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Posted: Wed May 23, 2007 9:51 pm
by Dave_L
This is a picture of two of our lads about halfway through a marathon 19hr shift, surfacing a haul road at a local quarry. Had to be done out of working hours, we'd laid 450 tons at 4.30pm (started at 6.30am!) and really didn't relish the thought of coming back in on Sunday AM to complete the job! Everybody, including the mixer-man agreed (Couldn;t have wished for a closer tar plant, but it still broke down during the day!!) to stay on until the job was done - we got home at 01.15hrs the following day!
Just before we had fish and chips at 5pm.......
Needless to say, the Sunday was spent recovering, bit it was worth it (£££)
Image working this control panel in the dark.......towards the end, it was all done by feel! In the end, we laid 800 tons that day.
Edited By Dave_L on 1179953676
Posted: Wed May 23, 2007 11:28 pm
by lutonlagerlout
In the end, we laid 800 tons that day.
and there was me thinking that the machine had laid it??
19 hours? what did they do for t'other 5 ? slackers dave
lol only jk m8
i have done double shifts before but it is counter productive and illegal
i worked on the harlequin centre in watford and we were getting £120 a shift for a 12 hour day (big money in 1989)
but the problem with those sort of hours is that you are mentally drained for 3-4 days after
N1 m8
LLL
Posted: Thu May 24, 2007 5:39 am
by Dave_L
You should have seen some of the tight turns we had to lay, as it was getting dark. Not easy.
Rolling them wasn't easy either - requiring some skill and balls! Seat belts on!
You're right, we were zombies for a good three days after.
Posted: Thu May 24, 2007 7:38 am
by lutonlagerlout
my mrs runs a medical recruitment agency,and it is big trouble for them if any of their staff do a double shift
i think you can do 9 then a 4 hour break then another 9
but like you say mate i would rather do a 1 long saturday then have to go in sunday for a couple of hours
did the tarmac plant stay open late then?
cheers LLL
Posted: Thu May 24, 2007 7:48 pm
by Dave_L
Yes - as we were surfacing a haul road at the quarry, the tar plant was 300m away from the site - and it was in their interests to stay going.
It was their busiest tar producing day ever - 800tons!
Posted: Fri May 25, 2007 11:16 pm
by seanandruby
I do a 13 hour shift 5 days a week. then go to my lodgings and cook tea then wash up. cant remember anything after 9.00 oclock weekdays.
Posted: Fri May 25, 2007 11:20 pm
by Stuarty
That certainly is a shift dave, i bet you never slept so well!
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 12:23 am
by lutonlagerlout
I do a 13 hour shift 5 days a week
is that 13 hours work time sean or 13 hours total??
when i left school the day was 7.30 till 5. 30, with 2 15 minute tea breaks and 30 minutes for dinner
now we do 8 till 4 with 1 30 minute break,i find people are more productive working shorter more intense hours,also doing domestic work ppl dont want you around outside school hours
when i was a lad everybody was trying to hide after the 3.15 tea break,so it was a waste of time really
cheers LLL
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 5:07 am
by Dave_L
8 to 4 - Tony - you lucky sod! 
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 7:37 am
by lutonlagerlout
i would like to work longer dave,but when we are at people's houses they dont want you there before 8, as they are getting up and they want you gone when the kids get home.
sometimes we have to work a bit later,but there are HSE issues once the kids get home
i take it your normal day is about 10 hours on the black stuff???
when i worked for *big jerry* it was 7 till 6 and that meant at the tarmac yard at 7
don't miss those days
regards tony LLL 
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 9:02 am
by hondacrm
Back in the early 80's when job's were scarce, I got a job with the local council as a road sweeper. They had some spare cash so they decided to clean up the borough. Normal start time was 7.30 but if you got there at 6.30 you could try and get out on the "dust" as spare as most days guys were on holiday or off sick so they needed replacements. You had one half hour tea break with the aim of finishing at around 2.30pm. One driver and four crew. The driver only got out of the cab if we were in a cul-de-sac. Great fun though, the tips we earn't always paid for breakfast and everyone got an equal share.
Now I struggle with an 8.45 start.
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 9:59 am
by Dave_L
A normal day for us at 7am at our yard - then travel to the job. Finish when the job is finished - it is 'normal' for us to run 10hr days - but they are often 12/13hrs.....
But, more often than not, we have to be on-site before the other trades get there - otherwise we'd never get ourselves in place - we don't travel light - 1 x artic low loader, two 12 tonners and one 7.5 tonner, loaded with kit etc...getting there early means we can get in place usually without a hitch.
We cover a fair area, we usually have our first load of blacktop by 8am......so the early bird catches the worm!
But - tarmac supply problems can severely mess up our day - if the tar is an hour/two/three late then that is just added to the end of our day - and that happened the Friday before last - not good.
That turned out to be a 12hr day - albeit 3 hrs was just sat about, waiting.
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 2:05 pm
by Tony McC
We had a spell when we were laying concrete floors for a certain company, and to keep the project on schedule, we'd usually pour around 4pm and then end up using power floats from around 8pm until well into the early hours of the morning, and then back on site at 8am to set up the next bays and pour.
Power floating concrete under temporary lighting is less than ideal, but the hours were the killer, and despite the vibration and noise, I almost nodded off once or twice.
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 6:19 pm
by Stuarty
Im in the yard for 7.30 and then out to the job, leave site at 4.30 unless i need to work on. My paid time ends when i finish on site, so i could spend anything from 15 mins to an 2 hours heading back to the yard unpaid. And im not a passenger in the van, i drive.
Posted: Sat May 26, 2007 7:40 pm
by seanandruby
13 hours work time. Sometimes it can be longer ( never shorter ) for instance i may have to wait for the concrete gang to finish a slab etc before i can have some to cover my pipes. like you tony i used to be there all night on the upside down helicopter. many a time I've done a ghoster. when your there 24 hours flat out its no joke a? i try to swerve the big pours now. as i am in digs its beneficial to me to be at work, rather than on my own watch tele or summink, or, pissing the hard earned up the wall 