What is the best and worst employment you ever had

Baron von Richthofen (Vaclav) · #1 10-09-2009, 04:16 PM

The best job I ever had is when I was a technical director at CH7
My worst (and I still have nightmares about it) job is when I worked at QLD Health as a biotech, we repair all of the electronic medical equipment all over QLD

Esseth (Alan) · #2 10-09-2009, 04:24 PM

Worst by far for me was an apple orchard, sounds nice, but I was packing apples into boxes in a large tin shed in the middle of summer

The best would be the one i have now, i started with this company as an admin trainee, moved on up over the last few years and now i am a surveillance case manager.

Waxing_Gibbous (Peter) · #3 10-09-2009, 04:32 PM

The worst job I ever had was as a machine greaser in a lumber mill eeuuuccch!
The second best job I ever had was in the same mill as a "Spark Chaser". When somebody was welding or grinding I had to sit there with a fire extinguisher and spritz any stray sparks. $16.50 per hour in 1977! Serious money when you're 17.
The best job I ever had was with Shell in London. I was overseeing the due-dilligence phase of the divestment of Billiton. I had a 12th floor thame-view office (to which I was not technically entitled), a secretary, a PA, a car and driver(ditto entitlement), an expense account, a rent free flat in St. James's and I got to fly all over the world first-class or in the corporate jet! Best of all though, I got to push around a bunch of high-priced slolicitors. Bliss. Too bad they sold the company to the first-comer. I could have done that for years!

Benno85 (Ben) · #4 10-09-2009, 04:33 PM

Best for me was managing the now-closed local Ocean Master store. I worked up some great rappore with the locals, and it was just enjoyable work.

Worst by FAR was door-knocking for a rather over priced vacuum cleaner

FredSnerd (Claude) · #5 10-09-2009, 04:47 PM

My worst job was innoculating chickens (you had to insert a tablet with a syringie type thing via its back passage). I still have nightmares. My best job is the one I'm doing now - retired. I dont know why I didnt do it when I was 25.

jjjnettie (Jeanette) · #6 10-09-2009, 04:47 PM

Worst job, Meat Packer at the local Abattoir. They'd kill approx 600 beasts a day, there were 6 packers so I was packing the equivalent of 100 beasts in boxes each day. Hard yakka. The temp in the cold room was 4 degrees, but we were sweating.
Best job? Working for Olympian Guy Creighton, tending his horses, exercising them, cleaning stables, getting them ready for events and looking after them once they'd competed. Hard work yes, but I got to meet the elite horse men and women at that time, legends amongst the horsey fraternity. Invaluable experience.

leon · #7 10-09-2009, 05:21 PM

My worst job, well there have been a few in my 60 years of existence, however i would have to say being a process worker on a factory line, i hated it, but with a young family one had to stick with it.

So now after all those years, and I'm reluctant to say this here, as many people might think, hell, how could you do that.

Some time ago shortly after Alices mum passed away , there was a add in the paper from a Funeral Home looking for an active retiree to become a Funeral Director Assistant.

To make a long story short I applied and ended up with the job out of 75 applicants, so that in its self at nearly 60 was pleasing.

It is the most rewarding job I have ever experienced, and yes, I love my work, because at the end of the day we can turn a very sad moment into something special for the people concerned.

The fellow I work for Is Brian Harrisons, he, Brian, is fantastic, and after the first few weeks I felt that I had known him forever.

I admit that this sort of work is not for everyone, and the first time I had to handle deceased persons was a little daunting, but I, and Brian can make a difference, and that is what it is all about.

Leon

DavidU (Dave) · #8 10-09-2009, 05:21 PM

Worst, being a brickys labourer or working a furnace during summer.
Best, probably playing guitar infront of thousands of people & getting paid for it.
Vars, technical director at Ch7 is impressive.

AstralTraveller (David) · #9 10-09-2009, 05:22 PM

Best job by far is the one I'm doing right now. (Hey - I couldn't have gotten away with this anywhere else.) It's intellectually stimulating, rewarding and I meet lots of nice people.

