Anyone gone from IT to the building trade yet?
19 February 2003, 07:38 AM
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Now that the IT boom is officially over and the lack of jobs at the moment, has anyone retrained and now working in the building trade where a mere labourer can earn £95 per day in the South East?
I am seriously tempted to do a summer hod carrying at £130 a day.
Have you seen how much London Plummers get these days? It's almost like CCNA's when they first same out (that's Cisco Certified Network Associates to the non IT people amongst us) £400 per day easy.
How long would it take to beccome qualified as a plummer?
Knowing my luck just as I'm qualified the boom would have moved back to IT!
I am seriously tempted to do a summer hod carrying at £130 a day.
Have you seen how much London Plummers get these days? It's almost like CCNA's when they first same out (that's Cisco Certified Network Associates to the non IT people amongst us) £400 per day easy.
How long would it take to beccome qualified as a plummer?
Knowing my luck just as I'm qualified the boom would have moved back to IT!
19 February 2003, 09:40 AM
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Danny I know exactly where you are coming from! I have been looking since November for IT jobs. It seems as though that because there is such an over supply of staff companies recruiting seem to think they can treat interviewees like pieces of dirt and pay them ridiculously low salaries (as in 50% of what I was on before) in comparison to what they were a year ago because if you don't like it they will just find someone else. Its this change in attitude where IT staff are no longer required that makes me want to do something else. Unfortunately I have only ever done IT and going into another industry seems a bit difficult. However I think I could manage carrying bricks about all day for that sort of money 
Where abouts are these building jobs advertised?
Apart from plumbing and building are there any other industries that are in a mini boom at the moment and if so how long is the training and what starting wages you can expect to earn?
[Edited by ************** - 2/19/2003 9:42:27 AM]
Where abouts are these building jobs advertised?Apart from plumbing and building are there any other industries that are in a mini boom at the moment and if so how long is the training and what starting wages you can expect to earn?
[Edited by ************** - 2/19/2003 9:42:27 AM]
19 February 2003, 09:52 AM
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Low start up costs and quick training : Plastering!!! None corgi plumbers as Gorgi plumbers charge the full rate just to fix simple things... CCTV/security installs seems to be growing.
19 February 2003, 09:56 AM
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Since the change in R18 BBFC certification a couple of years ago the licenced sex shop industry is going through a boom time right now.Everyone is earning huge wads.
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19 February 2003, 11:52 AM
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If I were made redundant (from my IT job) I could use the C+E licence I gained last year (to supplement the class C I got in '95). Not that I fancy being a long distance lorry driver, but it beats the dole.
I would also consider going full time with the regular parent unit of my TA unit. They are having retention problems because the skills these guys get in the regulars can pay £40-50k in civvy street - without working in the City.
I would also consider going full time with the regular parent unit of my TA unit. They are having retention problems because the skills these guys get in the regulars can pay £40-50k in civvy street - without working in the City.
19 February 2003, 12:26 PM
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There was a magazine article in "Built It" about a guy got made redundant retrained as a bricklayer and built his own house for 34K and it's valued at 280K.
It's gotta beat working for a living
It's gotta beat working for a living
19 February 2003, 12:29 PM
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it all goes in cycles though, remember the Y2K thing and the supposed shortage of skilled IT people coupled with rumours of high wages so everyone jumped into IT and then started whinging when without any experience they didnt get the money they thought, so now its plumbers etc. and everyone thinks I'll do that and can learn in a week and start earning....wake up smell the coffee me thinks!!!!
19 February 2003, 02:00 PM
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the wage rates for being an electrican in london as laid down by the JIB are £9.86 and that requires 3 years of college on day release or 2 nights per week. then after 2 years and another course you can become a approved electrician £10.66 per hour plus you get a van and power tools provided. still excited? i have two guys working outside today freezing cold repairing lights for this sort of money would you.
if you like working lot of hours then with over time it can add up to 30K plus but not many people want to work 7 day weeks regularly. the leaving home at 7am and getting back at 7 am because of traffic also pisses people off.
if you like working lot of hours then with over time it can add up to 30K plus but not many people want to work 7 day weeks regularly. the leaving home at 7am and getting back at 7 am because of traffic also pisses people off.
19 February 2003, 08:01 PM
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Hold on a minute guys, don't think anyone said they expected to walk straight into a manual labour job and earn bucket loads!
I was getting at the fact it beats being on the dole when there arnt any IT jobs available, thats all. I am fully aware that the high paid 70k a year plumbers are very well skilled people with their own companies and big contracts and who have been in the trade for many years.
I just don't want to be unemployed and if that means going into a new line of work then so be it. IT is no longer high paid as the jobs I have been sent etc are for approx 50-70% of what I was earning and that wasn't vast amounts in the first place. IE a 3 grand train fare to London for a lot less money and all the hassle of a 4 hours or more travelling a day is now a lot less attractive.
I am just going to have a look about and see whats available and decide whats the best option.
I was getting at the fact it beats being on the dole when there arnt any IT jobs available, thats all. I am fully aware that the high paid 70k a year plumbers are very well skilled people with their own companies and big contracts and who have been in the trade for many years.
