Disorganization and lack of Communication cause Safety Issues and Burn Out
Pros
*Benefits, *overtime, *work supplies paid for, *company vehicle, *educational experiences, *paid training, * continuing education, *career advancement Your experience with Terracon will seem like a dream for the first month, it is a very appealing job for early career geologists. They will help you get your foot in the door.
Cons
HIGH TURN OVER RATE, long days, lots of driving, unhappy staff, lack of practical safety application, poor communication, poor leadership, poor project planning. This is a burn-out job: you are a glorified mud logger. You will be tired all the time. There is no time to enjoy your benefits, and you will often be expected to be out of town with a few days notice. You do not have much time to prepare for the obscene number of jobs they take on, middle management waits for YOU to contact them to be briefed on the job. Middle management are supposed to coordinate safety and drilling, but it will often get passed off to field staff who have little time in office to prepare. You are expected to keep your chargeable hours at a certain percentage, but due to mismanagement and weather conditions you may not meet your hours. Some weeks you may get 20 hours sitting at the office, some weeks you may get 50 and drive 1000 miles. There is zero consistency in scheduling. Your days will either start at 5:00 a.m. or 9:00 a.m. depending on demand, and can last well into the night. Most of the staff are unhappy, as the new person you will have to make efforts to be welcomed into the team. There is no sense of "team" in the geo department. Field staff are often taken advantage of and asked to perform last minute obligations to meet a client's deadline. The more you say yes, the more work you will be given. You as the smallest person on the totem pole will have to stick up for yourself frequently and set boundaries. upper management is absent, checking in once a week and being largely dismissive of practical safety issues until money or corporate gets involved. They do not care about you, they care about money. Your safety is merely a liability, never be afraid to tell them no if you do not feel safe. Falling asleep while driving is a huge concern, as management will not account for the fact you have driven for 8-12 hours the day(s) prior. They do employ women in the office, but you will be treated differently (spoken to as though you are a child) than your male counterparts.
