Quote: (06-24-2012 04:55 PM)Fisto Wrote:
I just arrived in Williston North Dakota, this is the center of the new Oil Boom in the U.S. There are a lot of jobs available and many are high paying. The thing is, I don't know jack shit about this industry. I know the "roughnecking" jobs are long, hard, and dangerous. I also know that there are all sorts of support jobs from equipment servicing jobs to truck driving jobs that also pay a lot.
My question for the guys in the know, what are the most coveted jobs and how do you go about getting them?
I'm fit, hardworking, and bright. But I don't want to kill myself doing this roughnecking stuff or worse, languish in obscurity on some oil rig when I know if I were in front of the right person, they would recognize I bring something to the table.
Good luck up there and keep us posted on your progress, I think you`re the only forum member who made his way up there so far. Harry`s post is spot on, you gotta start somewhere bud, as long as you aren`t afraid of a bit of hard work, you should be able to work your way up the ladder fairly quick, once you prove yourself.
Hopefully you`ve sorted out your accommodations and already have a few bucks in the bank, so you can be picky about which job to take, since the market is hot and many companies are hiring. Choose a line of work you could see yourself doing for a number of years in all sorts of shitty weather conditions.
I`ve stated in other oil related threads that I`d personally never work on an oil rig, although there`s good money to be made, its too tough and you`re relocation options are limited to where oil is drilled once you`ve had enough. Try to get into a trade or acquire some sort of skill that you can do anywhere, not just a remote boom town because trust me, you will eventually get tired of the oil boom lifestyle.
If you want to get into a trade, lets say welding, you can either contact the union halls and ask if they`re taking on new hires or go directly to a construction company, pipeline contractor and ask if they need helpers or new apprentices. Heres a link to the North Dakota local of the union that I belong to: http://www.ualocal300.com/ (they employ welders too).