Have you ever done non-skilled labor?

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:06 pm

There's an interesting thread in R&P that made me interested in our backgrounds.

By non-skilled, I'm asking about things that didn't require weeks of training. This doesn't have to be formal training. For example I didn't need training to desktop support, but I still trained on home machines for years before I got my first computer job.

I have, however, worked as a go-fer, dish washer, cook, waiter, and bartender for several years prior to moving into the IT industry. All the training was a few days at best. Maybe less.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:12 pm

Yes. I bailed/brought in hay as a kid. [Time: seasonal for 8 years or so]

My first real job, as in paycheck instead of cash, was a janitor at a computer builder/repair/software store. Think mom and pop Dell in the early 90s. Training consisted of "Here are the trashcans, here's the bathroom, don't throw out anything that looks valuable. Oh, and you get a 40% discount on games." [Time: 1 glorious year]

I was a waiter several times. I wouldn't say it's non-skilled but training was a day or two max in all cases. [Time: 3-4 years total]

Post by **ImLawBoy** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:12 pm

Do you mean in adult life? I'm guessing there are a lot of people here who did labor jobs during high school and college, but not after getting a degree.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:15 pm

After college:

Drove an ice cream truck
Every job in a restaurant from janitor up to assistant manager

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:20 pm

Army, Campus Security, Go-Kart Track Attendant all while I was in college. All IT post-college.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:22 pm

During summers in high school and college I did temp work - mostly data entry. That's pretty much it.

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:33 pm

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:12 pm Do you mean in adult life? I'm guessing there are a lot of people here who did labor jobs during high school and college, but not after getting a degree.

I think it all counts. I'm sure it's a lot, but I'm still curious how much. Especially the breakdown between < 2 years and over 2 years.

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:34 pm

I chose 5-10 years because from 14-22 I worked various non-skilled jobs.

Cashier and general help for a family owned lumber yard
Cashier at a bookstore
Gas meter reader
Lawn mower for a municipal airport
Summer camp counselor
Welder's aide for laying gas pipeline

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:35 pm

Post-College? Minimal. Some temporary work, and then QA at Broderbund. Hard to say if that required less than 2 weeks training - you could jump in, but experience and development really mattered down the road, and pre-existing computer skills were a huge boon. Eventually ran a Network testing lab before moving on to IT (DBA/SysAdmin/etc).

In high school I worked at a pharmacy, cashiering, stocking and doing deliveries. In College, I worked in the Dorm Mess Hall for a semester or so, Macy's for a Holiday Season and Bussing, Waiting and Bartending my way through college.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:40 pm

Not forever but for a lot longer than 5-10 years.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:19 pm

I had many cashier, clerk, and restaurant jobs in high school and throughout my college years, and reverted to doing that kind of work "between jobs" through adulthood. The least-skilled job I ever had was as a Manpower temp: You only found out in an early-morning phone call if you'd be working at all that day, and where, and doing what. It was usually of the lift-and-carry variety.

dbt1949 · Post by **dbt1949** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:20 pm

School custodian and bicycle repair.

Archinerd · Post by **Archinerd** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:23 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:12 pm My first real job, as in paycheck instead of cash, was a janitor at a computer builder/repair/software store. Think mom and pop Dell in the early 90s. Training consisted of "Here are the trashcans, here's the bathroom, don't throw out anything that looks valuable. Oh, and you get a 40% discount on games." [Time: 1 glorious year]

My first job was janitor too.
My high school hired students to help with the day to day cleaning each day after school (2 hrs) and as extra full time help over the summer. I did that for 3 years. My immediate supervisor was one of the best bosses I've ever had.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:24 pm

Just during high school. Worked in a pizza parlor and a college cafeteria.

Cylus Maxii · Post by **Cylus Maxii** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:33 pm

Worked for a paycheck since age 14, lots of odd jobs before. I've worked the renaissance festival circuit, catered and even painted parking lots. Plus I've my fair share of fast food and retail work. So yeah.. probably close to 10 years overall.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:38 pm

Out of college I worked for five years in a job that was glorified data entry. The last few years was technically a different position (data analyst), but didn't require any training or specialized skills. In high school I worked one summer as a waiter in a retirement community. I think about half my high school worked there at some point.

