Time for an update:
Friday was three months unemployed.
Such was not my expectation when I quit work, but it wasn’t not outside my planning for the unexpected.
Based on several conversations with contractors for several years, I had a reasonable belief that I could be employed in a contract position within about two months, and certainly within three. In point of fact, this is a big part of why I went through the grueling 18-month certification course to be able to teach the control room operators. I expected that when I left Cook (est. 2021 or so), I would do contract work from time-to-time as a semi-retirement endeavor. Even recent conversation with current contractors, and even some recruiters, led me to believe the same thing. Such has not been the case.
Fracking for natural gas and oil, despite the earthquakes it creates and toxic chemicals it puts into the aquifers, remains viciously protected by both sides of the congressional aisle. Government subsides to promote green energy have also allowed solar and wind technology to expand into the energy market. (I’m fine with supporting sustainable energy production.) Both have put tremendous economic pressure on the nuclear industry to make electricity at the same cost. I’m confident that this has forced companies to cut back on contract labor, and anticipated that I might run into some difficulty because of it, but saw and continue to see an unusual effect on my job position within the nuclear industry.
Jobs for permanent Operations Training Instructors remain abundant. I could look at Indeed or Monster and probably find 6 positions open right now. So – an employment gap does exist. I also know that many sites do employ contract instructors, so what gives?
It’s fair to say that in the short term, contract labor is more expensive than in-house labor, hence the desire to hire full-time employees. However, working your in-house labor overtime does become costly in the long run. One way around this is to make those employees salary employees, so that you don’t have to pay as much overtime, and when you do, you pay at a straight-time rate. This was the practice I saw when I left Cook. My speculation, then, is that the nuclear industry is following what many corporations did during the financial collapse. Keep a short-handed staff and work them longer.
Also, sites prefer to hire contractors who live close to the station (usually retired employees), to avoid paying per diem (usu. $500/wk tax-free, give or take). This was the case at Cook, where perhaps 3-4 local contract instructors were constantly employed. (“No,” I won’t do that. I’d have stayed at Cook if I wanted to work there. Odd how often I get asked that question.)
So, where does that put me?
I do have a couple of résumés out for contract positions in Texas near Dallas and Houston, and one in New Jersey. I have no idea what my competition is for these positions, but suspect it may be greater than I’d previously thought. On the other hand, I have three job interviews for full time positions.
#3 is to do essentially the same job I did at Cook, but at the VC Summer Nuclear Plant in South Carolina. They are building 2 new nuclear reactors on-site, which is interesting, but the position I’m being interviewed for on April 22nd is for their currently operating reactor.
#2 is for an interesting Environmental/Nuclear Training and Procedure Specialist in Richland, Washington. The phone interview is this coming Thursday. I think the scope is to create training materials for some aspect of the Hanford nuclear “clean up the DoD weapons mess” site. This would fit very nicely with my professional background, but I have no idea what they pay.
#1 I had this past Thursday. It’s a Westinghouse training position located in New Hampshire. The Westinghouse Nuclear Fuel Manufacturing division is need of training specialists to help create training materials at various support facilities located in Utah, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Minnesota, and South Carolina. I would be part of that team – alone on-location, but working in tandem with this team. The people at the NH site are “eager for someone to be on-site to help them build their training program.” Currently, there is a gal in PA who is trying to juggle two locations.
The pay would be about 15% less than I last earned, but is still about twice what most positions for that kind of training specialist would earn. It’s also just about everything I would love to have in a job: it’s project-centered, I would be part of a diverse team, creative solutions are encouraged, it’s a new initiative, occasional travel to various locations is required, and it’s locally near colonial historic sites.
I should get a call next week to see if they want to follow-up with me. I’d like to hear that they want an in-person interview on-location. As much as I’d love to make the extra money doing contract work - if the gaps between jobs are on the order of 3-4 months or more, that’s not a plus. I would be very interested in taking the pay cut for a year (I think I have a plan to juggle that), and see what happens. If it works out, great and Melinda and I can begin trying to figure out how best to make a permanent transition. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll try spinning the contract wheel one more time next January (but while still employed). If that still doesn’t work, I’ll see about going back to work at another nuclear station for another 5 – 8 years before retiring.
“So that’s the plan, Stan.”
But Mousie, thou art no thy-lane,
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men
Gang aft agley,
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!
Still, thou art blest, compar’d wi’ me!
The present only toucheth thee:
But Och! I backward cast my e’e,
On prospects drear!
An’ forward tho’ I canna see,
I guess an’ fear!
To a Mouse (excerpt) - Robert Burns