am i getting ripped off?

[elorenz]

I work in a machine shop w 15 other guys in Ohio making plastic parts for a lot or companies including D.O.D. Companies. I run a Haas vf2(only guy in shop who knows how to run a mill) I do my own cad work write my own programs set up the machine check dimensions make any adjustments make my own fixtures and can grind tools if needed. I would say its about 50/50 between doing second op jobs for the lathes and making completed parts on the mill.

I'm the only one here with any kind of college education (AAS in mechanical engineering tech) and ill have bachelors in a year I started out at $8 5 yearsAgo and worked my way up to 13. And the guys they've recently been hiring are all starting out at around 12-13 / hour and I usually have to train them on cad and programming for weeks.

Everyone here makes 13 Bucks an hour now. No matter if there on the screw machines cnc lathes or manual lathes we all make the same. Even the useless bastard that that just sweepw floor cuts up material and calibrates our Mics makes 13.

So I'm just looking for some opinions of whether or not you guys think I should be paid more or the others should be paid less because I feel like I'm getting the shaft making the same amount as the other guys here.

[Dennis Bohlke]

It's time to move on... Your working for a socialist if everyone makes the same.

If everyone is worth the same, they won't miss you any more or less then the floor sweeper when you are gone.

Just my off the cuff thoughts.

Dennis
www.super-tech.com

[MrWild]

Start looking. You should be at or over $18.

[laszlozoltan]

it is important to push yourself to learn new things than just settling in. although your area may have few stable shops hiring, you do owe it to yourself to try to find something more challenging and make a few bucks more in the process. Even if you are offered more money in compensation, there is still a lot more to learn from other experienced machinists at other shops- that can prove to be invaluable in years to come. move on if you can.

[ahunter9624]

i learned a valuable lesson on my first day of my current job. That is NEVER SELL YOURSELF SHORT!!!!!! I accepted his offer of $11 and hr when i wanted $13 because i was young and nieve. i was still making more than before but wasn't were i thought i should be. Less than a year later i told the owner i wanted to take over all programing and machine operations and wanted a $7 and hr raise. I told him i could justify every penny and he gave it to me.

Before you just up and leave you should ask yourself if you like your job and how far you want to go in that company and if thats achievable you need to tell your boss how you feel and tell him what its going to take to please you. If you're as good of an employee as you sound you'll get your money.

[elorenz]

the job is nice the boss is lenient and he lets me work odd ball hours so i can still go to school. thats about the only positive thing about the job. theres really no were for me to go up in the job. all we have are machinists designated to there specific area(milling, llathes, screw machines, drill presses) and packaging department and and office people. there arent any foremans or anything like that.

2 years ago my boss came and asked me if i was planning on staying there after i graduated college and i told him i wasnt spending thousands of dollars and 4 years of my time to run a mill for the rest of my life. then he went on to explain how he wants to expand and open up more positions for tool designers and engineers and things like that. he was on a 5 year plan and so far i havent seen one single step towards this plan and im still just sittin on the mill so if he remembers that conversation then he knows what i plan to do.

as soon as i graduate im gettin the hell outa there unless im making enough money to make me happy. i barely get by on my truck and motorcycle payment, insurance, apartment, and food. Plus im expected start paying off school after i graduate... theres no way i can afford that on 13 an hour. and i didnt get any kind of raise when i got my associates...no one has had raises in over a year.

[mactec54]

elorenz

You are not being payed enough for what you are doing, are you doing 40hours or less,This could be the problem, Your boss is treating you like a part timer if you are not doing a 40hour week or more, make sure you have another job before you leave

[elorenz]

Originally Posted by mactec54 elorenz You are not being payed enough for what you are doing, are you doing 40hours or less,This could be the problem, Your boss is treating you like a part timer if you are not doing a 40hour week or more, make sure you have another job before you leave

no im working a minimum of 40 hours a week. i work 45 hours most of the time sometimes more sometimes less but im full time i always work atleast 40 hours no matter what.

[MrWild]

Oh man.... bye bye baby goodbye.

[MBG]

If you are in school stay in there. If you are able to study even better. Finish your degree up. I am doing the same I have 1 year left of mechanical engineering. Stay in school finish it then worry about your pay.

[ahunter9624]

I think you should stay through school and then make your move. You may ask your boss how that five yr plan is going and see what he says. Have you asked for a raise? If you haven't tried you should. Whats the worse that could happen? He says no you still make $13 an hr.

Just remember what i said when you start your next job. Don't sell yourself short. If you think you deserve 20 an hr don't take less. You can't be mad at your boss for paying you $13 an hr because you agreed to that wage. Alway get promises and plans on paper so you have something to fall back on. If you ask to put it on paper and they get mad then they obviously are full of it.

Another thing i notice about people in general and not you in particular is that they worry about what the guy next to them makes and sometimes get pissy about it. You are responsible for making your own deals with your employer. You can't be madat a guy if he started at $5 and hr higher than you. You should be mad at yourself for not getting that for yourself.

either way i think you need to move on soon. But remember to take care of yourself and don't worry about what someone else makes. Its not his fault he makes more, its your fault you make less. You agree to $13 an hr and go to work every single day. Go get em and good luck. Hope you get the money you deserve.

[neutronics]

Those are China wages. I say move on. You'll be glad you did. Having said that, the job climate is a bit sketchy now so be prepared to look for several months. In the meantime keep performing at your current gig; you don't want to lose that job while you look, and if/when you accept a new offer you'll have more leverage for a counter from your current employer - assuming you'd want to stay.