FIFO Life: The “Off Roster” Balancing Act

Posted: 18/10/2012 5:00:00 AM by Sarah Mitchell, Director, Mining Oil and Gas Jobs
Filed under: Job-seekers, Mining, Oil-and-gas, Energy

A discussion on the FIFO; workers or families of  Facebook group about managing your time ‘off roster’ caught my eye. As someone who has been on both sides of the FIFO equation, I know firsthand getting the balance between family time, relaxation and time with friends is a tricky proposition.

Dilemma
Anyone that’s put in more than one swing knows the time ‘off roster’ is not a holiday. While your network at home may view it this way, most FIFO workers return from a shift feeling fatigued and needing some down time. If you have a family waiting – especially one with young children – it can be a particularly difficult situation for everyone involved.

 By the same token, the partner left behind is usually shouldering a larger burden to keep things ticking along. Housework, gardening and general maintenance all fall to one person. People acting as a single parent can be just as worn out as the FIFO worker. [Hindi problema sa atin kasi maraming ma-utusan. That's one advantage of going to Phil during roster-out. Another is, the FIFO Pinoy will be spending in peso.]

Conflict
Every situation is different and so is every family. Some FIFO workers come home and want to hole up in the house and spend all their time with their partners, kids, and pets. Others can’t wait to expand their social life and go out to catch up with their mates. Often extended families will delay celebrations and special occasions to ensure everyone can attend which adds pressure to an already strained schedule.
Regardless of your roster, the time you spend away from work goes far too quickly. If you have a family, a 4:1 roster - or even a 2:1 - the week at home is gone before you know it. What’s the best way to balance time with:
•   your partner
•   immediate family
•   extended family
•   friends
Setting some ground rules helps and so does a bit of planning.

Advanced scheduling
It’s easy for the time to slip away or get eaten up priorities that aren’t necessarily in line with your own. Before you know it, you’re headed back to the airport and leaving a lot of disappointed people behind. Whatever your situation, it’s been my experience that things tick along easier if you keep a schedule.

Trust me on this. I’m not a ‘schedule’ person but adding some structure to your time off alleviates a lot of conflict and hurt feeling

Master Plan
Either you or your partner at home should keep a master plan for your time off roster. Before your flight touches down, the most important priorities should be written in. It might be watching your child’s footy game, attending a dance recital, or having a night out with your partner. Make sure those key dates are blocked out and unmovable.

Next, make sure to schedule some leisure time doing things you want to do. These are the activities necessary to recharge your own batteries. They might be activities you do alone or with other people. If you don’t make sure you have some time for yourself, things are going to go wrong very quickly.

Let people know when you have gaps in your schedule. Instead of making vague promises of meeting for a drink or planning a barbecue, it’s much easier to phone or text people and say, “I’m free on Thursday afternoon and Saturday morning. Can we get together during that time?”

Keeping control
Lastly, make sure to keep a firm hand on your schedule. I had to tell a dear friend he couldn’t drop by without calling. It caused some hard feelings in the beginning but it was easier than constantly being in trouble. You’ll need to be just as firm with family members, too.

Working a FIFO job is an intense experience presenting challenges to both the worker and the extended network of that person. Planning ahead and keeping a schedule is the best way to ensure everyone gets the time they need without leaving a lot of disappointed and frustrated people behind. Be upfront and clear with the people who care about you. By setting expectations before your plane touches down, you’re likely to have a more relaxing time while you’re away from site.

Australian Mining 20 August, 2012 Andrew Duffy

An increasing amount of fly-in fly-out workers are having trouble coping with the lifestyle pressure of mining, and companies are now turning to less experienced staff to fill the gap.
AAP reports recruitment firm Hays said it was receiving more feedback that FIFO mining workers weren't coping with living away from home.
Hays also said workers were finding it difficult to live with the limited services and amenities provided at remote camps.
While there were still some employees capable of working in the harsh conditions Hays officials told AAP that FIFO work was not something that should be chosen "just for the money".
In its latest economic roundup Treasury reported mining firms were still experiencing acute skills shortages, particularly in specialised fields.
"In some cases, there were reports that this could lead to either sourcing less experienced staff or breaking up contract work into smaller parts," it said.

Yes, multitude. RG alone might be difficult to get a job outright. But if a group of varying transferrable skills – kitchen aides, gardeners, plumbers, mechanics, landscape artists, engineers, et al – apply together – enough to launch a pending project or mini-project  .....
Another factor to consider here is chartering a plane. Must have enough FIFO passengers to shuttle from Philippines to Australian mining towns and vice versa.
Strenuous. Vaguely remember Dawg mentioning this. Don’t think the case. Many, perhaps most, mines are over-employed. Two valid reasons for this: 1) labour turnover in the mines is very high; 2) very difficult to find replacements. Why this is so? More on boredom than on toilsomeness.

“Interdependence is better than independence”
- Covey