I’ve worked with this construction company housed in the commonwealth of Virginia for a good minute now, with my duties primarily involving estimating. As an estimator, I am responsible for performing a series of pain-staking guess-work culminating in the final financial forecast, particularly the expense, of a project. For example, if we were dealing with a sewer and waterline project, one of my primary responsibilities would include a cost-effective estimate of the number of butterfly valves, gate valves, and thrust blocks required for the project. Now that I’ve given you a pretty nice run-down of my job, I will proceed to inform you why it is a piece of shit one.
The American construction industry is a very fickle and dangerous one. It is fucked up because of the caliber of individual the field attracts and lavishly awards. While you may know about the brain-dead, non-English speaking laborers having to live paycheck-to-paycheck digging, sawing, excavating during the most extreme weather conditions, you may not know about the back-stabbing Neanderthals who are put in charge of supervising their work activities.
Two weeks ago, my dumb ass superiors felt it was in my best interest to have an assistant, or someone to help me through the “busy season” (the holiday season is the slowest period in construction, btw). Obviously, I was against the idea, but my monkey of a boss insisted. After some background investigation, I learned that the “assistant” was an old, decrepit buddy of the CEO and, furthermore, I was instructed to teach him everything I know “in case I take some vacation or break.” This useless broken-down redneck cocksucker they’ve tagged me with is the most computer-illiterate bastard I’ve every seen walking on two legs – not only am I teaching him the ins-and-outs of estimating, but I’m also instructing him in the ways of common PC use, all the while pushing MY work to the side to address his cosmic ignorance of modern technology.
The intention is clear. They’re looking to either move me to another line of work, or get rid of my overpaid ass altogether in exchange for this trailer park trash who probably agreed to assume my position for a fraction of my rate to help in sustaining his alcohol obsession. I’ve seen this company do it before: firing a recent college grad and setting a near-toothless old lady in her place that can’t seem to get anything right.
This is the construction business. If you’re unemployed right now and your two options are construction and poverty, stick to poverty.
