I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get better

[ryan0]

Hi guys im new to this forum

Just want some advise/info
im currently 21yrs old, im self employed after being laid of after my apprenticeship i then worked as a subcontractor for the same company for a few months
since then ive gone into working for a different company through an agency and ive been there for about 7 months now moving from job to job and now ive been asked if id like to go cards in with them.

The thing is ive noticed that the money that im getting now is never really going to improve unless i do overtime obviously (which there never really is) i want to progress from this and move forward but i dont really know what to do as i enjoy what i do and id like to stay on the tools really.

Im not sure if i should go do a hnc/hnd and get a better job but these seem to be office related, i wouldnt mind doing something different like renewable energy, on or offshore work e.g oil rigs, wind farms or even working with power stations, railway roads/train stations

As i have no real training in any of the above although its still electrically related being just an installation electrician i cant see where i can go from here.

it doesnt bother me if i had to take a lower pay while i was learning as long as it meant i was moving into something better as i dont know anyone else that really knows or cares about progressing

hopefully you guys can help me out, sorry this is a long post!
any info is appreciated and thanks for your time

 

[Top-Spark]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

If your a qualified spark then id suggest solar pv being a good start... Save up some money, do the 3day corse and if nothing else its another massive market open to you and another ticket to your name!!
If you dont enjoy that, pick another one!!

 

[VoltzElectrical]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

solar PV is dead, companies taking the government to court over the cut in FIT on news today. Bob hope of getting into oil rigs if you don't know anyone.Over-subscribed industry. I suggest get your head down, go cards-in for a while till you find your feet - you're not even a year out of your time! Plenty of men out there that would chew their arms off right now for an offer of employment.

Pretty outrageous getting laid off then taken straight back on as a subby.

 

[londonlec]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

I wouldnt do solar pv, I had the misfortune of throwing £1000 and 5 days of my life down the drain with that course.

 

[Stuuk1]

Pretty outrageous getting laid off then taken straight back on as a subby.

This has been happening for years. While apprentices are apprentices they can be fairly hard to get rid of, especially when backed by schemes like JTL.

Once qualified its easier to lay them off, and then take them on a sub contractors, that way, no holiday pay, no responsibilities.

Yes, you could have perhaps sued them, but then you would definitely have no work.

The way I look at it, if you want to earn more money you need more qualifications, however more qualifications may lead you more towards a technician and office based work.

Where I used to work in BMS, the guys/gals there earn a fortune and the overtime was always there. They all drove nice company cars etc and was a complete 50/50 mix of in the office and out of the office.

I did ask for a job, which was offered, however I couldn't afford the pay drop as I had recently taken on a new mortgage.

If you can afford a pay drop for a few years then I would certainly advise looking in to BMS, I loved every second of the install side and would have loved to know more about the commissioning.

Whe abouts are you located?

 

[ryan0]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

Thanks to all for comments, @stuuk1 i live not far from bury in rossendale, why do you know of anywhere quite local to me that may help?

 

[tazz]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

This is just a repeat of the early 80`s, and the only way could I move forward was to come out of electriconics in electrical engineering. I possible think we were lucky as NVQs did not exist (thank god) so i enrolled on c & g then moved on to ONC for 3 years, time off duing the week as just laboured were i could. So the answer is, that important certificate and on hand training.

 

[Stuuk1]

Thanks to all for comments, @stuuk1 i live not far from bury in rossendale, why do you know of anywhere quite local to me that may help?

If you were local to me in Kent I would have recommended a company to contact but unfortunately you aren't.

Have a good read up of BMS. You sound just like I was/am, keen to learn and move on, not necessarily someone who gets bored quickly but someone that wants to learn everything about anything!

One thing is for sure, get involved in BMS and you will continue to learn something new every single day, its an awesome trade.

 

[Engineer54]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

If you want to get into BMS then go for the further education route, preferably HNC/HND. Then look for the bigger names in that industry, as that's where you'll probably get the best training from. BMS isn't rocket science in itself. We buy into a system, and install it all ourselves, only have a set-up and commissioning engineer to come out when it's all complete. Though this time round, it looks as if we are having an installation supervisor visit the project during the install period, according to the BMS contract element....

 

[Stuuk1]

If you want to get into BMS then go for the further education route, preferably HNC/HND. Then look for the bigger names in that industry, as that's where you'll probably get the best training from. BMS isn't rocket science in itself. We buy into a system, and install it all ourselves, only have a set-up and commissioning engineer to come out when it's all complete. Though this time round, it looks as if we are having an installation supervisor visit the project during the install period, according to the BMS contract element....

You are rig, its not rocket science at all, it's simply point to point wiring.

The interesting bit is knowing exactly where that cable goes and why it goes there and how it all works together.

The money is in commissioning.

 

[johnboy6083]

Re: I want to progress from being stuck on the same wage and never going to get bette

I'm in the same boat. I've realised that the wages on the tools are stagnant at best, with few (if any) benefits.
im currently doing a HNC in elec engineering, having already done the 2391 & 2391-20.
Once my HNC is completed, then I'll be promoted to junior project engineer.
At least we will always have a trade to fall back on if needed.