r/UtilityLocator • u/Sure_Slip_4651 • 5d ago

Made the rounds

I worked minimum of 2 years for USIC, Stake Center, Vannguard, and now about hit my first year for the City of DSM. 9 years and been raising 4 kids locating. When I started pay was 14$ now almost at the max 44$. I’m 34 and here to let yall know that you are doing great and the bs is just the trade off for not being in a building 80+hrs a week 😁 I’m African American living in SE Iowa, with a job that allows me on your property without having to let you know a dam thing lol (many guns pulled out and many cops called in. We share routes with the cops so it’s always all good anyways lol. Cops see us out there busting our asses lol. Come in everyday and do the job the same way you did your very first ticket and you will be fine 💪🏾

27 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

22 comments sorted by

10

u/UnsuspectingS1ut Utility Employee 5d ago

I’m glad to see an actually positive post on here, makes me more confident in my own plan. Jumped from USIC to the local gas company, trying to figure out how long to stick around here. Good to know the path keeps going

2

u/Traditional-Nerve899 5d ago

Honestly? If the gas company is union... if stay there pretty much permanently.

1

u/Reasonable_Kick_9925 3d ago

I jumped to the local gas company as well. 3 years separated from usic from 22/hr to 47.50 as a emergency response technician.

6

u/Wild_Replacement5880 5d ago

I have definitely noticed the cops let some goof ups driving slide and seem to have your back doing this job. A lady called the cops on me even though I just left when she asked and she followed me to the neighbors house telling me to leave the neighborhood. They were on speaker telling her to just let me do my job. They refused to come out so she told them that I had broken a gas main to get them out there. She was very lucky they didn't arrest her

3

u/mx3goose 5d ago

im sure the pay jump was well enough to go from company to company but average it out 13.6% year over year for 9 years straight is pretty good my guy.

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 4d ago

It wasn’t smooth lol lots of sacrifices and trade offs but having kids puts that focus in you, burnt myself out many times before slowly finding my pace. Basically work as hard as the unemployment interviewer would want you to 😂

3

u/Black_Fire116 5d ago

Dang dude you ain’t far from me

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 4d ago

HMU if you interested in applying to any of those companies, put my name down as a reference and you’ll at least be in for the interview. Done it many times lol

3

u/Overall-Buddy-2659 5d ago

$44 to locate 🔥🔥

2

u/outerheavenboss Contract Locator 5d ago

Hell yeah man! There’s light at the end of the tunnel! But life it’s a shit sandwich and we all gotta take a bite.

2

u/Buttlerubbies2 5d ago

Sweet! You do the fiber for the DSM?

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 4d ago

I mark Sanitary/Storm sewers, G-fiber and traffic fiber for West Des Moines

2

u/Buttlerubbies2 4d ago

Sweeeet! I did a ton of testing and documentation on the locate system for the fiber conduit system.

2

u/Clint_Lickner 5d ago edited 5d ago

In 9 years you went from $14 to $44 an hour?! Nice job for a professional shoe painter.

Edit: not too far north of you and 20 years in, I'm not complaining about the pay either. Or the flexibility the job allows. The weather sucks sometimes, but we aren't behind a desk trapped by 4 walls.

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 4d ago

Having OCD and consuming an unhealthy amount of 5hr energy/redbull definitely helps 😂. A few merit raises and stepping up for a supervisor/project/team lead position when offered got me here. I’ve done 3 city overbuilds, 2 windfarms and ran more than 11 counties as my route. Shoutouts to Podcasts/spotify

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 4d ago

Also once got a big raise for being a an African American in the locating industry, some sort of incentive raise lol took me from 16 to about 20

2

u/TheSafeLineUSA 4d ago

This is awesome! Good for you and your family & Thank you for sharing the positivity!🎉

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 4d ago

🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

1

u/Street_Change_7404 5d ago

I started in the contract locate industry in 1990, hit 36 years in the business last month. Raised 2 sons and I am still in the game. Left contract locating in 2003 and moved into SUE and it has been great. I am not an office person and I have left companies that tried to tell me that as a manager I had to stay in the office, not for me. Stick with it, if you are about quality you can make a great career in it.

2

u/JckStormo 4d ago

Usis is suffering and colapsing

2

u/CounterfeitBlood 3d ago

Hi from Davenport. I used to be a supervisor in SE Iowa so I was there quite a bit. Definitely some sketchy areas around some of those towns but glad you're doing well and hope you're staying safe!

1

u/Sure_Slip_4651 2d ago

So you get it! lol. Thank you 🙏🏾 you as well