Oh, here’s an interesting job opportunity that I’ve got for this summer. Should I accept? My grandfather’s girlfriend’s daughter works for BP-Amoco in Alaska. Now they take “Summer Hires,” and I’ve got a possible opening.
• $16 dollars an hour, with 84 hour work weeks. 6AM to 6PM seven days a week, for two weeks in a row
• after two weeks working, you get two weeks off to do whatever you want, in Alaska
• Free room and board, live in a dorm-style facility
• Must pay airfare there and back
The work consists of “skut work” which apparently is just picking up trash and “moving items.” Sometimes if someone really knows computers, they can get a related job there.
What do people think? I have to reply by February, and my grandfather is going to get on my ass soon for a reply. Most people apparently do 3 of these 2 week work periods. I could be earning $10,000+. Which is roughly $10k more than I made last summer. Or the summer before that, or.. *cough* you get the idea.
But, of course if I do accept, I just know that I’d have to club seals or oil up birds. I mean. It’s BP-Amoco fer chrissakes!


It’s cold up there in Alaska. It’s up to you in the end. However, in my opinion, I’d stay and look for a better job in the continental US.
I don’t know about finding anything that would pay as well as this.
As a student of economics, we have a term for something like this. It’s called “compensating wage differential.” Basically, there are lots of people out there willing and able to do manual labor like this, so the labor market is competitive and wages should be basically the same everyplace. If the wage there is high, there must be a reason for it. Barring a dramatic worker shortage in Alaska (which I doubt), there’s probably something about the job that’s forcing them to pay so much. Think about what that might be before you accept.
Of course, I say this as I earn not nearly enough money working as a cashier. So what do I know.
I think I saw this on Malcom in the Middle