Looking for work?
 

Just a heads up. If you dont have anything holding you back (family) dont mind working in less then ideal conditions (sometimes down to -40) dont mind working long hours (12 hour days, 7 days a week for up to 3 weeks at a time). Look into heading up north this fall.

Everything I have heard is this fall is looking to be a repeat of 2004-2006.
As an example back then ppl would be going to Fort St John, applying at one place, walking across the street to another and in that time being offered a job.
If you dont really have any skills at all you can be looking at making around $2k a week. That would be to start. If you prove you arent an idiot and a hard worker you can be looking at $2500-3000/wk within a couple of weeks.
If you get class 1, tickets to drive machines or have a trade you will make a lot more then that.

The courses you need to get on site will cost around $500 and cold weather gear you could most likely get away with another $500 to start. Its hard work. You most likely wont like it but if you are young and just want to make a bunch of cash its something to seriously look into.
I'm heading up to Fort Mac in a couple of weeks to get started (I've got an in through a buddies mom). Everything I have heard is its gonna get crazy. Hell even this last winter the company I'm working for in Calgary had a crew of 35 ppl working for them when usually they have 5 (they had up to 15 at one point in 2006) so its really picking up. Anytime oil goes over $75 a barrel they start doing a lot of work in Canada. With it being around $100 right now and going up you can expect things to just get better.

If you have any questions feel free to ask.

These are the courses you will need to be able to work on site.

H2S Alive aka sour gas - http://enform.ca/courses/CourseDetai...c1cef054a00000

Petroleum Safety training (you will need the construction safety addon to work in both Alberta and BC... its free for the addons so take them) - http://enform.ca/courses/CourseDetai...c1cef0540c0100

And first aid. If you are interested talk to Enform about what course is required since it is different between BC and Alberta.

if you get hired there will be other ones you have to take but the companies pay for those. If you are a good worker the companies will pay for whatever courses you need in order to do the job they want you to do.

Edit:
http://enform.ca/media/3359/interpro...quirements.pdf

This shows you what is needed for First Aid by province

If you can get into a camp that is ideal since you dont have any expenses while you are working.

http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/a...0707001051.jpg

TV and wireless internet...
http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/a...0707001727.jpg

Just grab what you want in the morning for lunch/breaks. There are also sandwiches. Breakfast and dinner is also covered but that is a hot meal.
http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/a...0707001041.jpg

http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/a...707001808c.jpg

http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/a...707001808b.jpg

The guy that took these pics only took this cuz he didnt want to get punched in the face by the ppl lifting. The gym is "decent" from what I've heard.
http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/a...0707001808.jpg

No doubt, I have a buddy who was spinning his wheels here, at 30 he had to move back home and was sleeping on his moms couch. He never had a decent job and basically he had done nothing with his life. He took a bus to Grand Prairie with nothing more then a backpack. Fast forward about 7 years, he owns a new house, new truck, snowmobile and whatever other toys he wants.

Not for everyone without a doubt but there is lots of money to be made if you're willing to uproot and steer away from the pitfalls that many up there fall into, booze, drugs and gambling.

My buddy doesn't even work on the rigs or do hard manual labor. He drives around in a company truck and takes oil samples. He might drive 7 hours one way, get out the truck for 20 mins take a sample, jump back in and drive 7 hours home. Some spots he might have to get flown in by helicopter, he says it's boring sometimes but pretty damm easy.

If I didn't have a home, wife and kid here I'd probably go.

This is good advice.

The Oil and Gas companies are really gearing up their projects in anticipation of oil remaining steady at $100+. Money is really flowing again in the Peace Region and up in Fort Mac.

It's brutal work, but where else can a high school grad with no post secondary clear 10K+ net a month?

If you a degree or a trade, now is also the time to head up North or get on with an O&G company in Calgary/Edm/Vancouver. Most contractors on these projects clear over $1000/day.

I'm just curious, when you guys say tough work what exactly does that mean?
Tough work as in long hours and you're constantly moving or tough work as in you're lifting heavy objects pushing barrows etc.

or is it all of the above? So if you're not a bigger guy (ie. at least 5'10" 170lbs) these jobs would not be ideal for you?

Watch Licence to drill on Discovery at 12pm today
that'll give you an idea of what to expect

where can i apply for this job?

are there any articulated rock trucks up there that need a seat filled? I dont know if that course would qualify me for a D888 but Im a trained and certified rock truck operator

I think its mostly a mental thing. You are in the middle of nowhere working long hours for 2-3 weeks at a time. Most companies are pretty big on safety (if there is an accident that the ambulance has to come out for they will also send out WCB which in turn shuts down the site and will also most likely drug/alcohol test everyone on site) so you wont be doing anything that you should get hurt since it costs the company a lot of money.

Its not just one company. If you do a job search for Fort St John and look up oil you should be able to find stuff. At the same time you have a much better chance of getting work if you actually go up there for a couple of days and start applying. They might quickly scan online applications but unless yours really stands out they are gonna hire the guy that made the effort to actually go up there to find work.

