Sounds like you guys had fun at the meetup, I was home for Easter so I couldn't make it.

I'm re-posting my job offer from before so PM me if you're interested. 20/hr in town construction (to start, I've gotten a few raises so far and am at 24/hr), more if you're 25+ with a spotless driving record and can drive a pickup+trailer.

Worst part is the dirt and the odd hours, but now that sites are drying up work is going to pick up. I just worked 25 hours in just under 2 days. Overtime after 8 hrs.

Everyone keeps quitting or getting fired. Which doesn't make sense because the sole job requirements are: 1. Don't be a fuck up. 2. Don't be a bitch.

Hell they even just bought a house you can live in if you're looking for a place.

Switching into graveyard shift never gets easier!

(04-09-2015 07:41 PM)el mechanico Wrote:  I'm also curious about them. How the fuck can you work for 40 years and come down here and out drink the locals ?? You have to have tolerance but how can you get that working an early morning Canadian gig for so many years???

Because it's dark and hell is cold! When we spend 8 months of the year living in Martian like cold, and darkness for 17 hours of the day, there's not much to do but to go the gym, fuck sluts, get fucked up, and wake up at 5am for work.

Edmonton 8 months of the year:

(04-10-2015 07:32 PM)DjembaDjemba Wrote:  Switching into graveyard shift never gets easier!

(04-09-2015 07:41 PM)el mechanico Wrote:  I'm also curious about them. How the fuck can you work for 40 years and come down here and out drink the locals ?? You have to have tolerance but how can you get that working an early morning Canadian gig for so many years???

Because it's dark and hell is cold! When we spend 8 months of the year living in Martian like cold, and darkness for 17 hours of the day, there's not much to do but to go the gym, fuck sluts, get fucked up, and wake up at 5am for work.

Edmonton 8 months of the year:

I'm thinking you are not understanding how these folks roll. It's on and they never lose stance or frame.

Canadian boomers are badass but also have wives that look umm.. Tidy if I could use a word.

We love Canadians in Florida and your grandma thigh gaps you have jogging on our streets in the morning.

Also I can report.. Boomer haters. Listen up. They are getting into shape and are going to collect on your dime possibly forever!!

Lots of Safway, Ceda, Ledcor and PCL trucks onsite at Shell Albian. Might be a place to start for guys looking for work for the next few months

(04-11-2015 08:36 PM)Darius Wrote:  Lots of Safway, Ceda, Ledcor and PCL trucks onsite at Shell Albian. Might be a place to start for guys looking for work for the next few months

Massive 75 day shut down going on there right now.

(04-09-2015 09:00 PM)redbeard Wrote:  

(04-04-2015 05:30 PM)Nima Wrote:  

(04-04-2015 04:34 PM)SnowHugger Wrote:  Hey, looking for some advice. I'm an engineering student with some experience in quality assurance, and CAD.
What kind of opportunities should I be looking for in the oil field area, and when do I begin applying?

Do you have your degree?

Stay in the same field. There's always QA/QC work. If you have your degree, you can get your API inspection tickets even faster.
http://www.api.org/certification-program...quirements

This isn't an oilfield thing either. You can work all over the place and increase your salary by getting more and more tickets and experience. Look into welding inspection and see if you can get an entry level QC job in a shop, where ever you are now.

With a few API tickets (and some other misc. stuff), plus 5-10 years of experience in Canada and an engineering degree, you'll be able to work in the Middle East as well (better climate and you won't pay income tax over there).

Have you worked in the Middle East?

Who has? Should I have used the search feature?

I will be trying to get over there after a few more years in the USA. Would love to hear some insights.

I haven't, but I also would like to move there in a few years. Trying to get the right certs and experiences to hopefully get over there in my early 30's. What I've found out through talking to people and looking at job ads is that they pay dog shit for the more basic jobs, but overpay like a mother fucker for the more experienced guys with advanced certificates. Plus it's all tax free over there too.

Howdy Brothers

I wish I could have made it to the meet-up , but things got in the way . I hope to catch the next whenever it,s scheduled . Scotian , my CSTS and Fall Arrest are in the works . I have applied lately at B&B , PCL and Pagnotta . Now the big question is where do the greenhorns have the best shot as far as the sands go ? I do wanna get training somewhere for my Class 1 . I thought about "walking the iron" or going OTR to ride out the slow downs . Yes , Yes I wanna have fun with the sluts but priorities EH!! . No bites at the 720 and Pag might hire me ( 18$ to start ) . Gentlemen any suggests ??

BTW Scotian , and everybody I drink occasionally but I do coffee much more frequently lol , so who,s in E-Town pipe up .

