The Economy of Airgunning....so how is your Job?

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FunGun

FunGun

Member
Jun 21, 2015
1,020
89
OKLAHOMA, United States
Hey guys, I know we all come here to get away from the real world sometimes, but I just want to reach out and see how our fellow airgunners are doing with the way the economy is doing. Don't mean to get a rant about politics going, or elections. Just want to give some guys a chance to voice how secure they feel about their jobs or what they are hearing from friends and family. For instance some folks in Texas are really feeling the pinch with the lower oil prices. I have a personal friend that works in the oil support business and he walked into work just last Monday to find out all 700 employees were being let go. Makes it tough on some, so I just wanted to see if anyone else was seeing this and what it does to our sport overall, not to mention just trying to put bread on the table.
So how are things in your neighborhood?
 
FunGun I feel for you but the oil sword swings both ways. I've seen counties in rural sections have to float bonds for fuel for school buses. Big Oil wrecked havoc, on trucking, automobile, boating, RV, marinas, and vacation communities. Lets not forget the general public that were forced to alter their lifestyles, or eliminate some costly enjoyed activities. I believe oil prices were about six dollars per bbl in 97. The "Five Sisters" posted a then record profit of six billion for a quarter. At the height of the Bush administration, Exxon Mobile posted a 140 billion dollar quarterly profit. My thought thank god that strangle hold is loosening up on the necks of the general population.
 
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Oil and gas production (off-shore drilling), shipbuilding and fishing are 3 major factors in the west coast economy in my country, and the rest of the nation for that matter. The oilrelated industry is taking a hard beat, and this of course have negative effects for most service and the under delivery market in Norway. But this is not all bad either. We still have a large fish industry, and often there have been conflicts between interests when it comes to drilling and fishing in the traditional fishing banks (fishing fields?), especially the northern sectors.
We can do without oil, but we can not do without food. That is the hard realities in a world with a FAST increasing population 

For me personally this do not influence my job situation very much. As a humble civil servant it will take years before this will make a huge impact to the services the people demand from their government. A bit like Linsfreak's situation I think; -There will always be a fire, and need for a firefighter to deal with it.......
Sorry.... got a bit political there...
 
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Iv been working on a drilling rig for just a little over ten years and this is the worst Iv seen it. I have been demoted and they quit paying as much of our insurance but I'm still working so no complaints. There's a lot of folks around here ( texas) that have lost everything they own because of the drop In oil prices and loosing their jobs. Its rough on me but I don't have a lot of bills either...just cause you make good money dosent mean you need to buy a lot of things. Stay as debt free as possible my friends
 
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I'm in residential construction and 2008 saw me unemployed. I had to get work where ever I could for three years. Even commuting 2 or more hours one way. But that goes to show even in a bad economy good carpenters will always have a job. Even if the commute sucks.

Now I'm back working with a good builder on high end builds making good money.

I do have other skills in the automotive aftermarket field and kitchen work. So if carpentry and cars dissapear I can work in a kitchen. Hey, people have to eat.
 
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I'm a commercial installer for a very lucrative HVAC company and now that it's starting to warm up here in Pennsylvania the work load is increasing and I'm getting more hours and more overtime. Which is awesome because I have to support my wife and 5 month old daughter plus my wife is pregnant again so I thank God for this opportunity. I was able to recently afford a new shroud for my Vulcan and I'm shooting everyday. I hope the best for those of you that are feeling the pinch right now, just have faith and good things are bound to happen. 
 
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I am a welder and cnc operator in the military defense industry. We have been heavily impacted by this administration and the inability for Congress to get anything accomplished. We went from 1400 employees to current numbers of 400. That is just at our location. I work for one of the largest defense contractor's in the world. Overall they have been hit with over 10,000 lost jobs. I have enough time that I will have a job unless they close the military base I work at. I only spent 6 months layed off in 2013. We have alot of people who have been out for over 3.5 years. We are projected to have a major upswing from late 2016 into 2017. Hope that proves true and we get the rest of our people back to work!!
 
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Chemical process operator by education, used to work on a paper mill and that industry have seen bad times since this new thing called internet came :p
Now am working in a more mineral based industry, refining and reworking limestone minerals. We do sell alot to the oil industry, and water filter bases around in scandinavia + pH adjusting in filters, earth, waters, concrete toothpaste, paint, paper etc.... So I feel very secure. So secure that I have just placed a order on 1 bauer compressor and a Fx Imapct :D
 
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My job is Transition specialist that designs and manufacture for all kinds of vehicles witch pretty bullet-proof (excuse the pun) as there always be transmission to redesign for as long as there are vehicles and Trucks around and my wife is a medical lawyer representing hospitals and doctors around the world so im / we fortunate that we both to have relatively secure jobs regardless of the economical health.
 
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I was a builder for 35 years. During that time I made some good money, the wife also had a damn good job. We raised 3 kid and put 2 through college. But we also saved some money. Every year since 1985 we would put money into IRA accounts, invested in stocks and Bonds. This is money we never touched. I retired at 62.I'm now 69. The wife retired at 65. We can pretty much do what we want to do and not have to worry about the economy. My point is .....save all the money you can, It will pay off in the long run.

Now I can do all the air gun shooting I want as long as the weather is good. wife told me no more airguns. Hope she does not see the Fed-X truck come next week.
 
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Honestly, Obamacare hurt us. Had a simple procedure . . . BAM! $3500!
All our prices went up, from a simple doctors visit, to prescriptions meds, to labs, everything was the "negotiated" rate. 
And our deductible was so high we could not afford to use our healthcare insurance. 
I had to get a second job. 
We tell people we "were" middle class, but now we are "Upper lower class."
We make too much to get the benefits of Obamacare, but it wipes our savings out (we dont believe in debt).
And this is why the middle class is being hollowed out.
 
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I'm a registered nurse. No shortage of jobs for me, basically go wherever I want and work. But I still go to the university and I'm studying to become a Nurse Practitioner. Obamacare hasn't affected my career...yet. Hopefully that never happens. People will always need medical treatment, so I think it's a secure place to be, at least until we're replaced by androids which eventually become terminators -- then it won't matter anymore.
 
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Right now our country USA are a nation of consumers not producers. In the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s we were producing for the vast majority of consumers. These decades were some of the most prosperous in our nation's history, the most recent decades we have been consuming more than we produce. Kinda like spending more than you earn...sooner or later it will catchup up to you. Until we start producing again and turn into break even on exports vs imports, or export more than we import our wealth will gradually decrease. Just my opinion. It could take decades to come about but as you can see the Middle Class (largely producers) is getting smaller and turning into an "upper lower class". Leading to more strain on resources and government rescue. The Economics!
 
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