A little bit OT: Anyone live in Nebraska?

[Doc Nickel]

An acquaintance of mine that posts regularly over on my board currently lives in Nebraska, and is continually running into extensive and systemic problems with.... well, basically the entire manufacturing sector in the state. He's posted several updates on his board/blog.

In a nutshell, and to keep this from being too long to wade through, the guy's got a clean record, married, multiple degrees, lots of experience in a range of disciplines (plastics technology, 3D printing, welding, machining, CAD/CAM, etc.) no drug use, etc. And yet he still can't find- and keep- a job.

Yeah, the dude's a bit abrasive, and while I admit I'm really only hearing his side of the story, it sounds like he's competent and dilligent.

The problem appears to stem from what's basically institutionalized graft and fraud. The manufacturers only want to hire cons on work-release, ex-cons or fresh (and possibly undocumented) immigrants- All of whom so they can pay them crap wages, neglect or remove benefits, and just generally treat them like s**t.

So: two questions: One, is that.... I guess, 'normal' for Nebraska? I mean, really, unless the guy's been spinning a lot of tales, virtually every place he's applied at has turned out to be badly-run, fraudulently run, dishonest, etc.

I'd ask why he never managed to find that one "good" company that's got to be out there, but the answer to that is simple- those companies aren't hiring. In that kind of environment, a good reputable company likely gets all the qualified applicants they ever need, and the people that work there rarely turn over. The bad ones on the other hand have massive turnover- those guys are always hiring.

The other question: Any ideas on a solution? He and his wife were basically lured there from New York on the promise of a career job, but said job turned out to be staffed by a temp agency, who habitually turns everyone over after 60 to 90 days so they don't have to pay bennies or give pay raises, etc.

And that came to light only after they'd closed on a house, bought a car, etc. and so they're effectively now financially stuck. They've been trying to sock away enough to move, but without a steady paycheck, that's been difficult.

Ideas, questions, comments?

Doc.

[nickel-city-fab]

Been going through stuff like that for most of my life. Hey, it's the American Way.
As far as promises with corporate entities (or government): get it in writing.
Most places will promise the moon and deliver something a lot less than that.
Talk is cheap -- to those whose word is worthless.

[TGTool]

Well, that's curious. It's hard to know what to believe exactly. On the one hand, I'd expect Nebraska businesses to be a lot like the same business is Iowa, South Dakota, Colorado or others. And they're ALL crooked? On the other hand, there certainly can be local patterns different than other similar locales.

I'm tempted to go with the aphorism from my first wife's family, "If you smell sh$t everywhere you turn, it's time to check your upper lip." I suspect a combination of someone who may be a difficult employee and not hearing the whole story. Still, as a struggling individual I wish him well and hope he finds something that holds body and soul together.

[SVS]

I’m in South Central NE. Curious where you’re pal is. I don’t machine for a living, but my impression is anybody worth having won’t lack for work.

[Doc Nickel]

Lincoln area, I believe. And I'd thought that too, which is partly why I posted this question.

That's also why I suggested it might be a case of where the "good" companies are in effect full up, and the ones that are actually hiring are the high-turnover not-so-good companies, because they're always hiring.

Doc.

[lynnl]

That sounds exactly like a member we had here on this board two or three years ago. He didn't hang around long, and maybe only made a small handful of postings, but all dealt essentially with what a "hell hole" he proclaimed Nebraska to be. As I recall, the predominant theme back then was just how incredibly inept everyone in Nebraska was in comparison to his many talents.

It particularly caught my attention since my last AF assignment was at Offutt AFB at Omaha, and then I stayed on out there for three more years. Naturally my exposure to business practices in that region are very limited, but based on what I did see and experience there I would say it's all bull$hit at best. Or maybe some sort of psychological issue. I just selected one input from that board/blog mentioned in post 1 above: https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/murd...ddbd89289e24ee

Here's a sample. Not the markings of a rational person, in my opinion:

Awesome, sounds like my kind of place. Drove out there, Owner meets me, shows me around the shop, has me turn a part for him on the manual lathe, we go through a CNC lathe setup and make a good part setup to finish.

He then hands me off to the HR person who tells me we'll be conducting a behavioral assessment interview to assure I am the right fit for the company. The owner looks at her and goes "Get his name and his contact information, after his drug test comes back he'll start next week midweek."

HR goes "I can't do that until I conduct a full behavioral assessment and cross reference my findings with the public records."

Owner goes "My business, you take orders from me. Are we clear how this works?"

HR closes the office door and starts in on me:

Name, date of birth, home/origin? You're from out of state? Why? Why did you move here? What was your reasoning for moving here? Are you happy here. What are you looking for or hoping to accomplish? Why Nebraska and not Rhode Island? Why did you choose your career? What makes you think you are better than the other candidates? Are you aware thinking you are better than everyone else is an inequity and incorrect thought patterns? By putting yourself ahead of other people you hurt feelings and create inequality. Are you married? To a woman or another man? How many children? Do they attend school? Have they ever been in trouble for inappropriate thoughts or behavior? Have you? What was your schooling like? Did you spend time in the psychiatrist's office for improper thinking? Were you medicated? How is your personal hygiene? Do you bathe on a regular basis? What about drinking? You strike me as the driving while intoxicated sort. No? But you think you are better than the other candidates. How do you cope with improper thought patterns on a daily basis? Are you medicated now? When was your last criminal conviction?


