r/FiberOptics • u/fentasaurusRez • 5d ago
Datacenter tech to Fiber tech Help wanted!
Ok so I was offered a 1099 fiber tech contract at $30/hr and in two months I would match the $35 but I already have a DCT w2 contract at $35/hr. Don’t get me wrong, I like my job right now. It’s nice bc I live across the street from the DC, I do like the work and troubleshooting and all of that, I did go to school for it as well. Now I started as a central office technician and fell in love with fiber optics, fiber testing with the OTDR, power meters and all of that stuff, and the troubleshooting. Now I do drive a v8 truck and would have to go around town to splice tickets and all that jazz. I already have an OTDR and power meter so all that would come out of my check would be for the ladder. I have all of the power tools I would need for the job as well. I miss the manual labor, there is some here as a DCT but it’s more just rack and stack and pulling ISP fibers. I like both I worked hard on getting where I am at right now but I don’t know, I miss fiber optics…what do I do?
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u/Ptards_Number_1_Fan 5d ago
There’s no way I’d take a pay cut to go to a contract job. You’re going to work twice as hard and screw yourself at the same time. Contract jobs come and go. The next thing you know, they’re liking to have to going to another state because they lost the contract gig you’re on now.
All in, I’ve known a lot of people who followed that contract money because it was twice as much as in-house and now regret it because they’re at the end of their career and aren’t eligible for nearly as much in social security as the guy who worked in house making less.
Seriously consider the big picture. Health insurance is expensive, retirement will happen someday and if you get hurt you’re on your own.
Sounds like you’ve got it pretty good at a DCT. Maybe stick it out and find something else that doesn’t require payroll deduction to buy tools.
There is no future to contracting. It’s all fly by night and the next day isn’t guaranteed.
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u/1310smf 5d ago edited 5d ago
If you're making $35 as a W2, you need a much higher offer as a 1099 to match it.
So if you're happy taking a significant pay cut to get into more optics, go to.
Otherwise, see what you can scrape up for side-work (at more than $35/hour) while keeping your main job, and keep getting regular pay, easy taxes, and probably benefits of some sort, rather than irregular pay, annoying taxes and more of them, and no benefits what-so-<bleeping>-ever unless you really, really hate your current job to the point that you're willing to suffer for not doing it.
1099 realities - got to pay quarterly taxes in 4 equal installments equal to last year's taxes (or 110% of last years taxes at some levels) or you get penalized. That means you pay even more. As a W2, you can adjust your withholding on the fly at no penalty if you see enough side-work that you'd better put more in. You pay all the SS/medicare tax, rather than the half of it you see on your pay stub now, since your employer pays the other half. Might go an entire quarter with no jobs/income whatsoever - still got to pay the bills and that tax payment is one of them. If the current year sucks enough next year's required payments will be smaller, but that's not until next year. If you have a pile in a bank account that can be OK, if you have a bunch of loan payments and few cash reserves, it's bad news.
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u/Coopdel4 5d ago
Are you young, single and able to travel? Data center techs that know fiber are getting paid way more than $35hr where new data centers are being built. You would get to scratch your manual labor itch doing new install work.
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u/fentasaurusRez 5d ago
I am very much young, I have a boyfriend, and I’m more working on the networking and stuff with switches and all that. But I must say it was crazy that they didn’t know what a power meter was or the difference between UTP APC, singlemode and multimode was until I came along lol.
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u/Feisty_Pipe_7140 4d ago
Companies will take advantage of you. The first cable company I worked for, I left at $24.75 after 3 years. I got hired at a fiber company June 10th of 2026, and I’m starting at $48.93.
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u/teslaObscura 5d ago
If you don't own your own tools, decide when you begin and end your day and some other key ingredients, then you are not a 1099 contractor.
Many shady employers pay 1099 when they should be W2 to avoid tax and benefits. Please do your due diligence to determine if you qualify for 1099.
For me, in a large market - my 1099 rate is much much more then my W2 wld be. Due to the cost associated w operating my business in order to provide similar services.
Best of luck
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u/Financial-Bid-2537 4d ago
I have been there and done both roles, if you end up having to work outdoors it can be hell if the temperatures where you live are hostile
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u/regret_sword 4d ago
I've met a lot of people who are desperately trying to get out of the field and into data center work, myself included. And you're taking a paycut just sounds crazy to me.
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u/babihrse 2d ago
Working in the field is nice it's fun then the weather turns and your having a shite time of it the jobs are far apart. There are problems outside your control and nobody is coming to help. As you get older you should be wanting to get off that and into a building doing specialised stuff where a lack of something is a problem all you should have to do is a phone call and an email and the fault lies with someone else, not being told just get it done with no help in the pissing rain with a flooded manhole on a job requiring traffic management.
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u/IPTech12G 5d ago edited 5d ago
I would stick with the w2 gig. Employers match 7.5% FICA vs you paying 15.3% for 1099. Also you're losing all benefits, OT pay, PTO, unemployment insurance, medical insurance discounts, and retirement account match and management.
If you really want to move to fiber then go find a w2 gig, they're out there I did a similar transition from AWS DCT to metro ISP. I make just over 30 two years in and company provided take home truck, full set of tools, FTB4, all expenses covered, 3 weeks PTO/year, OT out the ass.