(04-13-2015 06:49 PM)Sal Ceech Wrote:  Howdy Brothers

I wish I could have made it to the meet-up , but things got in the way . I hope to catch the next whenever it,s scheduled . Scotian , my CSTS and Fall Arrest are in the works . I have applied lately at B&B , PCL and Pagnotta . Now the big question is where do the greenhorns have the best shot as far as the sands go ? I do wanna get training somewhere for my Class 1 . I thought about "walking the iron" or going OTR to ride out the slow downs . Yes , Yes I wanna have fun with the sluts but priorities EH!! . No bites at the 720 and Pag might hire me ( 18$ to start ) . Gentlemen any suggests ??

BTW Scotian , and everybody I drink occasionally but I do coffee much more frequently lol , so who,s in E-Town pipe up .

Try HSE Integrated and UNited Safety, its BS safety work but it'll get you on site experience and the pay isn't terrible. Hit me up when you're back in town.

(04-13-2015 06:59 PM)scotian Wrote:  

(04-13-2015 06:49 PM)Sal Ceech Wrote:  Howdy Brothers

I wish I could have made it to the meet-up , but things got in the way . I hope to catch the next whenever it,s scheduled . Scotian , my CSTS and Fall Arrest are in the works . I have applied lately at B&B , PCL and Pagnotta . Now the big question is where do the greenhorns have the best shot as far as the sands go ? I do wanna get training somewhere for my Class 1 . I thought about "walking the iron" or going OTR to ride out the slow downs . Yes , Yes I wanna have fun with the sluts but priorities EH!! . No bites at the 720 and Pag might hire me ( 18$ to start ) . Gentlemen any suggests ??

BTW Scotian , and everybody I drink occasionally but I do coffee much more frequently lol , so who,s in E-Town pipe up .

Try HSE Integrated and UNited Safety, its BS safety work but it'll get you on site experience and the pay isn't terrible. Hit me up when you're back in town.

Thanks so much!! ... Hmmmm but as safety guy I,d kinda feel like the "water boy" ..Ill check on other positions .Maybe on the weekend lets who can get together for coffee or brewski ??

Hey guys,

Just an update as I've neglected to provide updates on my journey. Made the move from Ontario to Edmonton, arrived March 3rd and hit the job hunt real hard. Handed out about 70 resumes in person, countless others online, and converted those into about 10 interviews, 3 of which turned into job offers. All of these were in town labour jobs, so I decided not to commit to any of them right off the hop and it paid off. I was in with United Safety, was scheduled to start their one week training last week but they called last minute and canceled. Fortunately, moments after I received that bad news, a union I did an entrance exam for called me up to say my application was accepted. I was scheduled to start their two week training next week, and got a call the other day to say the training was canceled haha. However, this time training was canceled because their demand for apprentices was so high they decided to make an exception for the time being and dispatch newbies without training! I have my D&A test tomorrow, some paid training immediately after, and should be on my way out to Fort Mac as a first year welding apprentice next week for a 4 week rotation, 6 on 1 off, 12 hour shifts!
Am I going to be able to stay in camp for those single days off? Or will I have to move myself out and back in again 3 separate times? And anyone stayed at Athabasca? Good place, bad place? All I can find is the shittiest quality cell phone vids of the place, but it looks deeecent.

So yeah, there's work to be had if you want it bad enough to fight for it boys. Especially with the union I got in with. I went from reading this thread while sitting in Ontario dreaming about what could be, to being out here and lined up with a killer opportunity in under 5 months and about $3000.

(04-14-2015 06:45 PM)CoreyTrevor Wrote:  Hey guys,

Just an update as I've neglected to provide updates on my journey. Made the move from Ontario to Edmonton, arrived March 3rd and hit the job hunt real hard. Handed out about 70 resumes in person, countless others online, and converted those into about 10 interviews, 3 of which turned into job offers. All of these were in town labour jobs, so I decided not to commit to any of them right off the hop and it paid off. I was in with United Safety, was scheduled to start their one week training last week but they called last minute and canceled. Fortunately, moments after I received that bad news, a union I did an entrance exam for called me up to say my application was accepted. I was scheduled to start their two week training next week, and got a call the other day to say the training was canceled haha. However, this time training was canceled because their demand for apprentices was so high they decided to make an exception for the time being and dispatch newbies without training! I have my D&A test tomorrow, some paid training immediately after, and should be on my way out to Fort Mac as a first year welding apprentice next week for a 4 week rotation, 6 on 1 off, 12 hour shifts!
Am I going to be able to stay in camp for those single days off? Or will I have to move myself out and back in again 3 separate times? And anyone stayed at Athabasca? Good place, bad place? All I can find is the shittiest quality cell phone vids of the place, but it looks deeecent.

