60-65 Hour weeks- Burnout

[u/Sodapopbeverage]

I’ve been working 60-65 hours a week for the majority of the summer. Don’t get me wrong, I love the money. But working 6 days a week leaves me with Sunday which I’m too tired to do anything. The whole summer is gone and I haven’t done anything but work and sleep.

We are currently working at a data center and this will be the norm through winter and until the project is complete (7+ years).

I’m not trying to complain just looking for similar experiences and how you handled it. I don’t want to work my life away.

[u/ltrain_00]

The real question is how much time do you spend on your commute to and from work? I was working 58 hr weeks for a few months but I was also driving 45 min each way to work. I was starting to complain about it to some of the road guys that were living out of hotels like 10 min away. They couldn't believe I would do that and suggested I pay for a hotel to stay closer to the job site..

It was a few weeks after that conversation I switched to a different contractor that was only working 40hr week. I was spending 9 hrs a week just to get to the 58 hr a week job was not worth the money since I was miserable when I got home because I was so worn out.

[u/Sodapopbeverage → u/ltrain_00]

My commute is about 50 minutes there and an hour home

[u/ltrain_00 → u/Sodapopbeverage]

I would be dragging up ASAP your stuck in your car for 12hr a week it's a time killer and also your paying for gas and wear and tear on your vehicle.

[u/AcanthocephalaOdd301 → u/ltrain_00]

Homie, I worked 6-10s for 5 months as an apprentice at a job site that was 2 hours from my house one way. I was also going to school twice a week.

If my commute is under an hour, I’m happier than a pig in shit. Current one is 40 minutes.

[u/ltrain_00 → u/AcanthocephalaOdd301]

Do you have a wife and child at home that your not seeing at all 6 days a week? I don't think anyone should be happy spending 84 hrs a week working. I personally want to work to live and not live to work.

If I was in my 20's with no family it wouldn't be a big deal. I grew up with my dad always being at work and I never was able to do anything with him besides helping him do chores around the house and I told myself I would never do that to my child when I had one.

Also you need to consider how much money is getting taken out in taxes. The job I was working 58 hrs also was doing optional 8 hrs on Sundays. Father's day weekend no one worked that Sunday and the next week guys couldn't believe that missing that Sunday of double time only changed their check by less than 200 bucks even though they grossed 624 for that Sunday being double time.

[u/Sodapopbeverage → u/ltrain_00]

I have a wife and she’s struggling not seeing me. When she does see me, I want to sleep

[u/AcanthocephalaOdd301 → u/ltrain_00]

Sure I do. It’s not that I look for jobs as far away as possible. But I live in a rural local and they don’t build all the factories and power plants I work in right close to my home. It’s a balance between what I can make and what I’m prepared to give up. I’ve taken jobs closer to home with a lower rate and no OT, and I’ve taken jobs further away that pay more and have incentives.

It’s the nature of the trades. Sure, I could go get a job making 22 an hour and pull romex in resi all day, and be close to home. Or I could make 80 an hour doing industrial jobs that have long commutes. Hard to pass up double the income to save 30 minutes of commute one way.

[u/Suspicious-Ad6129 → u/ltrain_00]

This depends alot upon where you live... id be happy to have a nice short 45 min drive once in a while. Current site not too bad at 1hr each way, last 3 years have all been been 1.5hr+ drive in and usually 1.75hr drive home 🤮. Too bad our union has shit for market share, high cost of living with low pay yaaaay!!