Brad Clayton Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Well, another dealership has lost a damn good tech. I am talking about none other than Big Angry Hillbilly himself Mr. Aaron Robertson. I talked to him last night and he said he had had enough of Ford's shite and he is now wrenching for these fellas: Stryker Armored Vehicles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 He been doing that for a while.... From what I understand it is a real blast... His job is to road test these things after the conversion and fix anything he finds... Not sure how he stumbled on to this but it sure seems like a job made in heaven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieselD Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Its a sad fact of life it seems that is becoming more and more common. If a dealer cant treat a good tech right they eventually wise up and go somewhere else. Its a harsh business. Now funny you posted this as I myself am on the fence with a career change, well not a career change but rather a job change to get out of the dealer life. I might be having a opportunity open up that would allow me to advance my skills and end up in more of a management role but it wont be a a dealership. The thing that drives me nuts about where I am at now in my career is I am at the top. Its funny you try so hard to be the best and the top of what you do when you finally get there your left wanting more. I can not advance any further as a tech. Obviously I have done all my training, I work on damn near anything that rolls in the door from a focus to a F750. Do I know it all? of course not! but I think we all have blinders on when working at a dealer. We tend to get in our groove working on what we know best since thats where we flag our most hours. I feel I miss out on the chance to take on something out of the norm as Im afraid of it hurting my paycheck too much. I have turned down both a foreman job as well as a advisor simply because they pay was not there. I dont mind taking a cut to get going in the right direction for advancement but I cant afford a 50% pay cut to do a job with more responsibility,stress,and hours. Thats how every dealer I have worked at is run. If you look at who those guys are in a dealership its 9 times out of 10 burnt out,crippled,techs that cant cut the mustard that are in those positions. To them its a pay raise. If you pay a guy that way you get equal performance out of him, they are not going to be a "go getter" For me I need to decide if I stick around my dealer turning a wrench for the rest of my life. Its the best dealer I have worked at and its hard for me to just walk away. Not to mention all the hours I have invested in training etc. Sure they have their flaws and issues just like every other dealer out there but they have treated me right for the most part. I honestly dont see a chance for me to move up and out of that, sure it might happen one day but when? after its too late to have another choice? What I am looking at is a job away from the dealer that still allows me to use my skills. I have been offered a position at OTR/Mining tire company managing a fleet of service trucks which include about 150+ trucks that are mostly Fords. I would still be involved in repairs but on a smaller scale, would have my own service truck to work out of for field work/welding etc. I would be putting a maintenance plan together and "approved" locations for service work. Any and all repairs done outside would go through me first. I would be involved in building/outfitting new trucks to replace retired ones. It would be a chance to still use my skills and learn something new, the best part is it pays about the same as my average yearly at my dealer with a opportunity to advance in the future So how does keith feel about us Ford guys giving up on dealers and sticking around DTS? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktmlew Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I gave up on Ford in summer of 05...there have been times I wondered if it was the right thing to do. But I know it was. At 53 I'm struggling with what is next but I' m sure it's NOT jumping through Fords ridiculous warranty hoops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I took a pay cut when I signed on as "working" shop foreman at my dealer. I'm earning about base journeyman rate.. I don't get performance bonuses as I am straight time (didn't expect to with the jobs I get, anyway) but I do get OT... For medical reasons, we are a single income household... not sure where you would fit in there. While our lifestyle may not be lavish, we are quite comfortable. My duties challenge my abilities.. all of them. At one moment I might be processing an electrical conumdrum in my mind and the next moment I might be saying "Put your purse down and help me over here". FWIW, I am unsure why your shop would pay so little for a shop foreman... In my defence it is my job to show apprentices how to function in the real world and to guide seasoned techs through any concerns they may have. It is the stress and the constant challenge that keeps me going. Do I wish the numbers on my "wifes paycheck" were bigger? Yes... Are they big enough as it is?.... Well... yeah, I guess so... When I meet my customers in a store, the conversation is more like a doctor/patient thing than anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Clayton Posted August 6, 2011 Author Share Posted August 6, 2011 Quote: He been doing that for a while.... From what I understand it is a real blast... Yes he has, but I finally got the green light to make a formal announcement.As far as work goes, they keep telling him to sloooow down. I could get into a job like that. I asked if they were hiring and he said yes. But I then decided it was too far of a commute and besides that I don't speak Canadian! He said the language barrier is easy just say "eh" alot and "fuckall". