As I posted before BF is looking into a job. I want to hear from you ladies what questions we should be asking. Please remember this is an on the road job and we are going to be researching this tonight. I want to know every in and out. Every risk. Every flaw or benifit for this company. After reading your responses, we can make this work. You ladies may be hearing a lot from me but this is the only option we have if the bean plant fails. Fin drought anyways!
So ladies what should we be looking at?
Shoot it at me, and for the love of heaven if you feel the need to be snarky do it elsewhere I am sooo not in the mood!
ETA as stated in my previous post this would be working for power companies.( removing tree's around lines, putting up lines) BIL was in VA to help put power lines up when they had that huge power outage. Just some info.
I am agreeing with both Krista P and One and Done. Krista has great ideas for questions, but One and Done really nailed it by saying we don't know at all WHAT this job is, so it's hard to think of specifics. It's just kind of hard not knowing.
Good luck, though! I really hope this works out for you guys if the bean plant has to close.
YOU won't be asking any questions, HE will be. HE needs to take full responsibility as an adult and even decide if this will be something he's interested in.
Is he going to need a special license? Will he be expected to already have that license or will they train him, suck up the cost for it, and pay for the specialized license? If he's going into trucking (any kind of trucks) he has to have a special license for that and has to know how to drive those trucks.
[EDIT: Much heavy equipment/machinery needs to have certification and or licensing to be used commercially. I'd have the same questions about using any of that commercial machinery, the liability of the company, hazard pay, on-call hours, what the company will be willing to pay for in order to get him certified or if they expect him to already be certified. This is an issue because even places like Lowe's and Home Depot want their guys certified to use the store lifts and other store equipment and follow safety protocol or they get fired on the spot.]
You also should consider how this type of job will affect your relationship, especially since you're so young and this is only a boyfriend. Reconsider having a baby at all with him since it sounds as if him being a provider for you and your son isn't a given nor is it stable.
Having been an HR person - don't ask too many questions about "what's in it for me" until the job is offered.
Before the job offer and during the interview process ask questions like: Growth opprotunties, how did you (person who will be boss) get to their postions, how much customer / versus internal interaction? Paperwork vs. computerized documentation, training & developement opportunities, etc.
After the job is offered then you ask about pay periods, overtime, bonus & commission, benefits, expense reimbursement, employee benefits, employee contribution to medical coverage, education reimbursement, vaacation, etc. The big thin to get clear information about it health insurance & Pension. people don't realize how expensive these two benefits are and how valuable good plans are. If he gets a great job offer with excellenet pay check the contributions for medical coverage and pension. It could be that contributions are really high and any pay increase would be washed out by the higher payroll deductions for health coverage. Same with pensions. Now that I'm in my 50's that's become more important and I wish I would have paid more attention to it in the past.
Good luck on the new job!
** I should add that I asked these questions AFTER I was offered the job!**
I travel for work frequently, so here were some of our questions:
Mileage reimbursement (if he will be driving his car)
Gas Card (or will you have to lay out the cash)
Company car vs. using his car
Benefits (who is covered, what is the cost, carrier, etc)
Dress code (will he need to go out and purchase all new clothing)
Vacation time/ sick time (how much, when does he start accruing, any limitations)
Option to work from home when not "on the road"
Cell phone (will they pay for his or purchase him a new one)
Food and lodging (will he have a company card or will you be charging and submitting)
In our case it wasn't a deal breaker to keep receipts and submit, but we wanted to know ahead of time so we could budget accordingly and switch credit cards to one that earns "points".
I would google "interview questions" and many articles will come up. Just remember, an employer is not looking to provide someone with a job, but is looking for someone with ability and skills to fulfill their needs. Different point of view that makes for a very different attitude and interaction.
Good luck.
Is he expected to provide his own vehicle for travel? Are expenses reimbursed? If so, what expenses? Is there an expense account or does he pay up front? Is there an off season? Is work guaranteed or on an as needed basis?
Things you need to ask yourselves:
How will this change our relationship (since you won't be spending as much time together)?
Is the job physically demanding and can I handle it?
What happens if I am injured?
Am I prepared for the wear and tear emotionally and physically of constant travel?
Can we deal with the fact that I may not be able to make it home in case of emergencies?
Can we handle the expense of travel (hotels, meals, cell phones, etc.)?
