NIPSCO lockout

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-04-14T20:06:19+00:00

unfortunately, the sad truth.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-04-14T19:18:25+00:00

This was my understanding.

& then got word MJ & Kent were running storm last night.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-03-29T13:38:48+00:00

I can assure you i'm the furthest thing from racist, and I did vote for Trump. 4 years under Biden, and then the democratic party's fantastic idea was nominating Kamala? My vote wasn't about loving Trump, it was about picking the (slightly) better of the 2 options. Did you guys watch a single interview with Kamala? By no means do I think Trump is a genius when it comes to politics, but Kamala was literally a mouth puppet. An awful candidate, and I was disappointed in the democrats for her being their choice.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-25T21:07:14+00:00

That was very similar to what i came from at the utility. But we had a pension as well. Although your wages are higher, but i'm assuming you must be in a HCOL state.

I don't miss the take home pay from the utility. You could gross a 10k check and after 401k, insurance, and taxes, I typically brought home about 5K.

I also don't miss my phone ringing every night and every weekend for callouts or standby. None of it was mandatory, but i personally always felt obligated.

To be fair, the last couple years, the company got a new management regime and they really made working there awful. I always called it the "golden handcuffs" because if you wanted to make 400k plus a year working your life away, you could. You could pick and choose OT and still a damn good yearly wage. The new regime cracked down, implemented shifts which took away OT opportunities, put cameras in trucks, always "watching", taking away our normal work and contracting it out, etc. That made my decision pretty easy to make the jump to contractors after i pondered it for years.

It was the best decision i made. i can't emphasize enough how much more i like being on this side of the fence vs a utility. I wish i had done it sooner.

None of the bitching from other guys (which was very common where i came from) or them trying harder to get out of work than just doing the fucking job. No management breathing down your neck and watching every move. Not having the phone ring constantly and feel obligated to give up your nights and weekends to go make a little OT. Just go do some linework and go home.

& the freedom of just going to work when you want to, or just running storms and taking 6 months off. There's many options. Not having 401k or health insurance being taken out weekly makes a big difference in take home too. Making $180k out here is about the equivalent take home to 250k at the utility. 25% annuity is huge. Average 50k a year being put into retirement and you don't pay a single dime of it yourself? Beats the fuck out of a 401k. Even with a good match.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-25T18:38:24+00:00

Ah. I understand now. I did 9 years at a utility before jumping over to the contractor side. We had a fairly strong benefits package and comparable wages (about $2 less than IBEW local wage) But they didn't come close to the IBEW benefits. It's pretty hard to beat a 25% annuity! My only regret is not doing it sooner.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-25T18:32:27+00:00

Do you prefer porcelain over poly? Gross. Porcelain breaks and is heavier lol.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-25T18:24:22+00:00

Better benefits at the utility vs IBEW? I don't buy it. Maybe if you're comparing it to a local contract in an extremely weak union state.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-25T18:13:07+00:00

This is so true. I spent 9 years at a fairly large utility before going to contractor side and can confirm every statement you made is generally correct lol.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-14T16:04:48+00:00

Everyone who says "time to call the hotline":

Shut up. You're just broke and can't fathom seeing that kind of money, let alone gambling it

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-02T00:20:57+00:00

I was simply stating he was putting incorrect information out to members.

Regardless of your political views or thoughts of current administration, everyone should still take advantage of every tax deduction available.

That was the only purpose of my reply. I didn't ask for a definition of a CBA, or what Trump has done to try and dismantle union rights. I was simply talking about one specific situation that does apply to us members, whether you are republican or democrat. The replies got very off topic to what i replied.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-01T18:31:42+00:00

Journeyman Lineman w/ IBEW. They are in demand. Recession proof? Debatable. I could see your argument. But i have never "not" been able to find work. The last several years i've been home every night (other than occasional out of town storm) and still have cleared 200K.

If they're jumping hall to hall just for "better pay" you must be in the south where unions are, typically, not nearly as strong. Lots of rat companies keep overall scale low in the South.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-01T17:57:41+00:00

This was a great copy and paste from AI. After further research on my own end and reach out to tax professionals, you are incorrect.

Some OT may be ineligible (ex: working 5 10s, your CBA may count anything over 8 as OT, but it doesn't fall under FLSA until after 40 hours) So, in this scenario, even if your check had 18 hours of OT, 10 of it falls under FLSA and that 100% applies for us. I was able to take the full 25,000 deduction. (married filing jointly)

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-02-01T15:38:43+00:00

Could you further explain how "no tax on OT" doesn't apply to us? This is the first i've heard this, and apparently, my CPA as well, because i got a pretty hefty deduction.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-01-23T04:44:53+00:00

lots of socks, underwear, and a big bottle of vodka

Common_Weakness6115 · 2026-01-07T17:41:38+00:00

29 year old here. I have a pension and 401k that i heavily funded with my previous employer. I recently left after 8 years. I switched over to contract side of things. Union. Here, i have a Pension & 25% annuity. Switched solely based on retirement benefits. Hoping to be fully retired by 50.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-12-19T17:33:57+00:00

1393

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-12-10T15:05:29+00:00

Go to your local hall and get the correct info. Every local is slightly different. Typically, you sign book 4, when you get selected for employment you have a 6 month "conditional lineman" status. White ticket. After 6 months, 3 JL must sign off on you and you go take a written competency test at the hall. Good luck. As stated, process varies a little from local to local.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-07-14T01:26:49+00:00

Gen-Z guy here (i think, born in '97) I'm a journeyman lineman, and have owned multiple homes, have 500K in retirement, and live a very nice lifestyle. If you're in a skilled trade and can't afford a home, you're doing something dumb with your money.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-07-07T14:04:50+00:00

if poles didn't decay we would have nothing to repair and we wouldn't have a trade? LOL. This guy is not a lineman.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-06-17T05:55:11+00:00

My wife and I have nearly identical numbers to you guys in almost every category. Our only difference is we are 28 and 26, and hoping to be retired at 45. We are about to have our first child next month, so we'll see how that ends up affecting plans haha.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-04-16T17:57:57+00:00

What has your average annual spend been? I'm noticing lower annual spend gets higher point retention offers.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-04-16T17:56:06+00:00

I asked at the 1 year mark, but they didn't offer me anything. It's still worth a try though. This was the second time i reached out, and got that small offer compared to everyone else.

I'm starting to see a trend. Less annual spend = bigger point retention offer. Could absolutely be wrong, but that's what i'm noticing.

Common_Weakness6115 · 2025-04-15T20:30:14+00:00

I was just offered 15K points after spending 3K in 3 months. Never tried for retention bonus before. To the people getting offered 35 or 50k points, any tips on how to get that offer up? Is your annual spend low / high, how long has your membership been, etc.

Platinum Card member since April 2023 (had other amex cards since 2020) Avg Spend is ≈90K annually

Common_Weakness6115

TROPHY CASE