So yeah, there's work to be had if you want it bad enough to fight for it boys. Especially with the union I got in with. I went from reading this thread while sitting in Ontario dreaming about what could be, to being out here and lined up with a killer opportunity in under 5 months and about $3000.

First of all, congratulations on getting a good union job brother (we may be in the same union) and welcome to the metal trades, your hard work and determination obviously paid off, hopefully you've read through the thread and picked up on the advice I laid out for the new guys, but if not, here's some quick tips:

-Show up to work on time, your bus will leave at a certain time, be there ten minutes early.

-Have a positive attitude, ask lots of questions and make sure you observe your JM and other apprentices. Don't sit around or be in the smoke pit all day, if there's nothing going on then offer to help others (in your trade), ask them about their tools, help them carry shit, etc.

-Don't engage in work gossip, work safe but don't ever rat on someone, if shit goes down, talk to your JM, there is an unofficial chain of command, don't go straight to a GF or superintendent with an issue, run it by someone you trust first who you're working with directly.

-Safety first, pay attention in orientation, participate in tool box talks and filling out FLRA's, make sure that your paperwork is tight as the safety guys can be dicks.

As for the camp, I've never stayed there but have been inside multiple times to go to the Tim Horton's there. It is a nice camp and is beside the Beaver executive lodge, not sure if there's a bar but there is a really good gym, games room (billiards, darts, pool table, etc), out door hockey rink and basketball court. You won't have to move out on your day off, you will just chill in the room, if you have a car then you may want to consider bringing it up there so you can drive into Fort McMurray (40 minutes) on your days off to blow your cash on strippers and Mary Brown's fried chicken, if not, then you'll be confined to the camp. I hope that you don't have Rogers as a cell provider as it may not work up there, Telus and Bell are the best.

The food should be decent, most camps have really good food two nights a week, terrible food two nights then three nights of okay food, they always have salad bar and fruit but the other options can be greasy so watch your intake as the cooks like to load up the plates with all kinds of shit. Bring lots of socks and underwear, around ten days worth as you'll be doing your own laundry, bring sandals for the shower, you'll probably be wearing coveralls at work, so jogging pants and a hoddie for underneath, some jeans and comfortable gear for after work. Don't wear any non cotton material under your work gear like nylon as it'll melt to your skin in case of fire. Your company should supply all of your PPE, you may want to get welding boots but should be fine if you already bought a pair that aren't.

Again, congrats, if you have any other questions just shoot, or if you PM me then I can probably give you specific information about the site you'll be on as I've worked at them all up there, everyone of those dirty whores!

Hey Scotian. I'm from Ontario, leaving highschool some time soon. Wondering EXACTLY what I need to do to get outta Ontario and Into a big paying job in the metal works down there.

Will highschool courses make a difference? What are some good college options? Or do you recommend packing up my shit and taking care of it down there?

^^This is the part where Kdog or others tell you to READ THE ENTIRE THREAD lol. Its an abundance of information in this thread, its more than likely to answer all of your questions.

There are lots of guys doing ironwork here but since things have slowed, I would suggest getting into an apprenticeship or a tech school Of some sort.
youre leaving high school in one of the slowest of years for O&G, education first buddy. Just my two cents. Personally I am switching from Workin on the towers to a differnt trade very soon. I will keep you all posted on the transition.

I've been through all 150 pages of the thread

A friend of mine told me to get more education than I needed. Looks like things aren't in the same condition as when the thread started, lots more people and competition so I'll probably look into one of the higher demand trades. Would appreciate you letting me know how it all works out

(04-14-2015 09:22 PM)Carboneraser Wrote:  I've been through all 150 pages of the thread

A friend of mine told me to get more education than I needed. Looks like things aren't in the same condition as when the thread started, lots more people and competition so I'll probably look into one of the higher demand trades. Would appreciate you letting me know how it all works out

Get into a trade that does maintenance work (welder, pipefitter, insulator, scaffolder, etc) or take a two year diploma at a local community college (mechanical engineer, welding technologist, etc), you're 18 and have lots of time so keep exploring your options.

Congrats Corey! Do you know what wages and overtime compensation you're going to get?
I thought Athabasca was closed so good to hear they've reopened. Try and get into town on your day off if you can. Fort Mac is quite nice now getting into the summer and through October. Long daylight hours and lots of people out and about in the evening.
I'm trying to convince my friends and relatives who are struggling back in onterrible to come out here but no one's biting.
Hope you enjoy your first shift.