Will boredom be an issue?
How well do we handle stress?
Make 100% sure that all of his travel expenses are well covered. That's mileage, travel expenses, meals, etc. Traveling gets really expensive and if he's expected to cover even part of it, it will cut significantly into his salary.
My daughter's hubby is working for a utility company, and for the most part, he is gone 6 days a week. Every once in a while they will have a "home" week where they do more local jobs.
For him, they are all in the company trucks, so mileage isn't an issue. They meet at one location. The company also pays hotel expenses (2 to a room), and gives them a per diem of $20 a day for food costs when they are working "out". He usually leaves Monday morning, and comes home Saturday afternoon.... putting in 65-70 hours a week.
The only complication may come in a month, when their 2nd child is due.... his boss has already said that if they are out of town when the "call" comes, he just takes one of the company trucks and drives back.... that is already taken care of.
It looks like Krista P covered a LOT of questions... good response!
Went and read your other post about this...
Same questions Krista mentioned.
- On call - is there a schedule/rotation?
- Will his guard duty weekends be a problem?
- Training classes/requirements?
My hubby is expected to take a certain # of training hours every 4 months.
- What will the daily structure be? (must report by a certain time, must have a certain lunch period, etc)
Ex. my hubby is in a truck all day 9a - 430p. He is allowed to leave his truck to eat lunch for up to ## minutes. Even then he must carry his company phone in with him. He is expected to be able to respond as needed all other times.
Possible downside: the position is most probably a 'must report' during bad weather and storms.
What's the pay structure? How much, how often? Direct Deposit? Salaried or hourly? Bonuses?
What are the benefits - health insurance, dental insurance? How much is his premium? Do you need to change doctors? Will your coverage and expenses change? For the better or worse?
Other benefits...paid time off? Sick days? Vacation days? Life insurance? Disability?
Disability insurance would be a big concern to me for someone working on the road, especially in a hands-on job. Make sure there is good coverage available if he gets injured.
Is there a union? What are the dues? Does he have to join?
Is there a retirement plan?
How long has the company been in business? Who are the clients? Who owns the company? Are the owners trustworthy people? Have they been investigated for anything? Are they solvent? How do they grow their business? How to they attract clients? How do they retain them? How long do their clients stay?
If it's a public company...look at earnings reports and other filings. Google them and see what others say. If it's a small company, rely on the contact he has to answer some of this.
Why is the position open? If someone left...why did they leave?
Hon--really all you are telling us is that this is an "on the road" job which could be anything from a traveling circus barker to a top level salesman with stock options based on performance or straight commission.
I don't mean to be snarky, but what would you like us to say?
HE might ask about territory size, typical % travel, salary, benefits (including health, retirement plan, 401K, vacation, opportunity for advancement, etc.
Unless you're a little more specific, a quick google search can provide you lists of questions for a perspective employer, right?
After determining that this a job he is really interested, I would start asking the following types of questions: How will he be reimbursed for mileage and travel expenses? Is he expected to front the expenses or is there a company charge line available? What benefits are available to him? Will he be a FT or PT employee, and will he be hourly or salaried or commissioned? If commissioned, is there a guarantee?
Spend a lot of time online searching for information on the company before hand. When they ask if he has any questions during the interview, he should start with questions about the company. THEN move into specific questions about pay, reimbursements, etc. Employers want to know you are interested in more than a paycheck. One company I interviewed with years ago appeared to be in financial trouble based upon their published financial statements. (I was going to be working in accounting.) So I asked about how the company was doing and what the challenges they felt they were experiencing were. I got the job, but declined because they were not stable. Good thing - they went bankrupt a few months later!
I worked on the road fror a phone book. So...
What does his expense account include?
Who pays for lodging and meals?
Who pays for gas?
Will he need a laptop or tablet --- who supplies it?
Cell phone -- who supplies? -----does the company pay for cell phone overages if he has to use his own phone?
We had a $200/month car expense but considering that I was typically putting on 1000 miles a week that didn't cover much. Tell him to keep track of all miles.
We had trade for lodging, rooms in exchange for full page ads. But one of the hotels actually had notices all over the place that the water was unsafe for human consumption. It was polluted with nitrates. The warnings also said that boiling the water made it worse. But the hotel still used that water to make coffee and orange juice for the free breakfast. YUKKY I found a different place to stay.
