Has Edison Chouest permanently over extended itself on the back of it's employees?

I have an offer from ECO and was considering it but after reading some of the comments on this site I get the feeling I should run the other way!
Does anybody have any thoughts on this?
I understand the industry is suffering but if 1/2 of this stuff is true, how do they keep so many employees?

Private jets, Million dollar McMansions in swampland, basketball teams, vacation barges in St. Thomas, new shipyards, African hunting lodges. Instead of taking away benefits for it’s employees, why not personally cut back?

Are there any Chouest employees who can come to the defense of ECO?

Ah works for Chouest.
They is a fine company.
What you need benefits for.
Just be lucky you have a job in this economy.
Im sure Mr. Gary uses that jet and Africa hunting lodge to troll for new contracts which means jobs for us.
Ah for one thanks him!

Im not employed by ECO or defending them. Since the family is rich and already has bought and paid for all their toys, there is no practical way or reason for them to cut back on the things you mentioned. Really, no reason for them to cut back on anything.

At least you have your eyes open and can see the impurities in the orange koolaid before you decide whether to drink it. Whether you should drink it, depends upon your alternatives

[QUOTE=tugsailor;160495]Im not employed by ECO or defending them. Since the family is rich and already has bought and paid for all their toys, there is no practical way or reason for them to cut back on the things you mentioned. Really, no reason for them to cut back on anything.

At least you have your eyes open and can see the impurities in the orange koolaid before you decide whether to drink it. Whether you should drink it, depends upon your alternatives[/QUOTE]

That is a very open minded view. Thank you.
I hear they give their employees a new orange koolaide tshirt each year.
So they got that going for them!

I worked for them before. I’d look somewhere else but if you choose ECO I’d stay long enough to get your AB and then move on to a more reputable company.

You must be rich if you can afford to be picky in a job market like this. You should probably turn down the offer so somebody that needs it can have a chance.

I can only imagine you are the minority and have multiple job offers in a weak market. Either that or you are hoping to build some strife with your first ever post tothis site.

[QUOTE=gulf_engineer;160521]You must be rich if you can afford to be picky in a job market like this. You should probably turn down the offer so somebody that needs it can have a chance.[/QUOTE]

no kidding…way worse places to work than there, even with all the disgruntled folks saying the contrary.

Every company in the GoM have their flaws, no company is perfect. It depends what you want. If you want to chase the money, then Chouest isn’t your place. If you want stability then Chouest is probably your best choice.

Ya times are tough for all companies so I wouldn’t hold out very long in making your decision. And like said before, all the mansion, camps and what not the family owns, I’m sure are paid for and they are the ones that took the risks to get the company where it is. And they don’t own a basketball team anymore.

Brother,

I’ve worked at Chouest - take it from me - it is not the kind of place where you’ll get professional respect. If you think stories of engineers from the shipyard being asked to design Dionne’s mansion’s porch are myths, they’re not. Chouest survives on bleak times - lack of adequate opportunities for skilled mariners and other skilled people to jump ship - like the present scenario. The company is a revolving door and turnover rates are high. Job stability is only as long as they need you (the talk of not firing anybody in tough times is empty talk). To be fair though, since the company is a revolving door, you’ll get opportunities to work with responsibilities you normally wouldn’t get with your experience level (since a lot of your senior folk have jumped ship). But if you’d ask me to decide for you - I’d say no.

  • Arch

[QUOTE=Arch;160771]Brother,

I’ve worked at Chouest - take it from me - it is not the kind of place where you’ll get professional respect. If you think stories of engineers from the shipyard being asked to design Dionne’s mansion’s porch are myths, they’re not. Chouest survives on bleak times - lack of adequate opportunities for skilled mariners and other skilled people to jump ship - like the present scenario. The company is a revolving door and turnover rates are high. Job stability is only as long as they need you (the talk of not firing anybody in tough times is empty talk). To be fair though, since the company is a revolving door, you’ll get opportunities to work with responsibilities you normally wouldn’t get with your experience level (since a lot of your senior folk have jumped ship). But if you’d ask me to decide for you - I’d say no.

  • Arch[/QUOTE]

Thanks Arch.
Well thought out advice.

[QUOTE=The Commodore;160525]I can only imagine you are the minority and have multiple job offers in a weak market. Either that or you are hoping to build some strife with your first ever post tothis site.[/QUOTE]

Not rich but for a career move I can afford to be picky instead of stuck and miserable.
Unless you were born a Rockefeller, we all HAVE to work.
But you don’t have to work for a company that expects it’s employees to pay for the company owners excesses and poor financial planning.
All good points and thank you.
I think I will look elsewhere for a company with a better reputation.

