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Professor Suzanne Baxter was preparing for her first class of hiring people. Come to think of it, we didn't meet a single LINK the semester when Shaun O'Neill knocked lightly on the open manager during that process. Maybe things would have been door and announced himself: "Hi, Professor, I don't suppose different if some of those LINK supervisors had interviewed us. you remember me?" Professor Baxter had large classes, but she "Working on LINK650 was a real shock, even though most did remember that Shaun was a student in her organizational of us had some experience working in the oil fields. I'd say that behaviour class a few years ago. Shaun had decided to work in none of the 50 nontechnical people hired was quite prepared the oil industry for a couple of years before returning to school for the brutal jobs on the oil rig. We did the dirtiest jobs in the to complete his diploma. biting cold winds of the North Sea. Still, during the first few "Welcome back!" Baxter said as she beckoned him into the months most of us wanted to show the company that we were office. "I heard you were working on an oil rig in the United dedicated to getting the job done. A couple of the new hires Kingdom. How was it?" quit within a few weeks, but most of the people hired with me "Well, Professor," Shaun began, "I had worked two summers really got along well-you know, just like the ideas you menin the Texan oil fields and my family's from Ireland, so I hoped to tioned in class. We formed a special bond that helped us through get a job on the LINK650. It's that new WestOil drilling rig that the bad weather and gruelling work. arrived with so much fanfare in the North Sea fields a few years "The LINK650 supervisors were another matter. They were ago. The LINK650 was built by LINK, Inc. in Texas. A standard mean taskmasters who had worked for many years on oil rigs in practice in this industry is for the rig manufacturer to manage the Gulf of Mexico or North Sea. They seemed to relish the idea its day-to-day operations, so employees on the LINK650 are man- of treating their employees the same way they had been treated aged completely by LINK managers with no involvement from before becoming managers. We put up with their abuse for the WestOil. We all know that drilling rig jobs are dangerous, but first few months, but things got worse when the LINK650 was they pay well and offer generous time off. A local newspaper shut down twice to correct mechanical problems. These setthere said that nearly one thousand people lined up to complete backs embarrassed LINK's management and they put more presjob applications for the 50 nontechnical positions. I was lucky sure on the supervisors to get us back on schedule. enough to get one of those jobs. The supervisors started to ignore equipment problems "Everyone hired on the LINK650 was enthusiastic and proud. and pushed us to get jobs done more quickly without regard We were one of the chosen few and were really pumped up to safety procedures. They routinely shouted obscenities at about working on a new rig that had received so much media employees in front of others. A couple of my workmates were attention. I was quite impressed with the recruiters-so were fired and a couple of others quit their jobs. I almost lost my several other hires-because they really seemed to be concerned job one day just because my boss thought I was deliberately about our welfare out on the platform. I later discovered that working slowly. He didn't realize-or care-that the fittings I was the recruiters came from a consulting firm that specializes in connecting were damaged. Several people started finding ways to avoid the supervisors and get as little work done as possible. Many of my coworkers developed back problems. We jokingly called it the 'rigger's backache' because some employees faked their ailment to leave the rig with paid sick leave. "Along with having lousy supervisors, we were always kept in the dark about the problems on the rig. Supervisors said that they didn't know anything, which was partly true, but they said we shouldn't be so interested in things that didn't concern us. But the rig's problems, as well as its future contract work, were a major concern to crew members who weren't ready to quit. Their job security depended on the rig's production levels and whether WestOil would sign contracts to drill new holes. Given the rig's problems, most of us were concerned that we would be laid off at any time. "Everything came to a head when Bob MacKenzie was killed because someone secured a hoist improperly. Not sure if it was mentioned in the papers here, but it was big news around this time last year. A government inquiry concluded that the person responsible wasn't properly trained and that employees were being pushed to finish jobs without safety precautions. Anyway, while the inquiry was going on, several employees decided to unionize the rig. It wasn't long before most employees on LINK650 had signed union cards. That really shocked LINK's management and the entire oil industry because it was, I think, just the second time that a rig had ever been unionized there. "Since then, management has been doing everything in its power to get rid of the union. It sent a 'safety officer' to the rig. although we eventually realized that he was a consultant the company hired to undermine union support. Several managers were sent to special seminars on how to manage a unionized workforce, although one of the topics was how to break the union. "So you see, Professor, I joined LINK as an enthusiastic employee and quit last month with no desire to lift a finger for them. It really bothers me, because I was always told to do your best, no matter how tough the situation. It's been quite an experience