Field Support Engineers

Wellhammer

On topic i am a field service engineer and have been with Openreach for 2 years, i still do not have a working contract even though i am full time staff but i am expected to sign on for work at 06:45 and travel to my first task to be onsite for 08:00 - i dont get paid for anything before 08:00 or after i finish my last task even if i am driving/ working on my laptop (this is usually 45 mins a each way but can be up to 1 hour 15 mins).
I came in on full salary as i am an ex forces aircraft engineer and required little training and started earning the company money by completing a good average of jobs per day and getting no negative feedback about work i completed.

I regularly answer emails/phonecalls and reply to text messages when not actually working and being paid but this would only add up to a few hours a week.

With all this added up i get paid for 36 hours a week but actually do around 45-50


In reply to Mr Oink

Firstly I find it ridiculous that someone who works or used to work for the company would try to slur its reputation by spreading rumors on an open forum about the integrity and standards of its workforce.

36.5 hour week (we only get paid per hour not on salary so hours per week is no issue like in many jobs and working less just means you get paid less, would you think a guy who works 20 hours a week as having an easy job or a job that gives less hours?)
virtually no unsociable hours (forced overtime and i cant just walk from a job without finishing it)
an elite call out rota with bonuses and guaranteed paid time off to sleep ?? what planet are you on i get none of this??
overtime rate (i know a lot of engineers gas/electric/plumbing and also joiners/plasterers if you asked them to work weekends or stay late they would all want more per hour)
25+ days holiday and no bank holidays (back to compulsary overtime)
6 months full paid sick leave, an extra 6 months at half pay (if you see that a perk then you obviously abuse it)
hand picked jobs on many occasions (i hardly think getting a job from a computer system that basis it on your skills and your location hand picked)
local work (doubt when i drove 99 miles home one night and usually its 20miles plus)
easy to get out of jobs you don't like (sounds more like contractors to me as if i send a job back im quizzed about it by my manager)
easy to get assistance and help with jobs (waiting for assistance wastes time when you could be working - an assist only usually gets 30mins then they pick up another task)
not needing to have a full set of skills to do a job (why dont you prove why this is relevant to making the job easy)
all your tools supplied (insurance - id rather use my own tools to be honest as the ones i have are crap)
your van supplied (really? your telling me a paid employee provides there own van? )
your fuel supplied (are you comparing self employed to employed again? Seems like it to me.)
your shoes and boots provided (insurance again - id rather use my own but cant)
your ppe provided (insurance)
nearly all your clothing provided (thats rediculous even B&M/Mcdonalds/Tesco staff get this its not clothing its 'Uniform'...............)
mobile phone and laptop (why do i want to have this? id rather not but its HOW THE COMPANY WORKS)
free wireless broadband
£24k + (pretty standard for an 'outside' engineer - cant really compare to a field service engineer that sits inside warm dry houses all day and not up a stick with sideways sleet in their ears)


And as a further note ive worked in some really disgusting property's with no sign of needing any other engineering visits so we get the worst of places as we all know now that internet is as important as gas elec and water (who all get paid as much if not more) and i dont see many new white goods in these places to fix!