I'm burned out. A lot of us are.
Last year I worked 1,377 hours of overtime.
My coworkers are as well. We're all patriots and our jobs are very important, technically specific and necessary. It would take about 18 months to get a new hire ready to do my job.
I have a job offer coming up, doing a walkthrough of a facility and meeting the team after a second interview. Just down to negotiations on salary.
I just feel awful about the bind I'm going to put on the few good people I'm leaving, and the strain that's doing to create in their lives.
Two of my buddies swore me to secrecy as we've been looking for a way out. One is waiting for his house to sell and he's out. I bought his car, and he's burning his PTO before he bounces. The other is banking cash and then skipping out in 6 months. The three of us are heavy hitters who do a majority of the work for our entire division.
I'm scared. It took me 13 years to get this job and it was supposed to be my career growth path that would carry me into retirement.
I'm putting my family, friends, and self above the company. You can always make more money.
I've been abused, insulted, attacked and degraded. Treated like disposable equipment. Been put facedown on the ground in a puddle, screamed at, and burned by caustic chemicals caused by carelessness. People treated me like I didn't matter and I sucked it the fuck up and got the job done.
My chain of command is either incapable of fixing problems or doesn't care, and either way, I stopped reporting problems to them about six months ago.
When we leave, work will stop for thousands of people. I'm not sure what management will do, and frankly, I don't give a fuck.
There's a world out there and no matter what you do, this is just a job. I hope you find happiness too. I have to believe it gets better.
Stay hard.