As I reflect on my next move (between jobs... blah blah blah), I call a few of my friends shops around LA. Each one is slow but asks me why I don't do some contract programming from home? I ask why? They say because they are getting calls every month from independent contractors offering programming. Now I know about 5 here in LA that are full service programmers that do big airframe work. Two of which have legal seats (both NCL). The other two - Catia (cracks). The last one I think uses legal Solidcam (you know who you are ). That said, over 10 guys have called one shop hawking their services. I was privy to a couple bids and... man they're working cheap!
On the positive, my wife, brother-in-law, and myself are working on a new business venture (non-manufacturing) that hopefully will take of at the beginning of the year. It's just filling in the gaps till then
When I was looking for a job I signed up on all the job searches, but never unsubscribed when I got the job. At first, I would see one or two jobs a week, now its up to 20 a week or more. Things are loosening up. Soon all the lowballed folks (like myself) will go work for people who are paying, and this scab nonsence will stop. Iv'e been called at home and offered 3 bux more an hr, from a place I applied to 4 months ago. A few weeks later they called again offering another buck. Plus there's 2 shops in town looking for good people...not just "a" person, but any good people. Thats a good sign. The place I'm at is running 24/7 (or trying too, lol). A month or two of it and people are starting to not want to work weekends. The owner says.... Work 7 days a week, 12hrs a day or I will hire another shift and everyone will work 40hrs!
I say go for it...hire yourself another 10 guys to work from 12am to 8am for crap wages. If by an act of GOD he finds 10 people to work those hrs for shit pay, putting the other 2 shifts to 40 hrs will piss everyone off and they will slooooowwww down to a crawl. Scrap will increase...then there's the benefits and supporting them during ups and downs. I bet it would take the shop down permanently. Plus they put an add in the paper for cnc mill guys for 3 weeks and 2 people apply, and they hire both. Average cnc mill operators. After that....nobody. Funny, in one ear I hear work or else boi! In the other ear I hear "hey man, do you have any buddies looking for work?". FUCK NO DUMBASSES! Nobody will leave a good job now, and take a chance at getting laid off a month later at a new place with no seniority. Oh you might get the bunch of laid off guys in town, but your picking from the bottom of the barrell.
Bottom line is....things are changing, and changing fast. It's starting to tip our way, and if our dippity doo dah pres will just stay the frig out of the free market it will continue to change for the better. But he prolly won't, he wants us all on welfare or something?
If I was you I would look for a little 5-10 man shop that needs a programmer. Who cares what the software is, it's all the damn same in the end. Get in a little place and you will have them by the balls, and then help them grow into something you like. Look for some craphole with almost no equipment, and no talent. Right now...that's where I would look.
Or move to florida, lots of UG jobs on the east coast...Come visit, I'll put ya up for a couple of weeks in the back room...who knows? California...toooooo expensive to have a shop there.
Bill, I believe these guys are looking for a full time top notch 5 axis programmer for a 32 pallet Matsuura MAM72-35V. There's another guy on emastercam that moved from Washington to head up the programming of their 44 pallet, 3 spindle Toyoda cell.
I've done that. They start off great then they seem to lose it in the management growth area. You can't dictate how an owner manages their shop - you can only offer advice. First tried that at a cool shop that grew into an "owner took all the money out of the business (and my
401k)" shop that went bankrupt. The last one, same kind of deal except they let me go on a days notice with no severance pay. I saw it coming as the money was not reinvesting. Not cool, but that's their right here in Ca.
I could never live in Florida as there's no whitewater to run. Also, (and more importantly I think) my wife could not stand the humidity. If I had a choice I'd like to move to Colorado but I'd need to bring my own business for that to work out. There is no real manufacturing there.
Yes. I interviewed there just before I went to Haas. I don't think Truepostion would ever go to UG as most of their work is simple (though tight tolerance) valve body and Honda Racing type work. They compete with B&B for their customers.They are a Mastercam house. I've only used MCX2 for less than a year: Enough time to know I would blow my brains out if I had to look at that screen again .I know of at least one local "expert" MC user who couldn't cut it at TP. I do recall their rates being decent even for an MC programmer. That said, I'm keeping my options open. I do have connections for getting 3 month demo seats of UG installed if they hire me.
Yes. I interviewed there just before I went to Haas. I don't think Truepostion would ever go to UG as most of their work is simple (though tight tolerance) valve body and Honda Racing type work. They compete with B&B for their customers.They are a Mastercam house. I've only used MCX2 for less than a year: Enough time to know I would blow my brains out if I had to look at that screen again
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Amen. I turned down 3 more bux because of mastercam x and fadel mills. No thanx... But....lay me off and I'll go do it with enthusiasm. lol
I saw this shit coming nearly 2 decades ago and so I set about starting my own shop.
Today, I get calls and faxed resume's literally all the time...predominately they are from out of work losers with 15+ years experience thinking that even though they are on their 4th unemployment extension their skills are still marketable at $25.00/ hr
Very skilled individuals and even though I'm saddened by the whole deal the inescapable fact is that their skills simply aren't anywhere as marketable as they were at some time in the distant past.
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