Post by **ImLawBoy** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:44 pm

I went with the 5-10 years option given my various years working fast food, waiting tables, working as a library page, etc. All of that was before I finished my education, though. I think working these types of jobs as a means toward completing an education is different that working these kinds of jobs when your education is complete (whether HS, college, advanced degree, or whatever). I'm sure I had a different attitude about waiting tables than the long timers did, for example. I know that this initial survey came out of Drazzil's comments in R&P related to the "working man", and i think Drazzil's post-education non-skilled labor work has more relevance to that discussion than my concurrent-with-education non-skilled labor work.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 5:26 pm

Particular when you consider that for most of us that time is 20+ years in the rear view.

Z-Corn · Post by **Z-Corn** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 5:31 pm

I'm going to say 2-5 years.

My first High School job was as a dishwasher but then I learned to cook at that restaurant and went to culinary school and became a chef. But while I was in school I was a cashier at Meijer. And now I've been in IT for over 20 years...so it's been a mix.

Exodor · Post by **Exodor** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 6:19 pm

I worked for one day as a donut maker (and couldn't eat glazed donuts for years afterward)
One summer as a Wal-Mart cashier
One summer as a clerk at a dry cleaners

I think that's it

dbt1949 · Post by **dbt1949** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 6:57 pm

When I had a regular job sometimes I'd do construction work after my regular job.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 7:10 pm

From 9 to 16, 5 paper routes + Saturday assemble of Sunday papers at the news agency.
For 3 months at age 16, fast food monkey
From then until graduated high school, stock monkey for a store.
For the first year of college, lab tech for a chemical company (more monkey work, mostly turning large quantities of sometimes dangerous chemicals into small quantities).
For the second year of college, reveled in Ronald Reagan's Peak Unemployment (well into the double-digits).
Eventually wound up working first part time for a restaurant, eventually becoming dictator. I suppose the dictator portion did take some training, although my 12 hour work day was still largely grunt work because now it was peak employment and grunts were hard to come by.

At that point, I had enough. Been doing white collar stuff for more than 30 years now.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 7:15 pm

I spent 9 months sacking groceries, a few months doing factory work as a temp, and then 11 years in two different call centers.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 8:29 pm

I've done door-to-door surveys, phone sales, waitering, and bookstore retail (I'm counting the clerking, not the later management). I've also done a lot of summer yard work, but as church youthgroup charity, not a paid job.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:07 pm

Every summer in high school and most of college was spent working for my father in a hot mix plant (asphalt, for you layman). You haven’t lived until you’ve shoveled 300 degree hot mix spillover off a loading ramp for 8 hours. One summer they promoted me to night watchman of a plant that was being closed out in the far reaches of rural Ohio. That lasted all of 2 weeks...until I shot a temperature gauge one night when I was startled by dogs or something. It was at that moment I also realized I should never, ever own a gun.

After that I did a short stint as a copy editor (read: proofreader) at a law publishing firm before getting sacked. Then I bummed around in retail, temp office work and crappy tech support jobs before moving to Chicago and beginning my career as a gigolo to the stars.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:08 pm

grocery bagger, cart pusher, custodian at a grocery chain during high school & college years.

Unagi · Post by **Unagi** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:46 pm

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:12 pm Do you mean in adult life? I'm guessing there are a lot of people here who did labor jobs during high school and college, but not after getting a degree.

This. I worked from 13-20 in 'unskilled labor', not sure anything since then.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:57 pm

Unagi wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:46 pm
ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:12 pm Do you mean in adult life? I'm guessing there are a lot of people here who did labor jobs during high school and college, but not after getting a degree.
This. I worked from 13-20 in 'unskilled labor', not sure anything since then.