I'm not sure. I will talk to someone on Monday and find out where to start on something like that. That might be more of a mining thing (which also is the same type of deal as oil... good money).. Its either mining or construction that you would be looking into.

http://www.rigtech.ca/index.html

Here is a good place to start researching. It sorta gives you an idea what to expect. What you need for certain positions and also contacts for companies.

Those camps are "temporary accommodation sites" right? Looks very similar (but much better..wifi & tv) to the ones I had to stay in Whistler for the Olympics last year.

Personally, as much as rig work sounds enticing with the quick money, I'd pick something that can give you a career. To me, job satisfaction, security, benefits and a pension is more important than money. I can't see myself working those crazy hours in one of the worst locations in Alberta. To others the money is worth it I guess....

Hey P2K,

Thanks and appreciate you sharing bro!

Will definitely look into this if I ever get laid off. I don't mind roughneck work especially with the pay. All the best up there and stay safe. Just don't get messed with drugs/alcohol due to boredom. Haha.

Someone offered me that much money I would slap them in the face.

I wouldn't even get out of bed for 1000$/day.

Edit: On a more serious note, the reason for the crazy boom in drilling during 2002-2006 was in actual fact due to the price of NG which tanked in 2006/2007 and is still in the shitter, so don't expect drilling to go too wild.

Now having said that there is a lot of oil related work coming up in the wood buffalo region.

http://www.energy.alberta.ca/LandAcc...s_Projects.pdf

Look at the status of most of those projects... it's going to be crazy in the next 2-6 years. I've also got some more detailed project forecasts that I'm not legally aloud to post online :(, which describe in great detail the status of all projects, costs, man hours, etc. The competition for resources will be brutal due to conflicting project construction schedules.

Edit #2: That camp sucks, you wouldn't believe some of the camps I've stayed at :D

One of my buddies is a pipefitter now thanks to working on the rigs. He did his 4 years in the field making a ton of money and now works in town fully ticketed.
Sure there are jobs that wont get you anywhere other then working in oil but there are also jobs that will get you an apprenticeship which once you are done you can use anywhere. Its not for everyone obviously but the way I see it is to spend a couple years you can come out with 3-4x more money then you would working in town which could pretty much set you up for life if you are smart.

I'm planning on taking the time I'm not working to hit the gym hard and do some online courses/work on some projects. I'm not planning on making this a career. Just a way to make the money to help get me to the point where I want to be.

I just found those pics online and are a couple years old. I've heard some of the camps are like resorts now... haha

At least in Northern Alberta a lot of work is done in the oil sands. With oil being where it is it is very profitable to do work there. I believe anything over $75 a barrel they make money.

Depending on the facility it varies quite a bit, the older strip mining plants like syncrude and suncor require about 23$/Barrel to cover basic operating and overhead costs. (According to them anyway...)

Strip mining is certainly at this point the most cost effective method of oil sands crude recovery, and as such the cheapest to operate. Lately though it seems there are more and more in-situ projects using the steam assisted gravity drainage technique for recovery which is more expensive (At this time), but allows recovery of deeper resources and with less "visible" environmental impact.

Good luck finding work @ the rigs right now. We are shutting down at the end of the month.

or watch Fubar 2

There is more to the industry then just working on the rigs. Yes break up is right now but that doesnt last that long and then its back to work.
Some projects do require everything to be frozen though. Not all.

this is good if you absolutely have nothing to do and can just drop everything to leave for quick cash...even if it stays at 100/barrel i don't see this being long-term at all.

Great, tons of quick cash but in the end is it worth it working 2-3 weeks without any days off, 12 hours each day?

but good for you OP for let people know there are opportunities out there if you need the cash.

^once you get into it, it's fine.

It's more accepting the lifestyle change. Yes, you're gone for 3 weeks at a time but if you're gone anyways, 12 hour shifts are no big deal since there's not much else to do..and it's not like you're not getting a few breaks in there. Plus the week you're home...you're home. No worrying about work the next day, you can work on projects, hell you can go on vacation, no problem. Here you're at work for 8.5 hours + 1hr commute, what's another 2 hours of work - it's probably really close by also.

Some people worry about what happens at home while you're gone. It's just another thing you have to accept - same as life before the internet and cell phones, etc.

If you don't have a drug, alcohol or major gambling problem and can hack the conditions, a few years of hard work is a small sacrifice to get your own place and still have money left over. To many, it's worth it.

Some people dont have the luxury of living in their parents basement while they soul search figuring out what career path to pretend to find. Some people need to goto work and make alot of money right now.

The rigs are a fantastic way of getting yourself set up if you can put in a couple seasons without getting sucked in. I know lots of guys coming out after a year or 2 with enough money to start a business, huge down payment a house, etc. I would be so much farther ahead had I gone up before I started my company like I intended to. a $50k business start up fund sure woulda been nice. The flip side is I also know guys who are stuck in the cycle of having made big money, and carelessly bought big toys which require them to keep going up to manage big payments.

It definitely isnt for everyone tho. That kind of work is for men not little boys who are afraid to get their hands dirty. If you've never worked hard in your life, dont even think about going up. Because you usually have to do 14-21 days in a row of 10-12 hour shifts. And as they say, drilling happens in two seasons. -40 season and mosquito season. Thats hard regardless of who you are.