[QUOTE=wetseaman;160930]Not rich but for a career move I can afford to be picky instead of stuck and miserable.
Unless you were born a Rockefeller, we all HAVE to work.
But you don’t have to work for a company that expects it’s employees to pay for the company owners excesses and poor financial planning.
All good points and thank you.
I think I will look elsewhere for a company with a better reputation.[/QUOTE]

It just goes to show that there are a lot of ignorant people on here and from what i have read in most of the post on here most of the people have no idea what they are talking about. I have no idea where this guy gets his info about the employees paying for the owners excesses and poor financial planning for one Edison Chouest when deepwater horizon happened were the only company in the gulf that did not lay off people but instead were hiring that means they are a good stable company and they are always building new boats and have a lifetime lease on most of fourchon they have built the new C-port 3 which has brought not only jobs for the c-port workers but also more work for boat employees. This don’t sound like to me they have poor financial planning. Edison Chouest is one of the only companies that I know of that hasn’t laid off any one on the boats but there are plenty of others that have. When oil prices dropped sure they made a few cut backs but as said in some of the other posts this is a tough time for most companies in the gulf so most of us are lucky to have a job. I have personally seen several people that have left the company to chase the proverbial greener pastures only to come right back further more there are more people at Chouest that have 15 20 and 30 years at the company than I have ever seen at any company so the revolving door must not be revolving as much as you think. Most people that leave Chouest are a bunch of complainers that don’t need to be here anyway.

[QUOTE=wetseaman;160930]I think I will look elsewhere for a company with a better reputation.[/QUOTE]

I’m not sure what you’re talking about saying Chouest has a bad reputation. What the owners do with their fortune is no one’s business and has no bearing on the company. The fact remains that Chouest is the biggest and best boat operator in the Gulf, by far.

      • Updated - - -

[QUOTE=pond;162703]Edison Chouest is one of the only companies that I know of that hasn’t laid off any one on the boats but there are plenty of others that have.[/QUOTE]

Then you haven’t been paying very good attention to their operations.

The people that work at Chouest used to be able to make the statement they have never laid off. Although this was not completely accurate, they were one of the more stable companies and still are. This downturn we are in now is serious and there have been many lay offs and just flat out terminations. This is not isolated to Chouest. Everyone is doing it. Many companies are in survival mode and there are some difficult decisions being made that affect people´s lives. I loved working at Chouest. I spent over 10 years of my career at ECO. I was happy there. My wife was happy when I was there. Things were good. Work hard, keep your head down and let´s get through this downturn. Hopefully the upswing will be better than the last Hopefully we have all learned a bit about personal finances and becoming independently wealthy from Jeaux Boss. I appreciate the opportunities I earned.

With the way the Chouest family has conducted business during this downturn, I hope they go so bankrupt that Mr. Gary has to start bagging groceries at Frank’s Supermarket!

[QUOTE=ForkandBlade;177603]With the way the Chouest family has conducted business during this downturn, I hope they go so bankrupt that Mr. Gary has to start bagging groceries at Frank’s Supermarket![/QUOTE]

Guess you’re not there anymore. Back in NY?

Wetseaman, I have been with the company for over 30 years and I have never been mistreated by them. The family are good people. If you have a problem and you feel that you need to talk to them, they will sit and talk to you. What they do with their money is there business, not yours, mine or anyone else’s. All you have to think about is that they gave you a job during these rough times.
Most of the people that are posting negative responses are probably the ones that couldn’t do the job or feels that everyone owes them something.
Mr. Gary or any of his kids don’t owe me anything. I am thankful to have a job.
And before anyone can make a comment that I am saying this is because I am from the bayou, well think again. I am not.

1 Like

[QUOTE=gomsailor66;177638]Mr. Gary or any of his kids don’t owe me anything. I am thankful to have a job.
And before anyone can make a comment that I am saying this is because I am from the bayou, well think again. I am not.[/QUOTE]

btw, what is that avatar of yours supposed to be anyway? a gnome jerking himself?

[QUOTE=ForkandBlade;177603]With the way the Chouest family has conducted business during this downturn, I hope they go so bankrupt that Mr. Gary has to start bagging groceries at Frank’s Supermarket![/QUOTE]

amen brother…A FUCKING MEN!