For a good chunk of us, it's now the "hobby" of home ownership.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 12:54 am

Pre-college sure. As an adult... a few months as 'desk guard' in my first security job, and a stint as a nightclub bouncer (which required size, not expertise.)

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 2:12 am

My first paying job not for my parents was bailing hay one summer.
Then I worked at a grocery store — maintenance (carts, cleaning and bathrooms), cashier then back desk counting down the money.
In college during summers, I worked in a factory 4 years. First it was line work and assembly, then putting light bulbs into blister packs, then shipping. During school, I eas the monthly mystery shopper.
One winter making tanning beds.
One winter paralegal work at a bank, with 2 days training.

The 5 years doing research at an accounting firm doesn’t count for Drazzil’s purposes. Neither does 20 years as a lawyer. I’m less healthy working my brain non-stop but it pays better.

The bone tiredness of getting exhausted is similar, so I see no reason to extoll the “simple working man.” That mythos become a goddamn trap that consumed my parents until they were used up, and discarded. My advice to young people is to learn any set of skills, then monetize it. It doesn’t have to be obviously a “career” track or college. A skilled plumber will do well.

Z-Corn · Post by **Z-Corn** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 9:05 am

hepcat wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:07 pm You haven’t lived until you’ve shoveled 300 degree hot mix spillover off a loading ramp for 8 hours.

#hotmixsummer

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 10:30 am

hepcat wrote: ↑Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:07 pm Every summer in high school and most of college was spent working for my father in a hot mix plant (asphalt, for you layman). You haven’t lived until you’ve shoveled 300 degree hot mix spillover off a loading ramp for 8 hours. One summer they promoted me to night watchman of a plant that was being closed out in the far reaches of rural Ohio. That lasted all of 2 weeks...until I shot a temperature gauge one night when I was startled by dogs or something. It was at that moment I also realized I should never, ever own a gun.

After that I did a short stint as a copy editor (read: proofreader) at a law publishing firm before getting sacked. Then I bummed around in retail, temp office work and crappy tech support jobs before moving to Chicago and beginning my career as a gigolo to the stars.

If only they had Stand Your Ground laws back then.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 10:40 am

That temperature gauge clearly read "THREATENING" and not "275" like the witnesses all tried to say.

But seriously, I cannot stress this enough, I AM NOT the kind of person who should ever own a gun. I simply cannot emphasize that more.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 11:02 am

hepcat wrote: ↑Thu Sep 19, 2019 10:40 am That temperature gauge clearly read "THREATENING" and not "275" like the witnesses all tried to say.

But seriously, I cannot stress this enough, I AM NOT the kind of person who should ever own a gun. I simply cannot emphasize that more.

Your throwing star skills though...

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 11:09 am

Remember our last game of Crokinole? Or ANY flick game? How long were you in the hospital after any of those events?

raydude · Post by **raydude** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 11:16 am

I received work-study financial aid during my undergraduate years at Yale. My second year of earning work-study dollars was working as the dishwasher during the dinner shift. I gained a lot of respect for folks who have to wash the dishes at restaurants and disgust for those who decided to be "funny" with their leftovers, dishes, and silverware. Like jamming all the forks and spoons into a single cup, or leaving little salt and pepper piles, or other combinations of leftovers such that it was disgusting or we had to put more effort into cleaning them. The absolute worst though was when the dishwashing machine was on the fritz and we had to wait until it was fixed. Meanwhile, dirty dishes kept piling up on trays outside.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 12:10 pm

If I am doing it, it is, by definition, skilled labor.

-- said someone skilled

Combustible Lemur · Post by **Combustible Lemur** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 4:57 pm

Vet assistant 3 yrs.
Waiter 2 months
Bartender 2 yrs
Retail clerk off and on, 4 yrs
Hotel clerk 1 yr
Telemarketer 6 mths
Sales, off and on for a total of 1 yr
Movie theatre floor person 3 mths
Tutor 1 yr
carpenter unskilledish, welder, framer, painter, electrician, stitcher, tailor: 3 yrs - >developed as from into career

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How many years have you worked in a job that required < 2 weeks of training?