At this point the owner slams the door open and yells "Ok that's it you're fired. I told you not to do this ****, I hired you to conduct interviews, not whatever the hell you are doing. Your JOB is to get his personal information have him fill out the papers and schedule a drug test. This is the third person you've done this to and you no longer work here."

She goes "You can't fire me, even with cause. I will bring charges against you and ruin you."

Owner's wife comes in and states "You're 60 miles from the nearest state patrol and people vanish out here all the time never to be seen again. Now pick up your car keys and leave, or you will end up in a world of hurt your college-****head upbringing never prepared you for. "

HR gets up, shaking and making threats under her breath, and leaves.

Owner apologizes, so does his wife. They hired an HR "helper" to keep the paperwork in order and this is the third time she's tried to interrogate people like this. The other two people got up and left.

I told them I was getting up and leaving too -- one I don't appreciate driving 60 miles to be asked if I bathe on a regular basis and questioned about my behavior as a child. On top of that I just witnessed your wife threatening to axe-murder someone.

The wife laughs and goes "Actually we got a ribbon mixer, lot easier."

That's when I said "I should introduce you to MY wife, murder is her #1 hobby besides welding and 'chickens'."

Shook hands with the owner, told him I would be sending him a bill for the time spent running his machines -- he declined and paid me for an 8-hour shift on the spot

[SVS]

Wow.....

[nickel-city-fab]

Without really knowing how it is in your area, I couldn't really say. In my area, it is an employers paradise and they get away with a lot that they would not get away with if people around here weren't so desperate, because it's the Rust Belt.

On the other hand to play the devils advocate, it sounds like your buddy might be a bit of an ass. There's a saying I've been using for years in regards to personnel issues: "Big noise, tiny balls"

Guys that actually have been there and done that, don't need to say much. It's all on their resume and their reputation precedes them.

[Erich]

One thing I always told my son when he complained about teachers and others hating on him. "YOU are the common denominator in all of your problems" At 23 now he gets it.

[J Tiers]

Someone posted in another thread referring to the probable answer if it seems that you are right and the world is wrong..... Usually that means it is time to re-evaluate your attitude and opinions. Once in a while you really ARE right, but......

So especially when I see the comments about fraud, and collusion, etc, I begin to think this is a guy to put on the black list.

When I see the guy's FRIEND suggesting that "well, he is a little abrasive"..... yeah, I begin to suspect the guy is somewhere down in the 36 grit area.

I do NOT know this man, and I have NO evidence other than what I read here of anything to do with him. I could be wrong totally. But there appears to be a problem with the smell test.

[wierdscience]

Seen more than one example of this, the guy that's ten feet tall and smarter than God himself. He'll do anything, except put in an honest 40 hour week. Give him a bar of Gold and he'd b*tch about it being heavy. It is a mental disorder, cut your loses and move on.

Oh, and the clue that it's bull shidt is the very first sentence - "Drove out to a very small machine shop in farm country" Very small machine shops out in farm country don't have HR departments.

[ed_h]

I've spent my entire career in Nebraska, all technical jobs, and some of it in manufacturing, and i call BS on this.

I remember Mr McGrumpy's posts from a few years ago, and participated in the thread. He described a series of seven rotten Nebraska employers in a row he worked for.

Here's that thread. Start at about post #26. https://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/fo...s-doomed/page2

Mr McGrumpy himself seems to be the common denominator in his string of bad employment gigs.

Ed

[nickel-city-fab]

I've spent my entire career in Nebraska, all technical jobs, and some of it in manufacturing, and i call BS on this.

I remember Mr McGrumpy's posts from a few years ago, and participated in the thread. He described a series of seven rotten Nebraska employers in a row he worked for.

Here's that thread. Start at about post #26. https://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/fo...s-doomed/page2

Mr McGrumpy himself seems to be the common denominator in his string of bad employment gigs.

Ed

Wow. I was unaware of this. Thanks for the heads-up!

[OaklandGB]

I've been retired for almost 2 years, and things might have changed, but I believe that almost all of the HR person's questions are illegal under Federal law. As a department Director in the company I worked for, had I allowed that kind of questioning to occur, I and the HR person would have been fired immediately.

[J Tiers]

I've been retired for almost 2 years, and things might have changed, but I believe that almost all of the HR person's questions are illegal under Federal law. As a department Director in the company I worked for, had I allowed that kind of questioning to occur, I and the HR person would have been fired immediately.

To the best of my knowledge, you are 100% correct about the questions.

Which is probably why the story was told that way, the teller knows that also. I think it is a pile of dog****, actually, that it never happened.