I have had this sitting as a draft for the past year and haven’t quite had the courage to post it, until now. Here goes nothing…
There is an ongoing debate in Alberta, Canada and the world about the impact of oilsands developments on the environment. I’m not going to participate in this debate. I’m going to tell you about life in the oilsands and I’m going to tell you about the people who work here…and I’m going to ramble.
Although I’m not an employee of any of the major oilsands giants, I work for a contractor that is frequently called upon to work in the oilsands. I can only comment on the world I know, construction.
Last year, I worked a special project with unique hours (a shutdown). My work day started at 7 am and went to 8 pm. My shift ran for 18 days straight, with 3 days off at the end of that shift. I stayed in a work camp 20 minutes away by van. Although it was quite nice (Blacksand Executive Lodge), it’s not home. Incidentally, if a search brings you to this blog looking for information on the Blacksand Lodge, I have some suggestions: bring slippers, spare laces, metamucil…the food is good, but there’s not a lot of fibre. The work day went something like this: wake up at 5 am, shower, change, and head to the dining room for breakfast. The work van leaves at 6:10 am from the camp and gets to the job site at approximately 6:40 am. Being staff, I don’t really get a defined coffee break, but the tradespeople take 15 minute coffee breaks at 10:30 am, 4 pm, and 6 pm. A 30 minute lunch is taken at 1 pm. The van takes everyone back to camp at 8:05 pm. As soon as the van arrives at camp, everyone piles out and heads straight for the dining room for dinner. After dinner, some people pack a lunch from the “lunch preparation area”, otherwise, people head back to their rooms to try to squeeze in as much sleep before the cycle repeats itself.
That’s the way things went from day 1 to day 18. 13 hour work days. Don’t feel sorry for me, I was well compensated..but this isn’t about me, this is about the people I work with and the people I work for, and the people who worked for me.
Trevor (not his real name) has worked in the trades for over 25 years as a boilermaker. He enjoys the adrenaline filled world of the shutdown. Incidentally, a shutdown, as its name suggests, is when a facility (or part of a facility) is shutdown for maintenance purposes. Keeping to the schedule is critical for a shutdown so an immense amount of planning is involved. Trevor is a master at creating a detailed plan and then executing that plan down to the last hour. People enjoy working for him and while he can be “loud”, he appreciates the people who work for him and makes sure they are adequately recognized. Trevor has an extremely patient wife who has supported him and together, they have raised a son and a daughter. Trevor takes particular enjoyment from mentoring new people starting out in the trades although he laments the lack of new people starting in the trades. In his free time he enjoys boating, renovating (again, and again and again…) and travelling with his family.
Bob is another tradesman who climbed the ladder to superintendent. A superintendent is the person ultimately responsible for the direction of the work force. Typically, they come from a trades background and are usually card-carrying union members (not always the case…this is my experience). Bob dropped out of university to pursue a career as a pipefitter because he was “bored with university”. Gruff and intimidating, he could easily be dismissed as a “dumb construction worker”, but his exterior belies a staggering intellect. I have been witness to people underestimating Bob’s intelligence, and I’m glad I’ve been there to watch…it’s quite humorous! Bob is near retirement and plans to keep busy doing odd jobs, coaching little league baseball and doing a lot of golfing. When he retires, I will miss working with him.
Fred is from “out east” as are several workers in Fort McMurray. He has worked in the trades as an ironworker for over 25 years. Far from yearning for “the good old days” where ironworkers could climb and walk steel without fall protection, he says the old days were brutally hard and ironworkers today can have longer, pain-free careers. He loves his trade, and has worked in the oilsands for most of his career. He is well paid, but says if he could start all over again he would take half the pay if he could be home every night. Fred would call his daughter every evening in camp and they would talk about their days (he usually called from the camp dinner table…bad manners), he would ask her about her boyfriend, remind her to study and he would always tell her he loved her. I enjoyed working with Fred.
Trevor, Bob and Fred work in the oilsands. They are tradespeople: boilermaker, pipefitter and ironworker. They enjoy their work and respect the skilled trades. I respect the skilled trades as well and I respect Trevor, Bob and Fred.
If you are opposed to oilsands development, consider the message you are trying to convey. Are you trying to say to Trevor, Bob and Fred that you don’t respect them? Are you trying to tell them that they are evil? Or are you trying to say that you would like to see if more sustainable work could be found for the skilled trades in Alberta?
The Universal Chan 