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I gave up on Ford in summer of 05...there have been times I wondered if it was the right thing to do. But I know it was. At 53 I'm struggling with what is next but I' m sure it's NOT jumping through Fords ridiculous warranty hoops. At 61..... I am having the time of my life. Through my entire life I have been accused of "marching in my own parade", "walking on my own side of the street" and "having a problem with authority". Each of us has the ability to shape our future (I'm a grade 8 high school drop out - ask me). Things might happen because of our decisions... things might happen in spite of our decisions. FWIW... changing jobs has a small chance of improving your position. Increasing your knowledge... product knowledge, diagnostic abilities, reading comprehension... these (and others I've overlooked) offer large chances of improving your position. Never, ever miss the opportunity to put "U" in your "wurk". Pretend you are a musician... instead of practicing at a keyboard... you are practicing at logical thought process - you are practicing at proper volt drop testing... (give me a break... I've watched you guys putzing around with your ohmmeter). Your job is from 8 to 5. Your career lasts a bit longer... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 So how does keith feel about us Ford guys giving up on dealers and sticking around DTS? I have no problem with that at all. Once a member, always a member and always welcome here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Aaron can be a "colourful" person... I nearly wept when he had to have Brutus put down... FWIW, Brutus got along famously with Koda and Bill when he stopped by here on his way back to Ontariariario. We had some left over elk steak and sliced it thin to make a nice sammich. Aarons attention was diverted for a moment and it appears that Brutus enjoyed the sammich... I think we wound up giving Aaron bologne.... It would be nice if he started posting again... Now and again he would text me... I hate texting... but it was Aaron... how do you "not text"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 I still miss the guy - he was a posting madman and then fell off the face of the planet... or at least my side of the planet. I understand his life has been rearranged but I would love to have him visit once in a while. Perhaps someone could relay that to him. I would appreciate it. At least let him know I wish him well. He seems like a decent guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Clayton Posted August 7, 2011 Author Share Posted August 7, 2011 Ah fuckall, he's an asshole! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Bruene Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 I think this may become a trend. Over the past few months, I've spoken to quite a few friends of mine that are thinking of leaving Ford for other (not necessarily greener) pastures. Everybody seems to agree that the good folks at Ford warranty are making it harder and harder to make a living. The people I'm talking about are not your average "flush-queen", and will certainly be difficult to replace. I sometimes wonder if Ford cares if they lose competent, highly skilled and trained techs, or if they just feel that's the dealers problem. Time will tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DwayneGorniak Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 I can't speak for Aaron, but I can possibly relate to his situation. I kind of went quiet myself in the first little bit on this website after I left Ford as well. Not because I didn't want to talk to anyone here or have anything to say at all, but more for a whole lot of other factors. Number one: I was just plain friggin busy and felt like a one legged man in an ass kicking contest and I am still that damned busy. Two: When you leave the Ford scene after being a part of it for almost 16 years, you leave a huge part of your life and venture into a totally unknown part of a new life. In my case, with my hew business, the last thing you ever want to do is tell everyone how great you're doing ore well life is without Ford it or anything like that. I won't feel like I have been successful for probably two or three years into the business. The first year is a killer. So much overhead and wondering when the fuck is this asshole gonna pay me for the fucking tools I sold him. Everyone seems to think and say: Oh look there is the tool guy or money bags, or the guy with all of my money. the fact is, I walk into a shop now and think, oh look, there's the little fucker with all of my tools that he hasn't paid for yet. Don't get me wrong. There are actually more descent paying customers out there than there are lowlife, scum sucking sponges. But those low life scum sucking sponges eat up all my profit and I rely on the payment from all of my good customers. Trust me, we appreciate it. It keeps me alive financially. The business has been good and I am paying the bills, but it will take a while before I start pocketing money. They say about three years. My last three Weeks have been hell in a really weird love/hate kinda way. I have sold 11 Tool boxes in three Weeks and while some of think HOLY SHIT, LOOK WHO'S ROLLING ALL THE GOLD NOW, it friggin hurts financially big time. It takes anywhere from two to five Weeks to get a cheque from the finance company for the tool boxes that customers purchase. In the mean time, I have paid for those boxes up front and am waiting rather impatiently for my money. The amount of money that I have owed to me out on the street is astronomical. Yes I will get a nice paycheck once all that money rolls in, but it will fly out my pockets as fat as it comes in. I will be ordering stock to replenish what I've sold. In the mean time, my bank account has been severely raped and abused and left with a rather large gaping hole that will be rather hard to fill. Here's where the swearing is gonna start!: THEM MOTHER FUCKIN LAZY LOWLIFE COCK SUCKING ABSORBING SPONGES OF UNION WORKERS THAT WORK FOR CANADA POST LOST TWO TOOL BOX CHEQUES ON ME! one for over $7100.00 and another for over $5400.00. If you guys ever see someone on the news taking out postal workers, that will be me. Fuck! I'm gonna kill someone. yes I am still surviving, but life would be allot easier with out lazy mother fuckers like that in it. I've done two repo's now. I'll tell