r/Plumbing • u/CorvusNyxian • Aug 01 '21
Looking to make a career change and want to know about work/life balance in plumbing
I'm a 32 year old man looking into possibly changing career tracks to be a plumber, and I have a specific question not covered by the FAQ.
My background: I'm suffering from burnout in my current career track in broadcast. I'm salaried for low pay and overworked in a high stress industry that offers too few good opportunities too rarely to laterally move. The company I work for is poorly organized, with a boss who says yes to everything, and little to no resources or support to get the job done right. And, because I'm not someone who does things half-assed, they're exploiting my sense of professionalism, stretching my salary thinner and thinner with long hours and weekends to make up for their chaos. Promises were made to hire more people to cover all the added responsibilities given to me (haven't seen a raise in 2 years, not even for inflation), but until they're actually followed through on, they're pie-in-the-sky.
Right now, the practical advantage of my job is working flex time. Depending on my workload in quiet times, I'm often allowed to go home early, or come in late the next day. A nice perk, but considering how stressed I feel, it doesn't feel like it's enough, and my mental health is taking a beating wondering when I'm suddenly going to be offloaded a pile of work with a tight deadline, with no vision or help to finish it. I'm dreading August. There's 2 to 3 weeks where I'll likely be working around the clock on a couple of high-stakes projects, doing a good chunk of it without the support I need, and because I'm salaried, the only compensation I'll get are flex days off in the future, when it's convenient for the company.
I'm looking at plumbing as an option because the trades offer some of my basic needs: stability (at least in comparison to my current field), flexibility, challenge, good pay, useful skills, enough variety to not get tedious, and I get to work with my hands. I have a lot of respect for plumbers: my grandfather was a damn good one. But like any career, part of it is accepting the bad with the good: I'm careful about safety precautions to protect my body (part of my job is labour intensive, working camera, moving furniture on sets, and lifting 200 lbs road cases, so I make sure my gloves are on, my back is straight and my legs do the heavy lifting), and I don't give a damn about getting dirty. But it's the question of work/life balance that's hanging me up.
What's the work/life balance like in plumbing? I don't mind working weird or long hours, as long as I'm getting compensated properly for it. But I want time to spend with my partner, family, friends, etc., and on my hobbies. Down time is as important as anything for a healthy life, and I've had my fill of 60-80 hour weeks with nothing to show for it but migraines, tension, and constant stress. I don't want to rush headfirst into another career track with my eyes shut.
2
u/onhereimJim Aug 01 '21
Yea I hear you. Well good luck I hope it works out.