[BC] Negativity

[WFIFeng@aol.com]

In a message dated 04/24/2007 03:39:15 PM Eastern Daylight Time, 
dpuopolo at usa.net writes:

> C'mon Willie!
>  You're much more then an engineer. You also are the morning man, mid day 
guy,
>  janitor, etc. etc.

Yes, this is true. It's never boring, that's for sure. :)

>  You are very fortunate that you have an owner that's there and 'gets it'. 
>  These types are becoming rarer all the time.

This is also true.

>  A few weeks ago, I was asked by a computer type if he should consider 
radio 
> as a career. I asked hiom how much per hour he was making as a computer 
> tech: " $50 per hour". Then I asked him hiow much he was making working for 
a
>  radio station part time.
>  "Fifteen dollars and hour, and they expect me to do computer stuff that I'm
>  getting 50 an hour for elsewhere".
>  I told him he had answered his own question. 

Indeed. As others have mentioned, as Engineers, we're hurting ourselves by
grossly underpricing our work. He should be able to get whatever is the
"going rate" in his market for IT work. If that's $50 per hour, then that's
what is fair. Naturally, the owner is going to look for (and probably find)
someone who will do it a lot cheaper... and probably not as well, either.

>  With very few exceptions, radio engineering salaries have NOT kept up with
>  other engineering disciplines, even though the responsibilities that a
>  broadscast engineer has has more then doubled. If you want to work more 
> hours
>  for less real money then you were making 20 years ago, then have at it.

I know what you're saying. There's just something about *Radio* that seems to
draw eager people in. Their eagerness becomes their downfall, when they 
accept sub-par paychecks, "just to be in Radio".

>  I'm not being negative here, just realistic. If you want to shoot the
>  messinger (and some of you obviously do, based upon the nasty emails I've
>  received lately), I guess that's your business too. BUT it doesn't change 
> the
>  facts I and others have presented here.

I don't know who would have sent you nasty e-mails, but I certainly didn't
and I wouldn't. I don't see anything you've said that would deserve that.

> Personally, I feel sad that plumbers
>  and garbage collectors make more on average then we do. They don't have to
>  keep up with technology on their own time. They're not on 24 hour call. 
> Their benefits are generally better, too.

Indeed... but where's the "glamor" in those jobs? There's "glamor" in working
in *Radio*. That's why we get those "eager beavers" who are so willing to
do *anything* for next-to-nothing, just to get their foot in the door: 
"Glamor".
There's nothing "glamorous" about collecting trash. Nothing "glamorous"
about unclogging filthy pipes. Those jobs NEED the high pay in order to
get anyone at all to even look at them twice. *Radio* seems to be it's
own reward. Work in *Radio* and you're *somebody*.

>  A friend of mine works in the movie industry as an assiatant editor (nOT 
the
>  chief editor). She made over $250,000 last year. Did ANY of you do that 
well?

Whew... nope. Not even close. It would take a few years to reach that amount!

>  My brother trains auto mechanics (at the high school level). I asked him 
how
>  much they would make after 5 years with ASE certfication (they get it by 
the
>  time they graduate). He told me that they should expect $65K on average! 

Another low-"glamor" job... getting ones hands filthy, working under the hood.

> Many
>  of you don't make that much after 10 plus years on the job. Yet these 
kids-5
>  years out of high school will get paid more then you. How does THAT make 
you
>  feel?

Sigh...... :(

>  The only way that things will get better for ALL of us is if we want it to 
> get better!

True... but unfortunately, that's going to be like herding cats.

Willie...













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