you all about that another time. They were legislated back to work by our government but they are still on what we call an Italian strike. That is where you go to work and work like and Italian and basically do fuck all. These sons of bitches have absolutely no fucking pride! They bitch and piss and moan and whine and fucking cry about how unsafe their work is because they have to walk up down icy streets and walks............Just like the rest of us taxpayers in Canada that live in this cold harsh fucking environment and pay their fucking wages to deliver our fucking mail. Get my cheques you lazy fuckers and shut up. When the fuck do you ever hear a policeman wanting to go on strike because it is to fucking dangerous out there, or a firefighter bitching about being soaking wet in minus 40 degree Celsius weather putting out your fucking fires? When do you ever hear search and rescue people bitch about looking for those frozen kids in diapers on the reserve that tried to follow their father to the liquor store? When do you ever hear an oil rigger bitch about being soaking wet with drilling mud in minus 30 degree Celsius weather or even a farmer wanting to on strike because it too cold to go and do the fucking chores or even a technician slipping on and icy Superduty bumper and catching his damned bag on that fucking hood latch? you don't! They all have fucking Pride! Holy shit! Sorry about the rant. I got a little carried away there. When you leave Ford, you leave a huge part of your life behind. In my case anyway, you leave something that you were very proud of. And you hate to hear people say things like: he'll be back. It makes you feel like like no one has any faith in you and if you all are as stubborn as I am, you get that I'll show them attitude. But at the same time you are afraid of failure and that fact that someday you may have to come back. The truth is, I actually miss the technology side of the trade. I loved that and always will. But man I love doing what I'm doing now as well. And I Hope I never fuck it up. I am learning new shit at an unbelievable pace everyday that it is mind clogging. And I also feel like this Diesel Technician Society will always be a part of my life and I never want that to change. Some of us just go quiet for a while trying to find a way relate to the rest of you without trying to gloat and feel like we are no longer of the Ford world. I will keep you guys posted at other times, But I am just damned friggin busy. Chow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieselD Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 I took a pay cut when I signed on as "working" shop foreman at my dealer. I'm earning about base journeyman rate.. I don't get performance bonuses as I am straight time (didn't expect to with the jobs I get, anyway) but I do get OT... For medical reasons, we are a single income household... not sure where you would fit in there. While our lifestyle may not be lavish, we are quite comfortable. My duties challenge my abilities.. all of them. At one moment I might be processing an electrical conumdrum in my mind and the next moment I might be saying "Put your purse down and help me over here". FWIW, I am unsure why your shop would pay so little for a shop foreman... In my defence it is my job to show apprentices how to function in the real world and to guide seasoned techs through any concerns they may have. It is the stress and the constant challenge that keeps me going. Do I wish the numbers on my "wifes paycheck" were bigger? Yes... Are they big enough as it is?.... Well... yeah, I guess so... When I meet my customers in a store, the conversation is more like a doctor/patient thing than anything else. See I love the challenge of figuring out that hard to find issue no one else can but when it comes down to the flat rate way of life you end up stuck with the short end of the stick on those type of jobs. I already take on a similar role to working foreman(more so when our foreman is off or there are 6.0 issues abound) but without the pay scale to go with it. Its a sad reality when that motive directs your actions on the job. It might just be my area here in the states that dictates that positions pay, I know its not just my dealer either and cant understand it myself. I am by no means complaining about my way of life, I do love my career and leaving ford will not/is not a easy choice or taken lightly. I am not one of those guys to jump ship when the going gets tough. I put 100% into whatever I do but I do question what the future holds for me as a technician. I know I want more out of it then just "the guy that fixes trucks" and wondering if that can ever happen if I stay with ford. Dont even get me started on warranty however my biggest rant is how many people can affect your paycheck. Warranty clerk jerking you around with backflags and telling you what you can and cannot claim when they obviously have no clue what it involves or what the WSM states. Management getting involved and using the excuse "take care of the customer" to not pay me for whatever I might be doing that they should be taking care of the customer and insuring I am taken care of as well. AND FORD themselves and their awesome SLTS rates! yep thats enough bitching for one sunday morning! Keith Thanks, I find DTS to be a awesome place and glad I stumbled across way back when which seems like forever ago. Its been a great place to bs, bounce ideas off your guys for that problem child truck, help others with their problem child, and just a flat out great resource. I will be sticking around no matter what Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 C'mon, Dwayne... tell us how you REALLY feel... So... whaddaya want me to do with the pail pump you forgot again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DwayneGorniak Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 Merry early Christmas. The pail pump is now yours Jim. I'm not driving back to Slave Lake for a $45.00 pump. If you want to know how I really feel, My post could get as long as some of yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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