I just don't want to be unemployed and if that means going into a new line of work then so be it. IT is no longer high paid as the jobs I have been sent etc are for approx 50-70% of what I was earning and that wasn't vast amounts in the first place. IE a 3 grand train fare to London for a lot less money and all the hassle of a 4 hours or more travelling a day is now a lot less attractive.
I am just going to have a look about and see whats available and decide whats the best option.
19 February 2003, 08:20 PM
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Bravo,
I live in Bagshot, Surrey and my local paper advertises for labourers & hod carriers all the time.
My best mate is a dry liner/plasterer and he's on about £300 a day purely because there aren't enough of them around at the moment.
I think becoming a plummer is a bit late in my life as it would take at least 18months to train, but being a labourer I could handle for a while.
Where in Kent r u?
I live in Bagshot, Surrey and my local paper advertises for labourers & hod carriers all the time.
My best mate is a dry liner/plasterer and he's on about £300 a day purely because there aren't enough of them around at the moment.
I think becoming a plummer is a bit late in my life as it would take at least 18months to train, but being a labourer I could handle for a while.
Where in Kent r u?
19 February 2003, 08:28 PM
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Hi Danny
I'm in Tunbridge Wells. Yeah a m8 of mine who also got made redundant in IT went back to his original trade of plastering because it was paying good money. Unfortunately I have no previous trade to go back to and like you I think its too late to retrain as a plumber with the amount of time it will take to get anywhere near the required skills and knowledge to do a good job.
I am going to start lookin in the local papers this weekend just to see what sort of stuff is about. Hopefully I will stay in IT but at the moment the market has dropped dead again after picking up a bit at the end of January.
Also going to look at bike courier stuff as my bike is just gathering dust in the garage. Although stuff I have heard recently is that unless your working in London there isn't much of that about either.
I'm in Tunbridge Wells. Yeah a m8 of mine who also got made redundant in IT went back to his original trade of plastering because it was paying good money. Unfortunately I have no previous trade to go back to and like you I think its too late to retrain as a plumber with the amount of time it will take to get anywhere near the required skills and knowledge to do a good job.
I am going to start lookin in the local papers this weekend just to see what sort of stuff is about. Hopefully I will stay in IT but at the moment the market has dropped dead again after picking up a bit at the end of January.
Also going to look at bike courier stuff as my bike is just gathering dust in the garage. Although stuff I have heard recently is that unless your working in London there isn't much of that about either.
19 February 2003, 08:35 PM
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Im half way trough my training as a H.V. (High Voltage e.g. 11,000v 33,000v and 132,000v) cable jointer, I have two years left. I work for Midlands Electricity and im being trained by my own company not an outside college as no ware does it. Once I have finished my training im gona leave and go sub-contracting (bit naughty really using them just for the training), but the rates for H.V. cable jointers are astronomical £400+ per day all expenses paid regional electricity companies will pay anything. It is a really specialist trade and the only people doing it are ex-electricity board guys so there aren’t many new people coming into the trade. Talking to a guy who was a cable jointer at our place and took his voluntary redundancy severance 2 years ago from my company he is 52 and served 34 years with the board and had 30 years in the board pension. So he had £35K severance £30K lump sum off his pension and he is getting £1000 per month from his pension. Now hears the good bit he finished working for Midlands Electricity on the Friday and started work for a company that contracts to us on the Monday, So he is doing the same job working in the same area. He gets paid per joint so the more he does the more he gets paid, with working no weekends and never once working past 4pm he earned £50K last year + his monthly pension and the £65K from the lump sum and severance paid for his Spanish villa. Lucky git!!!
Tim.
Tim.
19 February 2003, 08:57 PM
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Tim,
Good HV elecs are hard to come by. One of our guys earthed down live 11kV busbars on sunday. He took out our entire plant plus the local village and half the local town.
He was very lucky the OCB didnt blow up and kill him, he's now on 240V gear until he's sacked.
Lee
Good HV elecs are hard to come by. One of our guys earthed down live 11kV busbars on sunday. He took out our entire plant plus the local village and half the local town.
He was very lucky the OCB didnt blow up and kill him, he's now on 240V gear until he's sacked.
Lee
19 February 2003, 08:58 PM
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Old next door neighbour is a artexer/coving chap ,worked on new houses in the morning £100,then in the afternoon did his private jobs £70 per room! took 15 mins..easy really since he doesnt back to paint it ...he did go a dry lining course for more money but said it was to much like hard work!!...jon.
19 February 2003, 09:12 PM
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Logiclee,
A guy at our place switched a leg of a HV circuit (11KV) in onto some switchgear that was still earthed, it blew the switchgear off the pad in the substation and burnt out half a mile of HV cable. LOL he is a tosser anyway he has had his HV switching ortherisation took of him and suspended without pay for a month courtesy of our gaffer.
Tim.
A guy at our place switched a leg of a HV circuit (11KV) in onto some switchgear that was still earthed, it blew the switchgear off the pad in the substation and burnt out half a mile of HV cable. LOL he is a tosser anyway he has had his HV switching ortherisation took of him and suspended without pay for a month courtesy of our gaffer
.Tim.
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