. That is what would be more important to me.

Less pay, less hours, less guarantees for the future, but good hours
vs.
More pay, full hours, better options in the future, but odd hours

If you could still get by easily on the lesser pay I might think about it, but since you have already said it will be tight on that I think that would lock up the decision for me. Especially in a long term sense.

This coming from a guy who is scraping by right now because his fiancee doesn't have a job yet and I just bought a house, but I am putting away 13% o my paycheck every month to a 401K so that I keep up my current standard of living well into retirement. Belt tightening now for better future preparedness. So in your situation where you have better future preparedness AND better pay in one choice it seems like a no brainer to me.

Sorry for the novel. :-)

[Neil (OC Outlaws)]

This is one of the things I love about this league is that its a great group of caring guys. As Bill said, sorry you have to deal with this mess, and I also concur with Bill in that part time work is more easy to come by these days. In addition, I absolutely concur with James, as much as I love football, work and providing for my family never comes before it.

I think that you have to remove the football aspect out of your question all together and only use it as a deciding factor if the two scenarios are equal or very close to equal.

With all that being said, I'd opt for the 40 hours a week and shitty schedule. It puts food on the table and you're able to live more comfortably. You also get the NFL and FF the way that you want. In addition, you might want to consider taking a nap in the afternoon so that you can have a social life several days per week.

I've worked several jobs where I had to get up a 4/4:30 in the morning and be in bed by 9:30 pm....I know your situation is more extreme but its the same thing. BTW, I hate naps because I'm a heavy sleeper, but in this situation it works. Other folks who work similar shifts have told me the nap thing works for them.

Probably, the most important consideration is getting input from the wife. Believe me....you don't want mamma pissed off!

Good luck Rob...glad to know that you've got two reasonable options.

[Bill (Fog City Force)]

You could also consider not bathing, and pick a heavily trafficked corner on a main thoroughfare to become a smelly ass vagrant and beg for a living?

Some dirt bag seems to have set up permanent residency on a corner near me (and although I frequently yell obscene gestures at him as I drive by trying to clip his shitty guitar case, which is most likely stuffed full of money he has conned my liberal neighbors out of), he seems to do alright for himself. Funniest thing of all, I saw him at a Giants game, of all fucking things he told me he has season tickets!

Isn't that classic!

[Rob (MN M357's)]

Appreciate the feedback guys, before posting this i was leaning fully on taking the full time job, and with the feedback here and from many at work, im feeling very comfortable with that decision.

James: I agree, FF and Watching games shouldnt play a big role in the decision, but it does play a bit of a role for myself (tho ive been lucky enuff to switch my shift with someone the last 2 yrs to be able to watch the games) That would not happen now, it is on the priority list, but behind family and job security. Very good points, Thank you!

Bill: Ive given thought to part time work on the side, and the part that gets me is the job im now doing that will move to part time...im averaging 44 hrs a week, granted i may lose some of that. The other part would be working somewhere for $9/hr when this job is over $15.60/hr. Other ventures have crossed my mind, but Brad hit the nail on the head with being Union and having a nice retirement plan (better shall i continue) just makes so much more sense. Maybe moving my mortgage to 1 bigger payment would help, but im making weekly payments to have it paid off in 15 yrs thats having a big affect on the decision. Now, if the plant should close, there are enough sister plants in surrounding states that i could relocate...and if that should happen, id have a yr of unemployment to make a big decision on that. Appreciate it Bill!!!

Neil: My wife feels your option is best, i am like you...i cannot sleep unless i take sleeping pills...and then im out cold!! But, id have to find a way to make it work. She was not happy at all at first, and felt id make the right decision in the end...i feel ive gotten her blessing on this one also. I really do consider myself lucky to even have this opportunity, as there are going to be people with 20 yrs experience now working part time, all because i know all the jobs which has given me this option.

Brad- Everything you said made perfect sense when it comes to Union guidelines, and long term results of staying full time. Thinking long term is the key here. We had a 30yr and out plan when i started, but that has now been taken out of our contract, so i do have another 25+ yrs to go to build that preverbial nest egg. Appreciate your input!!

Bill- FUNNY, id like to work the corners as well....but in this town (more churches per capita than anywhere in the US) id likely be taken in by that retard down the street from me and put me up in his local church to stay....but if it got me season Twins tickets...hmmm LOL

[Peter (Swamp Dragons)]

Rob,

The only input I can give is on the hours. I get up at 2:15am every morning. I am in bed at 8 at night, hoping to be asleep by 8:30. It's not that bad. I go to sleep when my kids go to sleep. I also like having my afternoons to get stuff done. The only thing I hate is not watching prime-time tv. I miss Thursday night, Sunday and Monday nights.

IMO, always take the full time job and change it later if you can.

Good luck.

[darkspurs(MN M357's)]

i told u at work & ill say it again, take the full-time spot if u can, seniority only factors in on bidding and lay-offs. If for some reason they have to cut back on part-timers your safe or if they decide to eliminate a full-time spot (say 1 in my dept which i could see) you would stay safe from a bump.

[Gregg(Seal Fuckers)]

I'd rather have the full time job, the extra hours won't really give you any extra spending money, but if an emergency came up were you needed some extra cash that could be a big difference. I think besides the Miami crew i am in a different spot then all of you, i am still in school ill finish my long tenure of college in December, and i see it from the fantasy land of a student that everything out there is peachy, and most of you have work experience and understand these situations a lot better then me. But as Neil said i like that its not just a league of football that you can get advice from any-buddy whenever you need it.

[Rob (MN M357's)]

Well....Decision was made today (2nd biggest decision of the year following Labron James decision was nationally televised)!!

This decision a little less dramatic, but still has its drama,

For those that read the previous post that Derek posted where i did the dirty to my corrupt dickhead neighbor, the plot thickens.

Everything was in place for me keeping my full time status, with only 1 person standing in the way who is a complete retard, and has said for 3 months he dont want the job. Well Mr Christian crackhead (whom his front door step bears my feces) couldnt live with the thought of my keeping a full time job, rode this retard until he finally broke down and signed this last full time job...(litterally this dude has 3 brain cells and 2 of em died back in the 70's).

So now i will be "suffering" with 9:30am to 5:30pm hours, averaging 44 hrs a week, but being listed as part time. But a promising future is ahead so im not too worried...it could lead to a supervisory job for me. Either way, thanks everyone...and As you were before this post was made LOL

[Bill (Fog City Force)]

VRob,
I forgot to suggest becoming a "roadie" for Snoop Dogg?....Although I'm sure that thought was already considered?