what do you do for your work....i'm an electrician...
Former Member
I'm an UNEMPLOYED engineer. My degree is in mechanical engineering; all of my experience is in process & manufacturing engineering.
The company I worked for closed our plant in July, 2002, and moved our operations to its plant in South Carolina. We were given big retention bonuses to stay until the plant closed, so I took a few months off and didn't start to look for a new job until January, 2003.
It was probably just as well that I hadn't started looking - the job market was, and still is, terrible. I've been unemployed twice before and those times were NOTHING like this.
I'm already seeing age discrimination, at the ripe old age of 42. Maybe "salary discrimination" is a better term. I've been on several interviews where it quickly became clear that they want a less-experienced engineer because they want to pay less. WAY less. I interviewed for one job that would have been a 40%-45% pay cut from my last salary.
At this point I don't know what to do. Manufacturing does seem to be disappearing in our country. Maybe I should become a plumber or an auto mechanic!
Work in a call center for Greyhound bus lines, and take informaton calls and sell some tickets order the home, really. Not very professional but its a living. Laineyburg, if I had you as my school Psychologist I might have not been railroad in grade school. Back in the 1960's if a kid got dianogized with ADHD,wasn't the best student, learn to read and write later; then they got placed in special ed with mildy retarded,no joking. I got out of it at 12 years old and got to into regular classes with some remedial classes in Jr High. But I was far back in basic skills partly because of what happen to me.
Mechanical engineer (yawn!)
I work for a company that designs and constructs buildings. Mostly pharmaceutical plants and labs. If you look in the ceiling at the pipes and ducts, that was me!
Jerrycat, I have thought about going out on my own, but haven't worked up the nerve yet. I keep coming back to how will I make the mortgage payment and feed the family if I have a bad month (or 2 or 3).Congrats on taking that step.
Senior Software Engineer for a Defense Contractor (Northrop Grumman). Where I do a lot of automated testing of embedded systems (mainly airborn radars).
Minion of Satan.
I do R&D work/math/software development for a company that makes the world's most advanced marketing software. We show retailers/companies how to squeeze every last dollar out of your pockets. It is truly terrifying as to how well it works and our client list is a who's who of large American companies.
It was either that or become a hit man and, to my shame, I chose the greater of the two evils.
We OWN you..... BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
-LBJ
I am in the business of building correctional facilities (nice word for prisons) for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services as a full-time profession. In addition, many of you know that I am also a Church organist currently serving a Lutheran church. (Hear that, Rev. Denise?)
anna...send me your resume,
joanne3P@fuse.net. (3P Consulting, LLC is my business)
It's tough right now for your speciality...but send me the email, and we can converse a little, as I'm in the job market everyday, and can help you strategize to land the job you deserve.
Jerrycat. :D