Worst job is a toss up. I from a brain-deadening perspective it was a temporary job in Lysaghts tarping the load on trains. Indoors, noise, dust, mono-syllablic co-workers. I could feel my brain rotting. Standing in one spot for 10hrs sorting bananas was also pretty brain deadening but the co-workers were more interesting, we had a view outside and it was only one day per week. From a physical perspective, I lasted one day picking and packing watermelons for a known slave-driver before my back gave up. I spent a couple of weeks trashing a banana plantation for a small grower who was going bust. It just wasn't possible to go fast enough for him. From a health perspective, I spent 5 months working in a small regional office, as in just the two of us, in a town with a strong drinking culture and where I had to socialise with the boss and his clients. I went on the wagon for a few months after that to dry out.

dpastern (Dave Pastern) · #10 10-09-2009, 07:29 PM

Best job - probably the current job. Worst job? Working for Apple Australia. Rotten to the core and bad Apple both spring to mind. Sorry, I'm not a fan of large US companies.

Dave

Barrykgerdes · #11 10-09-2009, 08:02 PM

Worst jobs

instructions from "she who must be obeyed"

What I earned my living at. They were all great. I found what I liked to do and got somebody to pay me for it.

Barry

[1ponders] (Paul) · #12 10-09-2009, 08:20 PM

Worst job, selling vinyl siding door to door. I must have had a moment of insanity which lasted all of 1 week.

Best job, back in the early to mid 80's working as a maintenance officer and groundsman at an art college in eastern Sydney. At 22 I'd never been out of Qld and then I hit Paddo in the Mid 80's. What an eyeopener. And the job was brilliant. Didn't make much money but had a hell of a lot of fun.....and education.

DistroMan (Trevor) · #13 10-09-2009, 08:24 PM

Worst: A month on a Carnival following the circuit. Rain, hail, wind, heat, cold. All in one month? You bet. Horrible boss. Lucky I could duck flying pieces of timber.

Best: As FredSnerd said, "the one I'm doing now". Retired is great.

h0ughy (David) · #14 10-09-2009, 08:30 PM

worst job - storeman in a very hot warehouse - no windows and working dogwatch 3 nights in a row after working in the warehouse, at an ampol service station......cleaning , packing shelves and serving drunks

Best job - not the one i am at now (though it does pay the bills) but designing roads at the RTA in the early 90's. Now i plan for infrastructure at local government level. Pays the bills and the astro goodies

matt · #15 10-09-2009, 08:35 PM

By far the worst job I ever had....was selling AUSTAR door-to-door.

I was between jobs back in 1996 and needed something to pay the bills.

The 'patch' they gave me had already been well-and-truly over saturated. Every door I knocked on either already had it or had had it, got jack of it, and never wanted to hear about Pay TV again. I can tell you for those few months of slogging it out, pounding the pavement, I've never heard so many colourful forms of the phrase "take a hike"

One bloke even threatened to set his two huuuge dogs on me.....

The funny thing is, I really enjoyed the company of my fellow workers. There was a real camaraderie between the troops...as we all knew what the coming day presented us with!

Pulled beers in a few dodgy pubs over the years, too.

Best job? I've had some great radio gigs over the years. I enjoyed being Sports Editor at a radio station in Geelong for 18 months back about 5 years ago. Attended every and any major sporting event I wanted in Melbourne. Covered the Oz Open tennis...Rip Curl Pro at Bells...and of course, followed the Cats around in the AFL and got to be part of the live call team covering the footy. Also some great breakfast host jobs on a number of stations around the traps.

astroron (Ron) · #16 10-09-2009, 08:47 PM

Scrubbing the steps of the old bus station under the Brisbane Mall by hand on my hands and Knees and being spat on by drunks.
British Army, flying all over the world and getting paid to do it.
there where some crap times, but the good times outweighed the bad.

DJDD · #17 10-09-2009, 08:57 PM

worst job: pizza hut store manager...

between uni and a job...one month...chucked it in and my wife supported me... why so bad? just finished a PhD and could not get a job...depressing...

also, saw the worst in people...

best job: still looking...

Fossil (Jonathan) · #18 10-09-2009, 09:17 PM

Best job I ever had - Police Officer

Worst job I ever had - Police Officer

dpastern (Dave Pastern) · #19 10-09-2009, 09:18 PM

Some really interesting jobs here, keep them coming

DJDD - it'll happen, give it time.

Dave

dpastern (Dave Pastern) · #20 10-09-2009, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fossil

Best job I ever had - Police Officer

Worst job I ever had - Police Officer

That's one tough job, I don't envy you. I know the police cop a lot of flack (some if it deservéd imho), but on the average, you guys do a grand job for very poor pay and conditions.

Dave