lol cap, that guy was an all- conference division-1 chouest apologist at one point
[QUOTE=z-drive;177641]lol cap, that guy was an all- conference division-1 chouest apologist at one point[/QUOTE]
which makes his words of condemnation of don Vito Chouest all that much sweeter to read
glorious music!
.
The guy was very glad to leave about $600 a day at a UNION NY tug company with vintage equipment, and go to Brazil for ECO at $1,000 a day with new quality equipment. Who wouldnāt be? Who wouldnāt then have a few good words for Chouest?
Now he is understandably pissed that after only a year or so, he got downsized out of ECO at $1,000 a day. Like we have heard from so many others, ECO was not very nice about the way they gave so many people the boot. Who wouldnāt be pissed?
He is probably back with the union tug company again at $600. Not the worst thing in the world, but a big step backwards.
The people who have been with Chouest for 20 years or more are different. They have seniority. They have stuck with the company through previous downturns. They have a lot of experience eating the Chouest shit sandwiches and have been doing it for so long that they actually enjoy it. They are still employed on good equipment at about the same day rate as the union tug companies. All things considered, they have nothing to complain about.
Apparently Iām āThe Guyā and my complaint with Chouestās practices involve things like driving to the airport in late June, getting ran over by a semi, missing a full 4 week hitch. Jumping through their process of getting a return to work, my doctor cleared me in 10 days, but it took another couple weeks for FMS (Choustās medical facility) to clear me. In doing so, I didnāt qualify for short or long term disabilityā¦which is no big significance. The dirty habits Iām referring to, is after the fact, I couldnāt get a return phone call or email from the coordinator or his assistant, so not knowing if I still had a job or not. Waited to late August and took another job back in the Northeast, only to find out that Chouest had canceled my medical insurance in MAY (my accident on my way to fly to Brazil was in late June and I continued to pay insurance premiums). Iām not the only employee that got the runaround by Chouest. Thereās some major illegal furloughs taking place, and they donāt have the decency to give a straight answer.Stealing the 401k match was another dirty tactic, the employees contributed with the expectation of that match.
As far as not being able to do the jobā¦well Iāve excelled everywhere Iāve ever went and Iāll put my record against anyone. I took the offer that Chouest gave me and made the jump to OSVāsā¦holding up my end of the deal. Chouest on the other hand, their now reputation speaks for itself! The irony to it all, after almost 3 months of sitting around not knowing if I had a job, they had the audacity to call me back in September saying they needed me in a hurry in the Gulf because someone got hurt.
Everything wasnāt bad at Chouest, I walked away with diesel electric experience, worked foreign, took some free classes, two more big license upgrades, and a decent savings. Their practices during this downturn though, well they just showed who they really are! Previous, there wasnāt a more staunch supporter of the orange fleetā¦Iām eating humble pie on that one!
And yes Iām back in the Northeast with a pretty easy retirement gig. I happened to land on my feet decently, and hope that all my friends who faced the same downturn struggles do to! When I hear jealous and miserable morons complain about guys coming back, driving down wages, or making their comments about how the companies wonāt hire the guys backā¦obviously Iām going to call BS on that, because they are false statements. You should worry more about Vane and Kirby driving your wages down over a few āmudboatā engineers coming back. Havenāt seen the first gripe about some of the former Kirby boats that were union jobs, sporting the Vane colors in NY Harbor.
[QUOTE=ForkandBlade;177654]And yes Iām back in the Northeast with a pretty easy retirement gig. I happened to land on my feet decently, and hope that all my friends who faced the same downturn struggles do to! When I hear jealous and miserable morons complain about guys coming back, driving down wages, or making their comments about how the companies wonāt hire the guys backā¦obviously Iām going to call BS on that, because they are false statements. You should worry more about Vane and Kirby driving your wages down over a few āmudboatā engineers coming back. Havenāt seen the first gripe about some of the former Kirby boats that were union jobs, sporting the Vane colors in NY Harbor.[/QUOTE]
obviously engineers can cross between sectors more easily than deck officers because machinery is machinery and they donāt need recency in certain waters plus there is always a demand for a good engineer anywhere.
