I now know there are far worse things than unemployment. Hello Dear Readers, yours truly, Ushiku Person, has finally found some temporary and unstable work as a highly unskilled drone at Ambrake - a Japanese manufacturer of automobile brakes. This Fourth-Circle of Hell is everything you could wish for: kitsui, kitanai and kiken (difficult, dirty and dangerous - the perfect 3K job!). Yesterday, one of the countless job agencies I registered with called me at one o'clock and offered me this gem (start time: 3:00 p.m.). I stand in a glassed-in box, surrounded by machinery, assembling two kinds of shims, placing these shims on a carrier, and placing these carriers onto a feed tree on the machine in front of me, while simultaneously also feeding brake pads into the same machine. I also have to replenish the myriad of metal and plastic parts that must be feed into the machines to my left and right respectively. I have to maintain a steady rate of production, while also running back and forth to the supply door to get fresh expendibles (and marking these on the correct forms). It isn't rocket science, but I have to really concentrate to keep all these things flowing - last night, being my first time, wasn't particularly fun, but I kept my head down, my ears open and my mouth shut. It is so loud that I can barely hear my co-workers - which doesn't really matter since I'm physically seperated from them by a bank of machinery, and they don't wish to associate with me because I'm only a temp anyways. I have to wear special rubber gloves to protect my hands from all the sharp edges and greasy dirty stuff (these gloves are actually quite amazing; they are relatively thin, so I have decent tactile feel, but still strong enough so that I can work with sharp metal bits and heavy boxes without tearing). There is no slacking off at all in this job - I had to really bust my keister to keep on par with the material demands. It all depends on the operator - most keep a steady rate, but one veteran woman, whose rate of production is phenominal, had me hopping around for two hours straight just trying to keep the bare minimum of supplies rolling in -whew!- She nearly killed me! Right now I'm trying to psyche myself up for Day Two. I'm not looking forward to this, but it is a matter of pride that I at least try to finish a full week here. I have done this kind of work before, but I had kinda hoped that by this stage in my life I would have found something slightly better (what was point to going to university?).
UPDATE: I just called my employment agency and explained that, for $6.00 an hour (before taxes), this job really wasn't my cup of tea. I told them that I would be happy to finish out the week (to include the weekend, because at Ambrake they do regularly work seven-day work weeks...), but on Monday I would appreciate if they could find me something just a little better. They seemed thrilled that I even bothered to call in and give them a heads-up (this job is so unstable that you have to give a two day notice before quitting... wha...?). Heck, if I waited tables at Dennys at least I'd get tips...
2 comments:
You have my respect. If you can stick out a whole week I'll be on my knees bowing my head right down to ground in sincere admiration. Never let it be said that you don't have the guts and determination to do something with your life. Surely it is only a matter of time before the tide changes and everthing starts to click...
Thanks Alex! Ah, my friend, as I enter Day Three, I wonder how I will get through another shift. Last night was so painful (literally). I'm reasonably fit - I run, do push ups and sit ups, and stretch everyday - but after this job I'm sore all over the place (maybe because I have to stand in a hunched over position for hours on end). I definitely want to get back to the white-collared world as soon as possible. Maybe tomorrow I'll get a call. Maybe next week? All I can do is keep plugging away and hope.
Post a Comment