Thanks Scotian, I've read through the thread a few times and jotted down notes, but the advice is welcome all the same. Glad to hear I can stay at camp on my days off, it would have been a pain in the ass otherwise. I plan on taking full advantage of their gym so I'll probably just buckle down and ride out the 4 weeks in camp working out and sharpening up my pool game when I'm off. I owe a lot of you guys a drink or two so we'll have to hook up when I get back in town, I'll save my money wasting for then haha.

And thanks christpuncher. Starting at $25.25/hour, time and a half after 8 hours, and double time after 10 and on weekends. So in other words a shit ton haha. That's why I plan on staying in camp the whole time and just banking my loot so I can walk out with a nice stack of cash. I've been living so frugally for the last month and half, it's going to be sick to finally have some change to play around with and actually see what Alberta's about. I'm having the same issue with friends back home too, a lot of my buddies back home are in the trades and would be doing way better out here. Unfortunately I'm one of only a handful of my inner circle that isn't locked down by a kid or a broad, so it's not so easy for them to take off.

How does lunch work at camp? I'll obviously be on site and not at camp during lunch time, so doe they give you take out containers or something? I have a bunch of Tupperware I can bring but I want to travel as light as possible. Also I was told to bring my own person hygiene stuff, but nothing was said about laundry soap. Should I bring some of my own or is it provided?

(04-16-2015 12:45 PM)CoreyTrevor Wrote:  How does lunch work at camp? I'll obviously be on site and not at camp during lunch time, so doe they give you take out containers or something? I have a bunch of Tupperware I can bring but I want to travel as light as possible. Also I was told to bring my own person hygiene stuff, but nothing was said about laundry soap. Should I bring some of my own or is it provided?

You will pack your own lunch at the cafeteria in the morning after you eat breakfast and before you catch the bus, they provide brown paper bags but you can bring your own sac or whatever, don't worry about tupperware. You can bring laundry detergent if you want but they also sell it in the commissary or whatever they call it, its like a small convenience store where they sell everything you need. Bring all of your personal stuff that you would travel with: shaving kit, soap, razors, etc, have plenty of everything as sometimes jobs can run longer than anticipated.

Blah , I have to miss out on this weekend , when I have $$$ Ill be doing a roll call . Corey Trevor Congrats , Brother , I wish you all the best . Its been about 9 months since I arrived here from the " Hammer " ( Where abouts did you come from in Ont ? ) . I got my CSTS this week and will be finishing Fall Protection on Monday . If I don,t get picked up by Pagnotta , PCL then I think Ill be dropping on down to that hall for a visit !!

Hey I got a couple PMs about the job but it would be easier just to post here. Work hired a new guy pretty much the same day I posted that. I'll email guys if anyone ends up quitting or we expand a bit.

I've got a job out of town tonight but should be back for sat night for a meetup

Australian rigs looks awesome. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O17uiSIK_go

Food every 3 hours, single rooms which look brand new.

Thanks Sal! Believe it or not I'm from Hamilton too haha! I'd definitely go check out the union if I were you man, I think they're doing their next intake on May 3rd. Their requirements are basically CSTS, H2S, and a High School Diploma. Assuming you have the diploma you meet 2/3 of the requirements.

Arrived in camp this morning about 7:30 am, too late to catch today's orientation so I've had the day to mess about and catch up on some sleep. Took the bus from Edmonton last night so I was kind of glad to have the day to myself that ride fucking sucked, and having also taken the bus from Ontario to Edmonton I can officially say I'm over bus rides haha, I'm taking to the air from here on out. Anyone taken the bus to Fort Mac before? Those cabbies waiting there are aggressive as shit! I get off the bus and some dude literally walks up and grabs one of bags from me and just starts walking away. I run in front of him and ask him what the fuck he's doing and he's like " I drive you to camp". He quotes me $120 so I grab my bag back and tell him I was waiting for a cab who quoted me $90, and ended up getting the ride for $100. All in all a pretty eventful last 24 hours.

This camp seems to be pretty dope so far though. I've caught breakfast, lunch, and dinner now and the food has been amazing. The bag up room for lunch was a nice surprise, basically like walking into a mini grocery store and not having to pay for anything. Could quite easily put on a couple tonne with the amount of food at your disposal here though haha, going to have to eat smart and fight not to pig out.

Anyways, I'm going to go hit the gym and try to run off that pasta I shouldn't have domed earlier. I'll post occasional updates on how things are going and try to paint a picture of what life as a newbie out here is like. Cheers!

Anyone get a glimpse of the feminist signs all over the pavement on Whyte Ave? Those broads must be living in an alternate universe.

^ What do they say?