I am just glad to see someone who sees the reality that the GoM Bosses treat their mariners like chattel and is now willing to speak to their opinions for which I thank you for your words against Jeaux. We need more men like you!
Iām glad you told it how it is. I will say about them not hiring back guys who left, where it IS happening itās over company loyalty, not ability to do the job or not. I just know certain companies are hesitant to hire a mate back who bailed with the expectation that they may have to promote that guy to captain someday; theyāre hesitant to have someone like that represent their name. Thatās all.
[QUOTE=ForkandBlade;177654]Apparently Iām āThe Guyā and my complaint with Chouestās practices involve things like driving to the airport in late June, getting ran over by a semi, missing a full 4 week hitch. Jumping through their process of getting a return to work, my doctor cleared me in 10 days, but it took another couple weeks for FMS (Choustās medical facility) to clear me. In doing so, I didnāt qualify for short or long term disabilityā¦which is no big significance. The dirty habits Iām referring to, is after the fact, I couldnāt get a return phone call or email from the coordinator or his assistant, so not knowing if I still had a job or not. Waited to late August and took another job back in the Northeast, only to find out that Chouest had canceled my medical insurance in MAY (my accident on my way to fly to Brazil was in late June and I continued to pay insurance premiums). Iām not the only employee that got the runaround by Chouest. Thereās some major illegal furloughs taking place, and they donāt have the decency to give a straight answer.Stealing the 401k match was another dirty tactic, the employees contributed with the expectation of that match.
As far as not being able to do the jobā¦well Iāve excelled everywhere Iāve ever went and Iāll put my record against anyone. I took the offer that Chouest gave me and made the jump to OSVāsā¦holding up my end of the deal. Chouest on the other hand, their now reputation speaks for itself! The irony to it all, after almost 3 months of sitting around not knowing if I had a job, they had the audacity to call me back in September saying they needed me in a hurry in the Gulf because someone got hurt.
Everything wasnāt bad at Chouest, I walked away with diesel electric experience, worked foreign, took some free classes, two more big license upgrades, and a decent savings. Their practices during this downturn though, well they just showed who they really are! Previous, there wasnāt a more staunch supporter of the orange fleetā¦Iām eating humble pie on that one!
And yes Iām back in the Northeast with a pretty easy retirement gig. I happened to land on my feet decently, and hope that all my friends who faced the same downturn struggles do to! When I hear jealous and miserable morons complain about guys coming back, driving down wages, or making their comments about how the companies wonāt hire the guys backā¦obviously Iām going to call BS on that, because they are false statements. You should worry more about Vane and Kirby driving your wages down over a few āmudboatā engineers coming back. Havenāt seen the first gripe about some of the former Kirby boats that were union jobs, sporting the Vane colors in NY Harbor.[/QUOTE]
Iām very sorry to hear that you were treated so badly at Chouest. Terminating someone for getting hurt on the way to the airport (in they service of the employer and ship), then cancelling their medical insurance, and not even telling them, ought to be a serious crime (probably is a crime in most states over 500 miles from Louisiana). The ridiculous Chouest physical exams also ought to be illegal. Obviously, Chouest saw your on the job injury as just an opportunity to thin the heard without having to pay any unemployment. The worst thing is, this kind of outrageous employer behavior is not unique to Chouest, itās the typical attitude toward employees in the Gulf.
Like most guys with a lot of experience, known skills, and good contacts, you had no problem coming back to the trade you worked in before. No surprise there. Good for you.
I donāt have any problem with anyone pursuing better opportunities, or going back to whatever they were doing before if it does not work out. Thatās their choice and their right.
There is no surplus of skilled licensed engineers; there is still a shortage. There is no great surplus of guys who can actually run a tugboat, but there is an overabundance of guys who are licensed to run a tugboat.
I do not know much about the companies or working conditions in the Northeast. Apparently, most of the tug and barge work Northeast is pushing large oil barges that require regency. That is a lot less of an issue on the West Coast.
I certainly agree that the very large, far too big, companies with āSouthern attitudes,ā like Kirby, are an absolute curse on the tugboat business everywhere they go.