Work/Jobs

[Knuckle Dragger]

I work on school busses. Been doing it for a few years and recently moved from California to Tennessee. I was lucky enough to have great support from the corporate side and local managers that understood the delays and held my transfer position to make the move happen.

I do enjoy my line of work. I used to drive busses and trucks, but never really liked it, so I transitioned into the wrench slinging side of things. It’s amazing to me to see how these things get abused and how half-ass they’re assembled when brand new. I don’t plan on leaving this trade anytime soon, but do need to start looking into the hybrid/electric drive side of things since they seem to be viable options for some areas.

With proper planning and support from family, friends and your employer, a move can be a great thing. Just sucks packing and hauling everything.

Good luck!

[flyweightnate]

Interesting on the electric side... a schoolbus seems like the one big diesel with enough time to charge if electric. I wonder who will be first to market...

[Knuckle Dragger]

flyweightnate Thomas/Freightliner has a hybrid that’s been out a while and I believe an all electric model too. Who knows how long they’ll last. Seems the biggest problems are OEM and engine systems interfacing, at least with Blue Bird.

[MrKittyCatMeowFace]

Started a new job last month. Working at CDH (central dupage hospital) in winfield IL. Its a northwestern medicine hospital. I work mostly in fresh linen delivery and on other days soiled linen removal. All our linen is cleaned off site by another company (the same people who make them and the doctors scrubs I believe). So i make carts and deliver the new fresh linen too all different wards of the hospital and sometimes i have to empty out soiled linen bins and take them too the loading dock too be picked up. I actually prefer soiled because its not biohazard (mostly) and way more chill and less work then restocking the linen rooms. Don't have to count and do data entry for one. I love it so far. Great employees i work with and you are basically left alone by management if you are doing what you are supposed to get done. Pay is absolutely amazing too and i get great benefits too.

[Deus Machina]

A few months back, I left the mortuary transport job.
I got poached by the medical examiner. Autopsy tech.
Cleaning, stocking, and then cutting bodies apart.
None of the stress of scenes or moving bodies down (or up, ugh) stairs, or out of woods, or anything.
Take-home money is about the same, but that's with insurance and a pension paid into already. And it's 10 hours 4 days a week, instead of 12 hours and 5 days.

[vijil]

Three day weekends are great - I'm just moving to compressed hours to do similar. Means I'll have time to work on side hustles.

[Deus Machina]

Yeah, pretty tired at the end of the day, but the extra day off is nice.
Also, so is actually being at work 40 hours, instead of 60+occasionally getting called early, or often getting stuck late.

[Sharkpocalypse]

What is your current line of work?

HOA management

What keeps you at your current job?

Money and a sense of duty

Do you like it?

Not particularly, I think I'd be much more interested in metalworking and fabrication.

[Headshotted]

I'm a materials handler, so, warehouse person for Ol' Uncle Sam. The benefits are good but the pay is lacking, severely. I'm lucky I own my place otherwise I'd have to work two jobs. I'm still here because my supervisor is phenomenal and stands up for us, and is willing to train us on whatever skills we want before he eventually leaves. I like my job, dare say I love it because it's a combination of logistics and hard labor, which, even as I'm aging can be tough but makes me feel like I'm at least accomplishing something. However, if a job with similar benefits and better pay says "Hey buddy, you wanna come over here?" I'll probably do so.

[Paintslinger16]

Which agency? I just retired DLA

[Headshotted]

USAF, so, given my location you can guess which one of the bases.

[Anodos]

What is your current line of work?

I work for CPS as an investigator.

What keeps you at your current job?

I made the mistake of getting locked into a career. Out of school I ended up on a social work trajectory, and have worked various social work jobs for approximately 5 years now. Culminating in CPS. Now, its a job in which I am experienced, and I am not sure what private sector career I should transition into with my work experience.

Do you like it?

No, not particularly. Field work can be good fun, but the case notes, deadlines, case loads, and court are draining. Sometimes you have moments where you feel like you really made a difference in some kids life. And to be honest, provided you work harder than I do (which is not very hard) its not too hard to stay on top of things. But once you get burned out its hard to focus. And burnout is common. For perspective. When I was ten months into my current position, I was the second most senior fieldworker. CPS has a hard time getting good workers, and keeping them is even more unlikely. Its rare to hear of someone retiring out of that system.

If you are still in the market for new work, I would steer clear unless you have a calling for that sort of thing.

Fair weather and good fortune my friend. I am on the hunt for a new line of work as well.

[lhamilton1807]

Burnout is hard on the soul. I taught Jr High for 6 years and then burned out hard. Like you I was locked into one career with my credentials and degree, so I spent ~4 years after landing a job in IT getting another Associates degree and then a MBA to work my way up the chain quickly. Those 4 years of studying part time as a “side hustle” and working full time were tough on me and the family but worth the effort. In a much better place now. I enjoy the company I work for, the benefits and pay are phenomenal (I earn more than 300% what I did my last year teaching), and there are a lot more options available since there’s money left over at the end of the month.

Find something you like well enough and work toward a balanced life. I don’t work 40+ hours a week because I want more time with my family than just kissing them good night. Setting and sticking to boundaries is a big part of post-burnout recovery.

[RAZRBAKK]

Currently in the middle of a career change.

I spent 2014-2020 working in Craft Beer, climbing the ladder from packaging to brewing. I hit the pay limit and responsibility limit pretty quick, and it would seem I'm another burnout statistic for the industry.

I decided to take a job closer to where I grew up 7 weeks before the pandemic started. Awful timing, and I ended up losing that job and spending a year figuring out what to do next.

I opted to look into IT, and have been pursuing certificates since. Currently working for Bestbuy doing installs and troubleshooting until my certifications are enough to get me a real IT job.

[lhamilton1807]

Lemme know if you want to talk shop. I switched to IT and would be happy to help talk about career roadmap. I’ve never worked at BestBuy, but can tell you about IT work in higher education and big tech (VMware and Intel).

[pirhana92]

I currently work at a dealership as a parts consultant. I've worked my way up from porter, to detailer, to shipping & receiving and now I work sales. I mostly like my job, the pay is decent and I like my boss and most of my coworkers. The only thing that sucks is it's long hours and stressful at times. But I really can't complain too much. Our owner was great throughout the pandemic and does stuff to show his appreciation. When my wife was diagnosed with cancer earlier this summer they were really cool with me leaving early or coming in late so I was able to make all her appointments without being docked any pay. I know dealerships are looked down upon but where I work actually has a great group of technicians and advisors which makes my job way easier and more fun at times.

I don't plan on doing this forever but for now it pays the bills and I don't feel like a slave.